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Rip Van Winkle

3.54 of 5 stars 3.54 · rating details · 3,239 ratings · 96 reviews

Rip Van Winkle travels into the Catskill Mountains to spend the day, but somehow falls asleep and wakes up to a changed world. He had slept for 20 years! Where is his family? Find out what happened to Rip Van Winkle in this cautionary tale! Beautifully illustrated, this classic tale will capture children's interest and spark their imagination page after page, encouraging a

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Paperback, 110 pages

Published April 27th 2004 by Black Dome Press (first published 1819)

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Dec 30, 2008 Al rated it 4 of 5 stars

The subject of Rip Van Winkle came up in a game we were playing with Natalie (Are You Smarter Than a Fifth Grader?). (By the way, don't play this game unless you are very secure.) Anyway, she hadn't heard of it, so I got it from the library and read it to her. We both had fun. I learned that although it may be a tale that interests children, it's not a book easily read by elementary school children. The vocabulary is advanced. But with necessary translations, it worked out fine, and perhaps was...more

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Jul 25, 2008 Aimee rated it 2 of 5 stars

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Jan 03, 2013 Jessica rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: American literature fans

Shelves: 2013

Rip Van Winkle is a short story by 19th century American author, Washington Irving. What I like best about this story that, though it can be taken as a children's story, it is actually a complex satire that Irving is best known for (actually...kind of like Gulliver's Travels, now that I think about it).

Rip Van Winkle is an British colonist living in American before the Revolutionary war. He ends up drinking some magic liquor and wakes to find the world he knows completely different.

Rip is lazy...more

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Dec 21, 2012 Daniel Namie rated it 3 of 5 stars

"Even to this day they never hear a thunderstorm of a summer afternoon about the Kaatskill, but they say Hendricks Hudson and his crew are at their game of ninepins, and it is a common wish of all hen-pecked husbands in the neighborhood, when life hangs heavy on their hands, that they might have a quieting draught out of Rip Van Winkle's flagon."
--Washington Irving

The universal reality of Washington Irving words describes the hardship of marriage upon the solitary nature of man. The matriarchal...more "Even to this day they never hear a thunderstorm of a summer afternoon about the Kaatskill, but they say Hendricks Hudson and his crew are at their game of ninepins, and it is a common wish of all hen-pecked husbands in the neighborhood, when life hangs heavy on their hands, that they might have a quieting draught out of Rip Van Winkle's flagon."
--Washington Irving

The universal reality of Washington Irving words describes the hardship of marriage upon the solitary nature of man. The matriarchal suppression upon man jeopardizes the very notion of man's nature. This notion is evident in all generations. The concept of how women "suck the life out of men" is inherently true from the time of American Independence to modern day. Women of all ethnicities, colors, nationalities, social class have one common theme in relation to men—they want men to love them unconditionally. The very essence of women is to be cherishing and loving. And for all intensive purposes they are. But like men, women are needy, wanting, and dependent.

The needs of women are a complex to a simple man as rocket science. However, take the science out of the equation and the essential of women are revealed. The essentials are very common to the basic concept of child raising—eating, pooping, and lots of love. So much love in fact that it is a full time job to satisfy the loving need of a single woman. Thus, a reason why so many men fail in the love department. It's not so much organic sex that completely satisfies a woman but the other stuff that is so unnatural for a man. It’s the constant attention to details, the multi-taking, and the conditioning. Over time, women naturally domesticate men into their likely. The biblical phrase "man was created in His image" is true from physical appear. Once a man become married, it's not His image that counts...it's Hers.

Wanting is not simply a woman's trait, but a man's as well. Both sexes want something from another. Women want love and constant attention. Men want love and to be left alone once and a while. It's not that men are solely solitary creature and women are socially progressive. It's that men have the wanting to find some peace in a little bite solitude. Where as women see the wanting for solitude as a means to avoid them. Interestingly that is so true, but only for a short amount of time. Men are like batteries, when just need time to recharge.

