Vanity Fair (Penguin Classics)
by William Makepeace Thackeray
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Book Summary Information
Author: William Makepeace ThackerayEditor: John Carey
Edition: Paperback
Published: 2003-04-29
ISBN: 0141439831
Number of pages: 912
Publisher: Penguin Classics
Book Reviews of Vanity Fair (Penguin Classics)
Book Review: Great novel, terrible edition from Penguin
Summary: 2 Stars
I'm not reviewing Thackeray's novel, which is truly fantastic, but rather this Penguin edition, which is truly terrible. There are two major problems with this edition: the explanatory notes, which are clumsy, and the lack of Thackeray's illustrations. First, the notes: for some reason, the editors decided to divide the notes according to chapter numbers, rather than by page numbers, so that you need to remember what chapter you're reading in order to find the right note. This is extremely inconvenient. The Oxford edition, in contrast, more sensibly lists the notes by page number.
Second, the illustrations. In the Penguin edition's introductory "Note on the Text," the editor, John Carey, says that he chose to leave out the illustrations because they are "embarrassingly bad" owing to Thackeray's "incompetence as an artist." The fact is, some of the illustrations are really funny and good. More generally, a long text *with* illustrations is simply more entertaining than one without. Again, the Oxford edition does better by including all of Thackeray's images.
I generally really like Penguin editions of Victorian novels: their versions of Dickens's works are the best out there, I think. But Vanity Fair is an exception.
So do yourself a favor: read *Vanity Fair* and read the Oxford University Press edition.
Summary of Vanity Fair (Penguin Classics)
Edited by John Carey.Thackeray, William Makepeace Books
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