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Candide
Candide: Or Optimism (Penguin Classics Deluxe Edition) | Francois Voltaire
113 posts | 347 read | 4 reading | 77 to read
"All is for the best in the best of all possible worlds"It was the indifferent shrug and callous inertia that this "optimism" concealed which so angered Voltaire, who found the "all for the best" approach a patently inadequate response to suffering, to natural disasters, not to mention the questions of illness and man-made war. Moreover, as the rebel whose satiric genius had earned him not only international acclaim, but two stays in the Bastille, flogging, and exile, Voltaire knew personally what suffering entailed.In Candide he whisks his young hero and friends through a ludicrous variety of tortures, tragedies, and a reversal of fortune, in the company of Pangloss, a "metaphysico-theologo-comolo-nigologist" of unflinching optimism. The result is one of the glories of eighteenth-century satire.For more than sixty-five years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,500titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust theseries to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-datetranslations by award-winning translators.
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Tkimsal
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New Year‘s Eve Day vibes.

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Awk_Word_Smith
Candide | Voltaire
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I always liked Voltaire for some reason…

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groofay
Candide | Voltaire
Pickpick

I suspect there's something to be said about a book that hasn't lost any of its relevance for over 250 years. It's been probably 15-ish years since I first read Candide, and it's been my yardstick for every satirical novel I've read since. It has a time and a place, but it transcends both somehow, and you don't need to know the history around it to recognize the ideas it viciously assaults--though knowing the history makes it that much more fun.

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BekaReid
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Pickpick

This satire was full of wit and a great distraction. (And the cover/flap art on this Penguin Classics edition is fantastic.)

RaeLovesToRead Looks like it's illustrated by Chris Ware? 2y
BekaReid @RaeLovesToRead yes! It was illustrated by Chris Ware 2y
RaeLovesToRead I love his work but it tends to be very depressing 🌧 2y
16 likes3 comments
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BekaReid
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Snagging some outdoor reading time before the storm rolls in

8 likes1 stack add
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104_goodbuddyy
Candide | Voltaire
Pickpick

This novel was hard to put down. I was hooked with the adventures of Candide and his hopes of being with Cunegonde. This satire was witty and comical in so many places, yet serious and thought-provoking in others. It really played on the ideas of blind optimism and philosophy. It was definitely a good read.

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BekaReid
Candide | Voltaire
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Purchased this book solely based on the cover. Now it's waiting room reading

StaceGhost I had this edition and loved it 2y
11 likes1 stack add1 comment
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TheBookHippie
Candide | Voltaire
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Way more fun than I anticipated 😜 for my Russian French Lit challenge I joined on IG

Larkken I remember that this book was way more fun than anticipated, too! And a bit savage 😜 2y
TheBookHippie @Larkken RIGHT?! I love it. Much needed read! 😂 2y
JaclynW Cool book, definitely savage in places. Lots to talk about. I read this during the Covid lockdown in 2020 with my two oldest kids (at the time 14 and 17). We read it with a friend who teaches high school English and did Zoom calls to discuss. El Dorado! 2y
TheBookHippie @JaclynW Seriously had no idea! I just love it. Great discussion book! 2y
61 likes3 stack adds4 comments
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Andrea313
Candide | Voltaire
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Settling in with this lovely new-to-me copy of Candide- a Christmas gift from my husband who knows I love a good leather-bound classic! #CurrentlyReading

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Mtnwitch2012
Candide | Voltaire
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Getting ready to go back in time a notch.

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GinaKButler
Candide | Voltaire
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Starting this today as part of my Catching Up On The Classics Reading Challenge. #bookspinbingo

11 likes1 stack add
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martellax
Candide | Voltaire
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Pickpick

Candide lives a very unfortunate life which, admittedly bad as it sounds, is a very interesting one. Despite all the hardships he befalls i couldn‘t help myself from reading on. When his companions are tortured, murdered and contract STD‘s (things that indeed are not ideal) you can‘t help but wonder when do the hardships for this character stop? And essentially they just don‘t.