Dependency again is adherently characterized in both men and women. We are both emotionally dependent upon each other. Whether it’s a hard day at work or just the "time of the month," we are in some way supported by the opposite sex. Sometime the emotional support can be confusing to men. Men like to thing they can fix problems and for the most part when there is a problem that needs fixing logic takes over and the problem gets fixed. However, when a woman comes to her husband with a problem it’s not meant to be fixed. Women are searching for emotional support. Women want to be listened too and heard. They want to know they are right—that in some universe their conclusions they conjure are the right ones. The most important phrase a man can utter to his wife is "YOU ARE RIGHT."

Rip Van Winkle is a classical display of a happy man married to a wanting, needy, and dependent wife. In short, Rip Van Winkle was married to a woman. Like all marriages, both the man and the woman have needs, wants, and dependencies. In the short story, Rip was in search of some short-term peace in solitude. What he found was twenty years hibernation. When he woke, he found himself single, grown children, and the freedom to find solitude whenever he so desired. The lesson taken from the story of Rip Van Winkle is to understand the needs, wants, and dependence of both sexes in order to avoid sleeping through life.
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Aug 24, 2012 Carol rated it 4 of 5 stars

The short story opens with a beautiful description of the Catskill Mountains (which Irving never saw in person), at the foot of which is the village where the Rip Van Winkle lives during the late 1760s/ 1770s (while the area is still a colony of Great Britain under the rule of King George III.) Rip Van Winkle is a ‘‘simple, goodnatured fellow'' with a faithful dog Wolf, a son, a daughter, and a domineering wife. Rip is a favorite of the village community, and a group of men at the local tavern t...more

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Feb 24, 2012 Jennifer M. Hartsock rated it 4 of 5 stars

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. Washington Irving is known to be one of the “inventors of the modern short story,” incorporating elements of the “personal essay and fiction.”
The short story, “Rip Van Winkle,” begins with a man who is completely fascinated with the world around him. He is also a town favorite—“…a favorite among all the good wives of the village,” and “…the children of the village, too, [who] would shout with joy whenever he approached.”

Even so, Rip van Winkle’s wife resented him, and he seemed to dislike her...more Washington Irving is known to be one of the “inventors of the modern short story,” incorporating elements of the “personal essay and fiction.”
The short story, “Rip Van Winkle,” begins with a man who is completely fascinated with the world around him. He is also a town favorite—“…a favorite among all the good wives of the village,” and “…the children of the village, too, [who] would shout with joy whenever he approached.”

Even so, Rip van Winkle’s wife resented him, and he seemed to dislike her back. On a walk to put some space between them, Rib van Winkle discovers a band of merry Dutch men, drinks some of their liquor, and falls asleep. When he awakens, he learns that he’s been asleep for twenty years, the town doesn’t know him, and everything has changed. In time, the town’s folk recall who he is, and voice their desire to have slept through the American Revolution.

When the first travelers came to America, they sought beauty, opportunity, and promise. Rip van Winkle explains how every new day brings change to the scenery. “When the weather is fair and settled, [the mountains] are clothed in blue and purple, and print their bold outlines on the clear evening sky.” When his wife nags and belittles him, Rip van Winkle seeks solitude in the woods. “…there is something strange and incomprehensible about the unknown, that inspire[s] awe, and check[s] familiarity.” He drinks down the opportunity to be someone else for a moment—“one taste provoked another”—and wakes to realize it’s been twenty years. A lot of the time, the American Dream isn’t a perfect package. When existing outside of society, like Rip van Winkle did, “all [may seem] strange and incomprehensible. One may find himself “alone in the world.” However, the town’s people recognize him as their own—something many of the new settlers wanted, yet not all could have. The promise of individuality had, at last, been kept. The war was over, and America was liberated. Rip van Winkle was “now a free citizen of the United States.”
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Sep 08, 2011 Janeen-san rated it 4 of 5 stars

