Six inch tall men! Where can I find them?Magic Carpet W/O Entry

There are few, whether into classics or not, who have not heard of Gulliver. Most of us are familiar at least with Gulliver's interesting times in Lilliput and regard this as an enduring tale of adventure for kids. The book was in fact written as a satire on the times, the politics and the state, as well as the nature of humans in general. Originally published anonymously in 1726, it immediately caught the imagination of young and old, and was the subject of both admiration and scorn of people in that age and also later in the Victorian era.

Lemuel Gulliver is a character created by Jonathon Swift, mainly to poke satirical fun at the political and sociological situation of the time. The book features four voyages of Gulliver to far away lands and not only display the writer's wit and humor but also his imagination. A highly successful book, both the author and the book has been the subject of many research projects and has been studied in depth by numerous scholars. There are many words and phrases introduced by Swift that have become a part of the lexicon. To understand his writing to the fullest, you also need to know something about the nature of those times, and Swift’s role and ideology in them. The stories however, also make excellent travel/adventure tales and can be enjoyed by young one's as such.

Though all the four tales are fantastic in their imagination, the first, set in the land of six feet tall men of Lilliput has been read by numerous kids in the centuries since the book was first published in some form of the other.

This version of Gulliver In Lilliput

Retold by many, this version by Margaret Hodges claims to narrate the story in a way Swift would have done if he himself was talking of his adventure to children.

The story is retold in simple language. The illustrations are by Kimberly Bulcken Root , and there are multiple scenes per page which are good to look at but not exceptional. Most of them are done in dark tones, and Gulliver, even on the cover is not a pleasant to look at.

The Story

Gulliver, who is a doctor is unable to make enough money in England to support a wife and two kids. Boy the times were different! He then sails off to a distant land to try to make more. He is the sole survivor of ship-wreck and swims to a distant shore, and falls asleep due to exhaustion. When he finally awakens, he finds himself unable to move and tied to the ground by many crisscrossing cords, and little six inch tall men walking all over him. Thus, begin his adventures in the land of the Lilliputians.

The natives are scared of him at first and keep him a prisoner. He gains their trust eventually by being kind and patient and convinces the emperor to set him free.

Gulliver then gets involved in the disputes within and without the state reluctantly and even has to resolve a dispute between Lilliput and the neighboring country of Blefuscu.

The people and emperor of Lilliput are happy and indebted to begin with. However, the courtiers are not so happy in his increasing powers he learns of a conspiracy to accuse him of High Treason. He then manages to escape to Blefuscu, who are elated to welcome him to their land.

Gulliver finally finds a boat on the shores of Blefuscu and eventually succeeds in returning to England.

My Impressions:

After reading this book, I did go back and read the Part I of the Gulliver's Travels by Swift. This retelling captures the gist of the story and highlights the important parts.

The details of the social and political life in Lilliput are left out, but they would not have had a place in this book anyway.

There are some words of lilliputian language included which add to the interest and imagination factor of the story.

However, I feel the illustrations set the tone for the book. They are dark and gloomy and make the story seem darker than it is. The story though an adventure story, has an underlying humor in it which can be conveyed to even the youngest child.

I would definitely recommend the story for any child three years old and up, probably retold in your own language allowing them to paint their own mental pictures. I would not recommend them getting their introduction to Gulliver through this book though. I remember many movies ruining perfectly good books. I am not always in agreement with the opinion that a picture is worth a thousand words. Sometimes if well crafted, words can not be matched by any picture.

The story by the author is well told, however, in my opinion the illustrations make the book not worth looking at. I am sure there is a better one out there just waiting to be picked up.

The review is a part of the Magic Carpet Write-off hosted by GreatPilgrim. The idea was to review a product that encourages kids to dream by sparking the imagination and taking them to other places and worlds.

When I first learnt of this write-off, I racked my brain to think of a suitable book in my son's collection. Unable to find one in his collection, I started to think of books that had made my imagination travel to new and unheard of worlds. Two travelers came to mind immediately; Sinbad and Gulliver. I had recently bought the Oxford University Press’s republished Gulliver's Travels as it was first published. I knew though that being an adult book, it would not work for this write-off. However, my mind was set on Gulliver. A trip to the library and I thought I had found what I was looking for. The travels of Gulliver definitely have the magic touch, just not in this book.

Other participating writers are:

angel011
Bluehawq
CjsMommy
Cripper
Donnie013
fallyn96
Greatpilgrim
Jankp
jenb123
Jeremy1456
Jillmkk
Kcfoxy
MaryTara
mind-full
nscanuck
tritter72

Please take time to check out their entries by visiting:

http://hometown.aol.com/sunstarbrow/writeoff.html