Ron Peters's Reviews > Monkey: The Journey to the West

This set of Chinese folk tales first published in the 16th century is perfectly delightful. A reviewer from The Nation, cited on the back cover, calls it a “combination of picaresque novel, fairy tale, fabliau, Mickey Mouse, Davy Crocket, and Pilgrim’s Progress.” At base, it is a story about a Chinese monk sent by the bodhisattva Kuan Yin on an epic journey to the west, to bring the teachings of Mahayana Buddhism to China, guarded and accompanied by his sidekicks, Monkey, Pigsy, and Sandy the dragon. They encounter every imaginable type of god, demigod, demon, monster, talking animal and fairy along the way. Waley kept the opening and ending chapters of the original intact and gave a selection of three multi-chapter episodes from their adventures as the middle of his abridged translation. I can’t understand why this isn’t as widely known in the West as Lord of the Rings or Star Wars. Anyone would enjoy this.