We all know the classic tale of Rip Van Winkle, a man who falls asleep and a wakes up years later. I liked this story better than I thought I would. The vocabulary is complex, and I had to look up some words, but when I understood them it made the story all the more fun to read. Also, there were a lot of things about this story that evaded me!
I always thought he slept for a hundred years, and I had no idea his wife was so horrible. (Or even that he had a wife!) As I was reading I got a sense s...more We all know the classic tale of Rip Van Winkle, a man who falls asleep and a wakes up years later. I liked this story better than I thought I would. The vocabulary is complex, and I had to look up some words, but when I understood them it made the story all the more fun to read. Also, there were a lot of things about this story that evaded me!
I always thought he slept for a hundred years, and I had no idea his wife was so horrible. (Or even that he had a wife!) As I was reading I got a sense she was truly wicked; she beat the dog, yelled at her husband, Rip, and continuously stalked around the village, screaming at the other villagers for being idle and encouraging her husband's laziness.
The version everyone knows is that Rip falls asleep, but it doesn't say where: In the mountains, where he scurried away to avoid his storming wife. She must have been really mad for him to go there!
He meets a group of mysterious people (later, revealed to be Hudson's supporters, to look over the Hudson River, which was near the village) and he goes with them to a natural, stone amphitheater--where he promptly gets drunk on some (magic?) beer, falls asleep, and wakes in the same dell where he dosed off the previous (or so he thinks) afternoon, to find that he has been sleeping for 20 years! (whereas I thought it was a hundred.)
His entire world has changed, his young daughter is now married with children, and everyone else he knows is dead. During the time he was asleep, the English colonies preformed the Revolutionary War, and United States was successfully formed. But he could care less about that, what really mattered to him was that his angry wife was dead ("she broke a blood vessel in a fit of passion at a New-England settler) and he was quite happy to be rid of her. I thought that part was funny =)
To conclude my review, I liked this better than I thought I would, and enjoyed looking up the long words, and I'm glad I read it because things about the story that I never knew were revealed to me. I enjoyed reading this book, even if it was only a disappointing 35 pages! (The online edition was). I sort of wish the story continued longer! A very interesting read; I probably would have never picked it up if it hadn't been for school =) 4 stars(less)

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Aug 28, 2010 Bruce rated it 5 of 5 stars

This short story by Washington Irving is familiar to every American and has become part of our national mythology. Rereading it after many years was fun and also raised a number in thought-provoking issues.

The changes that Rip experienced after his twenty-year sleep were profound but would be minimal to us over a similar period today, change has so markedly accelerated. Think of twenty years ago today, in 1990. In “information age” changes are only one example – consider computer technology. And...more

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Apr 20, 2013 Shawn Thrasher rated it 4 of 5 stars

Whether he was setting out to do so or not, Washington Irving was creating American folklore when he wrote "Rip Van Winkle" and "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow." In 1819 when "Rip Van Winkle" was written, the United States was still a young country (comparatively speaking, it still is), and while immigrants had brought their own stories from the old world, there wasn't an American folklore tradition. Obviously Native Americans had a rich folklore, and interestingly Washington Irving ties them toget...more

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Nov 30, 2012 Jowayriah Rahal rated it 3 of 5 stars

I don't know what to think of this book . I've just finished it and I am still trying to get myself out of this peculiar tale . Well , to be honest , I gotta admit that three hours ago , i've been roaming aimlessly on the net trying to find some of MJ's favourite poems and books .
When I read the title , I wondered whether a such weird and ( allow me to say ) uncanny title would stand as a name of a character or a place ! I heard of it before but never did i have the guts to read it ! So,I shoul...more

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Nov 02, 2012 Jd rated it 4 of 5 stars

I really like Washington Irving's style, I've never read any of his works before but he reminds me of a Nathaniel Hawthorne in 2 ways. The first being that both Irving and Hawthorne use "found" or "lost" writings as a way to tell their stories and create a sense of realism. The 2nd way in which I think they're similar is that both authors write about a time in America when most of the country was still regarded with mystery.
I'd recommend this book to anyone who likes stories/legends about ear...more

