You know that movie "Dumb and Dumber"? Of course you do! Well, Don Quixote is the original version of that. It's unbelievable that the hilarity of this clever, clever Cervantes' novel has held relevant for 500 years. If you've taken even a basic Spanish class, I'm sure you've studied at least a bit of Don Quixote, by far the most famous Spanish novel.

This is a great translation for recreational readers and is surprisingly entertaining and easy to read. However, be prepared to set aside a major chunk of time to get through the packed 1,000 pages. One thing that surprised me is that nearly all of the famous Don Quixote scenes such as his great battle with a windmill happen in the first 50ish pages. It makes me wonder how many people take the time to get through the entire book. More people should. It is packed with action and creativity and will make you fall in love with a madman and a dolt.

Some of my favorite parts of the books are the upfront descriptions of each chapter that are written to give you a heads up about what you're about to read. Most of them specifically tell you about the subject matter, but I loved some of the completely random ones:

Chapter XXXI
Which deals with a great many things

Chapter LVIII
Which recounts how so many adventures rained down on Don Quixote that there was hardly room for all of them

Chapter LXVI
Which recounts what will be seen by whoever reads it, or heard by whoever listens to it being read (my favorite!)

Chapter LXX
Which follows chapter LXIX, and deals with matters necessary to the clarity of this history

Brilliant!