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Ast_Arslan
Candide | Voltaire
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Did anyone notice that I like #readathon?
So I'm going to join the #AnyWayYouReadathon by @kimmypete1 @Eggbeater @MidnightBookGirl together with the #awesomeAugust by @Andrew65

I do not know my goals for this one yet, I will figure them out 😂

Eggbeater Great! Thanks for joining! 3y
Ast_Arslan @Eggbeater you're welcome, it's a great challenge 😉 3y
Andrew65 Many of us are Readathonaholics! 🙋🏻‍♂️ 3y
See All 7 Comments
Ast_Arslan @Andrew65 😂🙋‍♀️ 3y
MidnightBookGirl Love having you on board! Readathons are addictive! 3y
Ast_Arslan @MidnightBookGirl you're so right 🤩 3y
kimmypete1 Thanks for joining! 3y
16 likes7 comments
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Ast_Arslan
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I am posting one book per day from my to-be-read collection. No description and providing no reason for wanting to read it. Some will be old, some will be new - don't judge me, I have a lot of books.

Day 107th

Join the fun if you want!

#tbrpile

17 likes1 stack add
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shortsarahrose
Candide | Voltaire
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Mehso-so

I see why it‘s a classic and once I got into the rhythm of the novel, it was even somewhat fun. I do feel like I would have gotten more out of it if I knew more about Volataire‘s time/culture. Glad I can finally say I read it, but mostly I‘m just like 🤷🏻‍♀️

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shortsarahrose
Candide | Voltaire
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“This philosopher was an honest man; but he had been robbed by his wife, beaten by his son, and abandoned by his daughter who got a Portuguese to run away with her. He had just been deprived of a small employment, on which he subsisted; and he was persecuted by the preachers of Surinam, who took him for a Socinian.”

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shortsarahrose
Candide | Voltaire
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“That is why the present is one of the right moments to republish ‘Candide.‘ I hope it will inspire younger men and women, the only ones who can be inspired, to have a try at Theodore, or Militarism; Jane, or Pacifism; at So-and-So, the Pragmatist or the Freudian. And I hope, too, that they will without trying hold their pens with an eighteenth century lightness, not inappropriate to a philosophic tale.”

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Gina
Candide | Voltaire
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I am having breakfast with Voltaire!

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GoneFishing
Candide | Voltaire

I should like to know which is worse: to be ravished a hundred times by pirates, and have a buttock cut off, and run the gauntlet of the Bulgarians, and be flogged and hanged in an auto-da-fe, and be dissected, and have to row in a galley -- in short, to undergo all the miseries we have each of us suffered -- or simply to sit here and do nothing?'
That is a hard question,' said Candide.

phantomx Candide! It has been such a long time since I read this book. Still cracks me up. 4y
30 likes2 stack adds1 comment
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coxoxoco
Candide, or Optimism | Francois Voltaire
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Pickpick

Re reas this, one of my all time faves.

"I should like to know which is worse: to be raped a hundred times by pirates, and have a buttock cut off, and run the gauntlet of the Bulgarians, and be flogged and hanged in an auto-da-fe, and be dissected, and have to row in a galley -- in short, to undergo all the miseries we have each of us suffered -- or simply to sit here and do nothing?'
That is a hard question,' said Candide."

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Lcsmcat
Candide | Voltaire
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I have a fourth edition around here somewhere that‘s more colorful, but I couldn‘t find it. #samebookdifferentcolor #biblioMAYnia @Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks @OriginalCyn620

OriginalCyn620 📚👍🏻📚 4y
Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks Pretty ❤️❤️ 4y
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ElleMNOpe
Candide | Voltaire
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Mehso-so

I gave this a bit of leeway because it is a classic. The writing is very succinct & straightforward, making the story quite accessible. It is humorous & filled with a lot of wit in addition to the satire, but is ridiculously over the top. Thankfully, it is very short, leading to a quick, easy read. It is quick moving & filled with action. Worth appreciating for its ability to withstand the test of time.

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sprainedbrain
Candide | Voltaire
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Mehso-so

I was never a big fan of satire or philosophy back in the days of required reading... turns out I‘m still not.

Outrageous and funny in parts, but mainly I was just glad it was short.

🥱

#1001books

⭐️⭐️⭐️

BekahB I think I need to give this a second try. I read this for a class in college and I spent the next week ranting to friends and family about how strange it was and that there were so many other, better books that we could have read instead. I don‘t think I can even give it a fair rating. 😂 4y
IMASLOWREADER omg i had to read it in college & it was agonizing lmao 4y
BarbaraBB I was underwhelmed too! 4y
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sprainedbrain I forgot to note that this was my #France book for #ReadingEurope2020. 😬 @BarbaraBB @Librarybelle 4y
sprainedbrain @BekahB @IMASLOWREADER I‘m not sure how I got through high school and college without being forced to read this... 😂 4y
Librarybelle Totally fine! It works perfectly for France 4y
meagankc21 I read this one in high school and remember loving it. I wonder if I'd still feel the same way now if I reread it 4y
106 likes1 stack add7 comments
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MatchlessMarie
Candide | Voltaire
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thebluestocking
Candide | Voltaire
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Mehso-so

I‘m not sure what I expected from this when I selected it on #serialreader but it wasn‘t satire. This was a short adventure satire about philosophy and the human condition. It‘s very readable for being published three hundred years ago. But I think I needed more context and more character development. An interesting read though; I think I would have enjoyed parsing it in a college class.