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Jan 01, 2012 Erich Franz Guzmann rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: fiktion, klassiker, fantasy, jugend, kinder, kurzgeschichte, horror, 1810s, own, nordamerika, kultur, dramen, ethnology, existentialism, firearm, hollywood, humoristische, illustriert, male-protagonist, meisterwerk, mystery, psychologisch, wanderlust, weltanschauung

A very interesting story indeed, I'm sure for adults and children a like. There's a reason that this book has been so popular, even to this day. So, if you haven't given it a shot by now, then it's definitely time. It won't take up too much of your time and even the time it does take it'll definitely be worth it.

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Jan 07, 2012 Mimi rated it 5 of 5 stars

After reading The Legend of Sleepy Hollow and American folklore icon Ichabod Crane, I decided to continue the trend by visiting with another Washington Irving icon, Rip Van Winkle. Rip Van Winkle is another figure that I have "lived" with all my life through song, short films and the old-fashioned oral tradition and yet this is the first time I actually read the story itself. The lazy & henpecked Rip Van Winkle is so endearing and I am so glad that he got away from the shrewish Dame Van Wink...more

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Dec 23, 2012 Mare rated it 3 of 5 stars

One of the characters in a book I just finished referred to this story. I’ve heard it of course, but must admit I’ve never read it. Now I have.
Rip Van Winkle was a kind man who loved to help his fellow man. Unfortunately he was too lazy to work on his own farm & help out at home; which aggravated his wife. But the town folk loved him because he wasn’t averse to helping for free… he only appeared to have an aversion to paying jobs. Anyway, while walking in the woods one day a stranger asked...more

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Nov 07, 2012 Melissa rated it 3 of 5 stars

Rip Van Winkle is a man who lives with his family in the Catskill Mountains before the American Revolutionary War. One day he escapes his nagging wife by going up into the mountains. He shares a few drinks of liquor with a stranger he meets and falls asleep under a tree. He awakes to find that 20 years have past, a revolution has taken place and his wife has died. His grown daughter takes him in. It's a quirky short story, but not one that was terribly impressive. As a side note, I had no idea t...more

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Oct 29, 2012 Lindsey rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: readwithkid, 2012

I picked this classic up at the library when my little guy picked out The Legend of Sleepy Hollow to read. I don't think I ever read these classic American short stories when I was younger.

I thoroughly enjoyed Rip Van Winkle. The illustrations are just fantastical and I was surprised to read the story deals much with marital discord as well as the Revolutionary War. The language/poetry of the story was beautiful to me too.

Fantasies are wonderful to help us escape, but it terrifies me that one c...more

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Jun 07, 2013 Wedad Rami rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: my-bookcase, books-2013

At the beginning of the story , I hate Rip Van Winkle's personality due to his carelessness and laziness ..But later on , I changed my attitude towards him when I discovered that he has a shrewish wife who keeps dinning in his ears and also who leads him to escape to the woods from her evils , and as a result to fall into a sleep for 20 years in the cave .. Then at the end of the events , he awaken to find a new world around himself .. also to find himself alone in this strang world .. I felt so...more

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Sep 19, 2008 Dusty rated it 3 of 5 stars

Lots of fun, especially in October

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Aug 27, 2012 Kaethe rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: adventure, classics, domesticity, fantasy, fiction, friendship, dogs, stories, time-travel, usa, war

Last night at supper we were talking about the various kinds of fey characters of human folklore, and the Spouse said Rip had spent his twenty years (relative) among hairy gnomes. I didn't remember that at all, so it seemed I'd have to read the story again. At thirty years remove from the original reading, all I could recall was the simplest plot: that Rip drinks among the fey, comes back to town 20 years later.

