The Monkey and the Monk: An Abridgment of The Journey to the West

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Lucy Day Werts .

"The Monkey and the Monk" is an abridged version of the story, written by Anthony Yu, a scholar who previously translated the complete story. It has …more
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"The Monkey and the Monk" is an abridged version of the story, written by Anthony Yu, a scholar who previously translated the complete story. It has a six-page preface that gives a bit of history and context, but that is the only "explanation". Yu writes much more about the story in the introduction to his unabridged version.

There are only two complete English translations in total. The other one is by WJF Jenner. However, there are several abridgements, including the classic one by Arthur Waley and a recent one with a modern vibe by Julia Lovell.

For more information, including book covers, ISBNs, links to relevant articles, and extracts for comparison, visit We Love Translations: World Literature in English:

» What's the best translation of Journey to the West?

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