ErickaS_Flyleafunfurled All I remember is that someone‘s butt cheek gets eaten. Is that right? Am I misremembering something? 😧 4y
thebluestocking @ErickaS_Flyleafunfurled That‘s totally right. By monkeys. 🤷‍♀️ 4y
ErickaS_Flyleafunfurled Of course. 🤭🤣 4y
56 likes3 comments
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CoffeeNBooks
Candide | Voltaire
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I read this a very long time ago in high school, so I decided to reread it for my goal of #ReadingClassicsIn2019. Written by Voltaire, a French philosopher of The Age of Enlightenment, Candide is based on Voltaire's beliefs in reason and freedom of thought.

Lcsmcat One of my favorites! 4y
Dcueto Love this one!! 4y
72 likes1 stack add2 comments
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MarieMine
Candide | Voltaire
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“What is optimism?” asked Cacambo “Lord help me,” said Candide, “it‘s the madness of insisting that everything is good when it‘s bad.”

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M.V
Candide | Voltaire
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Pickpick

I feel french.

41 likes1 comment
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okthislooksbad
Candide | Voltaire
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Starting #24in48 a bit late (I like sleeping, sue me!) with my Serial Reader-title. I need all the coffee to deal with this rambly, gory mess before 10am ☕😂

Leniverse I like sleeping too. Just getting up now at nine. I mean, we need to be rested to stay focused on the reading, right? 5y
okthislooksbad @Leniverse It is the only way. Already, we are better off than the poor, less well-rested souls. I think. 😂 5y
27 likes2 comments
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tsundoker
Candide | Voltaire
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Pickpick

"If this is the best of possible worlds, what then are the others?"

Wildly entertaining. Candide's awful adventures are explored in a very funny way.

CoffeeNBooks Welcome to Litsy! 📚 I haven't read this since high school, so it's on my TBR stack to reread this year. 5y
12 likes1 comment
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Kristy_K
Candide | Voltaire
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Mehso-so

This was so over the top with calamities and dramatics. Voltaire shines a light on human nature and all its fallacies in this satire. At first it was enjoyable and funny but near the end I grew annoyed.

⭐️⭐️

#classic #LetterV #LitsyAtoZ

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Emilymdxn
Candide | Voltaire
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Mehso-so

Not personally a fan but I don‘t want to hold it against the book that I just don‘t really like the 18th century. I got that it was satire, I got that it was philosophical, and I suppose that should have made it feel less silly but it didn‘t really for me. The racist, anti-Semitic and sexist was very jarring and while obviously I understand it‘s from 300 years ago that doesn‘t mean I had a good time reading it. Nice to have ticked off a #1001books

SW-T Reading older books with a modern eye can make you cringe. 5y
andrew61 I read it last year for my classics a-z and listened to an episode of radio 4's 'in our time ' which really enhanced my interest in the story - it's available on itunes and bbc archive if you are interested. 5y
67 likes1 stack add2 comments
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Emilymdxn
Candide | Voltaire
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Looking through my kindle on the train for something to read and I picked this on a total whim, it‘s been sitting on my kindle for years and wasn‘t very high up my tbr but I picked it and looks like I‘m reading it now! One for #1001books and I‘m going to Paris for Easter weekend so it‘s very fitting.

I‘m heartbroken by the news about notre dame. I can‘t believe this could happen to such a beautiful symbolic building 9 centuries old

tournevis They are already planning abatement and fast tracking reconstruction. The fire isn't even out yet. I'm reassured. 5y
Chrissyreadit I agree that was sad news! 5y
63 likes2 comments
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Meaw_catlady
Candide | Voltaire
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Thought I would share a pic of my goodwill find of the month! A terrarium that plays Love Me Tender that I filled with crystals and an air plant I got from my library. We are doing an air plant program for Earth day and this guy was too big for the program. Also look at the awesome postcard I receive #JB from @SkeletonKey I love it! Also shown a piece of clear quartz and a piece of smoky quartz I collected.