I'm glad I re-read it, because there's much more to the Irving telling. Kind of horri...more

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May 15, 2009 Julie rated it 3 of 5 stars

This was quite the vocabulary exercise for me! The husband wants to do about anything but keep his farm and the wife spends her time nagging him about it. In this version, it seems that the wife is the bad character (to be escaped from) because Rip himself is such a fun person even if he can't seem to keep to his work to provide. In the children's book version it seemed to be swapped...that the good for nothing husband wasn't doing his duty, though the wife wasn't any too kind about it, he deser...more

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Jan 06, 2013 Blossom rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Interesting story. I've not read anything that I am aware of by Washington Irving prior to reading this short story. The story of Rip Van Winkle has been greatly embellished as time has gone on. The original is short, to the point and without a lot of extras. I do think that it has an underlying agenda, perhaps, but it isn't blatantly obvious. It is there, you just have to have the right mindset perhaps to find it.

Good for a children's story as well as adults.

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Oct 19, 2009 Cody rated it 4 of 5 stars

It's unfortunate that more people read this story as a child. There is so much more to the story of Rip Van Winkle that a young reader will never pick up on. First, Irving's tale offers a critical comment on the institution of marriage. More importantly, however, the story of Rip Van Winkle shows the insignificance of the political events we see as monumental in comparison to the constancy of nature.

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Jul 13, 2010 BJ Rose rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: classics, library-books

I enjoyed this trip down memory lane with a reread of a beautifully constructed tale - about a lazy lout who escaped up into the hills to avoid the deserved nagging of his wife, and ended up sleeping for 20 years, right through the American Revolution. Washington Irving could paint wonderful word-pictures, and the reading was made even more enjoyable by the lovely illustrations of N.C. Wyeth.

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Feb 26, 2010 Joe rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fiction, classic, audiobook

I read this as a child and I don't quite remember it being this "grown up"; the language is beyond what most grade schoolers would be accustomed to understanding; still it's the tale of a man who sleeps for 20 years and awakens to a new day--but he still ages (smile). The nuances would be lost to those under high school age. A cool 40 minute listening experience that is very Washington Irving.

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Jan 31, 2009 Krisette Spangler rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: classics

This is the story of Rip Van Winkle, the man who falls asleep in the mountains for twenty years. I've read many versions of this in my youth, but had never sat down with the actual Washington Irving tale. The illustrations by Arthur Rackham are a must have. I've been reading all of the books with his illustrations lately, and I love his art work.

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Oct 30, 2012 Jay rated it 4 of 5 stars

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Mar 06, 2013 Janosch rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: short-stories

This is funny! No need for a detailed review, which I could not write anyways. Short but great story. Had a lot fun reading it. I felt a bit sad for the protagonist, but somehow I was thrilled by the very idea of such an mysterious adventure. :) I consider this a must read.

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Jul 26, 2012 Elisa rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Cute but much too short. I feel it could've been fleshed out more for better impact. Still, it's enjoyable (I especially liked how the men from the "future" are first and foremost concerned with Rip's political inclinations). One more story that confirms Irving's wonderful storytelling abilities.

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Jul 05, 2012 Schmacko rated it 2 of 5 stars

I read three Irving novellas. Everyone knows this story in some rough form. Here, Irving uses the same overly florid descriptions he seems so fond of - the description of the forest floor... I was also amazed at how little of this had a plot or drive.

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Oct 03, 2011 Kayla Schum rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: folklore

This book is about a man who goes up in the mountains and drinks something and falls asleep for 20 years. When he wakes back up everything and everyone has moved on throughout the 20 years. I would use this book in my class for entertainment.

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About Washington Irving

Washington Irving was an American author, essayist, biographer and historian of the early 19th century. He was best known for his short stories "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" and "Rip Van Winkle", both of which appear in his book The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent. His historical works include biographies of George Washington, Oliver Goldsmith and Muhammad, and several histories of 15th-centu...more

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Books by Washington Irving

The Legend of Sleepy Hollow and Other Stories

Legend Of Sleepy Hollow and Rip Van Winkle

The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, Rip Van Winkle and Other Stories (the Sketch-Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent.)

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“A tart temper never mellows with age, and a sharp tongue is the only edged tool that grows keener with constant use.” — 26 people liked it

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