In all my research for my comedy, "A Visit From Voltaire," (amazon.co.uk) this was the obvious first source, BUT I have to add that I only understood it best after knowing what role it played in the political mayhem of his life fighting "infame," and only after I knew more about his social/irreligious context, did I really "get" what he was doing in Candide in order to incorporate it into my fantasy of his 21st century return. I'd send light readers to "Voltaire in Love," and wannabe scholars to the Portable Voltaire and whatever basic biographic texts they can find--my shelf is full of out-of-print biographies and eventually I lived at the Musee Voltaire in Geneva to really befriend him--the result was a book and great happiness in knowing this brilliant, mercurial mind!
Dinah Lee Küng

In a list of my six favorite books for "The Week" magazine, I wrote: "Whenever all seems lost, I pick up this 1759 tale of eternally optimistic yet misfortune-prone Candide's efforts to reunite with his true love. His ability to persevere in the face of mind-numbing self-delusion is awesome."

Where else can one read the narration of an optimist who looses his friends to death, escapes the European mainland, discovers utopia, returns to the mainland, and reunites with friends who were believed to be dead, while infused with the philosophical and political wit of Voltaire? Fabulous example of satire and genius.

"At this moment, there are a hundred thousand madmen of our species wearing hats killing or being killed by a hundred thousand other animals wearing turbans and that over almost all the face of the earth this has been the custom from time immemorial?" Voltaire speaking, possibly on the Iraq crisis?--In fact, Voltaire has something to teach us all on practically every subject I could think of in my free-wheeling literary comedy, 3A Visit From Voltaire,2 (amazon.co.uk) and this book was one of the most basic texts I could find in English before moving on to the French originals. It1s helpful to have read a biography of Voltaire--and Ben Ray Redman's introduction is one of the best quickie bios available with real insight into the man's personality--in order to put all these riches of Voltaire1s thoughts and writings into some kind of political context. I shamefully abused and excused the Wigged One's sayings and witticisms in my novel, but especially students need this delightfully condensed resource with a reliable feel for translation.
Dinah Lee Küng

With a shelf-full of books about the man to work from, this was my most dogged-eared English-language source for his many quips used and abused in my literary comedy, A Visit from Voltaire" (amazon.co.uk) because I needed to know how he actually sounded, to complement in-depth research into his struggle to Ecrasez-infame! It's well-organized, and checking the translations, I found they captured the spirit of Voltaire very well.
Voltaire afficionado
Dinah Lee Küng

This volume provides a wonderful introduction to the writings and thought of one of the great cynics of the ages. Voltaire exemplifies the age of reason in his questioning of both authority and the prevailing beliefs of his day. His writing as presented here is very accessable and this book can be picked up and opened to any selection and read with enjoyment. An excellent intro for the general reader.

Books about Cabaret Voltaire, the pioneering Sheffield (UK) industrial/indie/electronic group, are rare enough. But this book has an extra appeal. The writer Mick Fish takes you on a journey through some of the darkest times in English life and politics and combines this with the tale of Cabaret Voltaire.

The writer will tell you all about the music scene in Sheffield in the 1980's, from the Human League to ABC. Aligned to this will be the story of the grip the Margaret Thatcher government took hold on Britain, and in particular run down areas like Sheffield in the 80's.

You will read all about the decay, the dark nights, the valiant refusal of a city to be undermined by government, the vicious internal wrangling in the local council and political scene. You may ask is this relevant to the story of Cabaret Voltaire? Well yes it is. The writer worked at the local council and also as a Cabaret Voltaire fan he could see the similarities between the two. The rise of CV in the early 80's which was brutally stamped out by the greedy, stubborn nature of the big money record labels which in essence ruined their career. Mick Fish worked at the council and at the same time he watched as Thatcher took hold of power and left Sheffield to rot and decay. A perfect comparison to what the major record labels did with CV, squeezed the life out of them.

At first glance maybe it won't grab your attention, but get over that, if you're a Cabaret Voltaire fan you should have this already! For others if you were into the music scene of Sheffield in the 80's, this book is a must have. For those of you with an interest in the political side of things, this book may be a worthy read, showing how Thatcher's government tried to squeeze northern cities like Sheffield off the map, through her ignorance of the area and through actions in the local political scene.

What should be clear from the title is that no devotee of industrial music should pass this book by. CV should need no introduction to anyone even loosely acquainted with the genre, and their home city of Sheffield must undoubtedly be flagged as one of the most important cities in the proliferation of industrial music during the early eighties.

The author (Mr. Fish) was there. Unlike so much music biz writing that is based on the self-righteous posturing of a critic-turned-ducumentarian, who's only ties to their subject matter are hand-me-downs and afterimages, this is a first-hand account from a true storyteller. Knew the band, drank with the band, traveled with the band, drank with the band some more...

However, Mr. Fish's greatest achievement here was to NOT rewrite the agonizing rock-star biography we've already suffered through time and again. His achievement foremost was to effortlessly, poignantly and humorously carry us through the days and long nights of industrial music's enigmatic reign. 1980's Sheffield becomes our backdrop, Mr. Fish's own life experiences our satiric companion, and Cabaret Voltaire our cryptic guide.

If you are interested in the music or the bands that lifted the mantle of defiance and DIY from Punk's exploited corpse, you will enjoy this. Better yet, even if you don't care about that tumultuous "industrial" racket that some long-lost roommate used to blare to drown out your Journey records -- if you enjoy a very well told story, it's a can't miss. A pleasure to read, difficult to put down, too quick to finish. Isn't that what brought us to the bookstore in the first place?