tammysue So lovely 💜 5y
Leftcoastzen That is so very cool! Great find and a beautiful way to use it. 5y
SkeletonKey So glad it arrived! 5y
See All 6 Comments
Meaw_catlady @SkeletonKey thank you so much it brightened my day! And I love the quotes 🤗 5y
SkeletonKey @Meaw_catlady 💜💜💜 you‘re welcome 5y
27 likes6 comments
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Malisa
Candide | Voltaire
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Pickpick

You know those really bad fanfics where everyone dies and comes back to life and everything bad that could happen does happen yet the main character is completely fine? This is like that.

tournevis Yes! It is! Yes! 😆 5y
39 likes1 comment
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arielmonsen
Candide | Voltaire
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teacher lent copy. we swap books sometimes

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BestDogDad
Candide | Voltaire
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Five books in January, about my average. Some goodness in there and some pain. #januarywrapup

Erofan 👏 5y
13 likes1 comment
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vivastory
Candide | Voltaire
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I'm a day late for posting #AlwaysLookOnTheBrightSideOfLife but I just couldn't tear myself away from my #24in48 book.
I read Candide in a college philosophy course & have been meaning to reread it since I bought this delightful Penguin edition. Candide is taught by Professor Pangloss that we live in the best of all possible worlds. This optimism is quickly put to the test & Candide must decide the truth of his Professor's philosophy.
@Cinfhen

Sweettartlaura This book is referenced in one of my #24in48 reads, 5y
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Daisey
Candide | Voltaire
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Pickpick

I had planned to read this in print, but my current readalongs are requiring almost all of my reading time, so I downloaded the audio. I‘m so glad that I did, because this made for a great listen during my walks this weekend. I think it has the most humor of anything I‘ve read in which so many things go badly.

#audiobook #audiowalk #1001books
#Reading1001 January 2019 #TBRTakedown

CoffeeNBooks This is on my re-read list for this year- I haven't read it since high school. I should look into the audio of it! 5y
Daisey @CoffeeNBooks This version was read by Andrew Sachs. At the beginning I wasn‘t sure about his different voices, but as I listened they seemed to fit the style of the story. It also had short musical interludes between each of the chapters which I liked. 5y
JazzFeathers I have never read this. I'm not really into French literature, but now you have picked my interest. 5y
Daisey @JazzFeathers I‘m sure I missed some of the deeper meaning, but I got the gist and enjoyed the experience. It was much funnier than I expected. Plus, it‘s a fairly short read/listen. 5y
65 likes4 comments
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BestDogDad
Candide | Voltaire
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🤓

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BestDogDad
Candide | Voltaire
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Voltaire, you magnificent wordsmith! I read this in AP English in high school in the 80s. Forgot how great it was.

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Demeter2112
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My 2019 reading goal/Goodreads reading goal is 150 books. But I might bump it up later in the year.
Currently at 3/150.

TEArificbooks Great photo 5y
20 likes1 stack add1 comment
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MatchlessMarie
Candide | Voltaire
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I don't always consider a marriage proposal, but when I do, facial hair is of utmost importance 😅 #LitsyClassics #LetterV #SerialReader

80 likes1 comment
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archaeolibrarianologist
Candide | Voltaire
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ForCuriosity
Candide | Voltaire
Panpan

I had to read the book for our school summer assignment and while last year I enjoyed the book, it was “to kill a mocking bird”, this year was very different. The book was short but I wasn‘t a fan of the plot or writing style, which really doesn‘t leave much of the book to like. The only character I liked was Martin, as he was a realist and didn‘t fall for much.

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Mcoun
Candide | Voltaire
Pickpick

A classic satire that is a quick read. I‘m sure some of the jokes were lost on my modern brain, but there was still some obvious absurdity that was quite funny. I am looking forward to seeing the Leonard Bernstein musical later this year.

MaGoose I read it about 25 years ago and wasn't really a fan. 5y
63 likes1 stack add1 comment
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VioletBramble
Candide | Voltaire
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My August TBR pile. Candide is for the ColorCAT at #LibraryThing. The Bukowski is for the #PoetryChallenge. The rest of the month is catch-up time as I started three of these books for other challenges and never finished them. Hoping to start September fresh.
🏖🌴🌞🍉🎡📚

MaleficentBookDragon ♥ your Bob Ross. 6y
58 likes1 comment
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xicanti
Candide | Voltaire
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I didn't buy CANDIDE because I'm trying really, really hard not to acquire books unless I can start them right away, but I had to take a picture of it because this edition is so fun.