I remember seeing these sets of books in my University Bookstore in College--never read them, but picked up the whole set for .25 each at a garage sale. Little did I know what I'd been missing. I also just started teaching history in Calgary--a colleague agreed with me that they are fabulous, but said the snobby professors looked down on the Durants as "popularizers." I can't think of a higher compliment. Excellent footnotes, with quotes from primary resources, all the marks of a hallmark historian. I reading these books like steamy romance novels--and they are a lot more fun. Durrant is not afraid to comment on the sexual mores/and morality of the times. His judgments are pithy and well, history is riveting. I would have paid full price for these if I'd known how good they were!

Is there anything else to say? Karl the 12th of Sweden is a fascinating man with history to match. Voltaire's prose reads like a great fictional novel and provides philisophical insight into the times and life of Sweden's greatest king.

Since the very beginning of the Enlightenment, there has been a well-spread tendency to think that rationalism is inevitably at odds with religious faith. But the reading of this marvelous book shows that the Age of Reason, rather than a simple, straight-forward rejection of religious faith and cult, represented a profound historical and intellectual attempt to rethink the possibilities of the spiritual dimension of man.

Besides Voltaire, many other founding fathers of the Age of Reason (such as Newton, Descartes or Kant) were devout Christians in their own particular way. This spiritual feature never hindered the development of their writing and research, but encouraged and accompanied their calling to critical thinking. This astonishly original collection of texts by an unknown Voltaire masterly provides a deeper insight into the complexities of both Christianity and the Enlightenment.

Voltaire revolutionized the art of writing history books. This book is one of the showpieces of his work in this area. It sparkles with Voltairian wit, humor and wisdom. Some excerpts:

"The war had produced on each side nothing but losses and regrets. . . . Nations rarely have any interest in the wars waged by their sovereigns. . . . The victorious people never profit by the dismemberment of the vanquished; they pay for everything. They suffer in their armies' prosperity as in their adversity. And peace is as necessary to them following the greatest victory, as it is when the enemy has taken their frontiers."

This work remains one of the original sourcebooks on Louis XIV's era for scholars to this day. Voltaire was in his teens when the Sun King died. He lived close to the court at Paris, where his father was attorney to many important figures. Voltaire personally interviewed many inside players of the period in exhaustive detail. A period which was a turning point in the birth pangs of the "Modern Age" as we know it today.

Many English-readers are familiar with Voltaire only as a political satirist, and remain unaware of his enormous output of scholarly works, particularly in history. This is the ideal book to acquaint oneself with the infinite wealth of Voltaire there is out there to read.

"Voltaire's politics", by Peter Gay, provides a comprehensive context to all there is to Voltaire. Throughout the book, the main focus is upon Voltaire's sociopolitical and intellectual development, and how he translated these ideas into his poems, plays, letters, philosophical and political writings, not to mention how these ideas were subsequently brought into practice and converted into action, since Voltaire was very much a social activist avant-la-lettre. Thus the book is not so much a biography (for such one should consult Theodore Besterman's "Voltaire"), but is invaluable as to thoroughy understand what Voltaire stood for, why he acted as he did, and how he came to develop his ideas as he did. Though mr. Gay may admire Voltaire, the book is by no means prejudiced, but rather open-minded and fair in its judgements. The fact that this book was intended as a scholarly contribution to the debate on Voltaire has not made it any more difficult to read. Again, as with prof. Gay's brilliant "The Enlightenment, an interpretation", it is very entertaining and a joy to read. This book is in particular suitable to those studying any of the social sciences, history or philosophy.

This book is about man's freedom: freedom of thought,freedom of worship, freedom of the mental encroachments that make a man think he has the right to despise, oppress, kill a fellow human being because he is different. This book is about the power of Reason,about the absurdity of racism, war, greed and violence. Voltaire was the father of modern man. His errors were the errors of his age: his wisdom is the wisdom of the better part of man.

I'm not your typical philosophe reader, being a high school girl who usually prefers rap music to any sort of book, but there is something about voltaire's writings that appeals to me. NOt also are there some great statements made in this book, but clues to what life was like back in his day(such as in "love" the pox he is talking about is syphilis, which back then was associated with being immoral and in "astrology" he refers to his son dying in his cradle which was common then). His writing is witty, yet rational and even though sometimes difficult to interperet in modern language, if you read in serveral times and refer to a dictionary often you will understand what he is saying. Although some of the ariticles are irrelevent for today's world they are useful in historical context and there are many articles that are and always will be revelvent. Don't pass this book off as old fashioned, Voltaire never goes out of style.

While many claim that Candide is Voltaire's masterpiece, I prefer this collection of essays that are arranged as a dictionary. Reading this book is like sitting in an elegant 18th century salon and listening to one of the great minds of the age declaim on a variety of subjects, both ancient and modern. While Voltaire will occasionally bend scholarship to make a point, he does it so well and with such wit and style that the things that he gets wrong really don't matter. If you were shipwrecked on a desert island, this would probably be one of the books that you should have packed before leaving.

I must be the only college student that wasnt forced to read this for a class. Anyway,this was an interesting book that really made me think. I didnt find it so much as funny as sad at depicting the horrors of the world but it does so in such a light, outragous way.Some of the best parts are at the end, like when they go visit the rich man who doesnt enjoy anything.The plot is over the top and outragous but this is still one of the most realistic books Ive read. I found it kind of bleak and depressing but I also found it intriguing.Voltaire exaggerates everything in Candide, all of the misfortunes everyone has to go through are too horrible to be even realistic. At least I hope no ones had quite as bad time of it as candide. Even if you dont agree with Voltire and even if you share views with Dr. Pangloss you should still read this book.One final thing, dont mourn overmuch for any of the characters when they die, theyll turn up again later.

Ever since philosophers began thinking about the meaning of life, a favorite question has been "Why do bad things happen to good people?". In Voltaire's day, this issue was primarily pursued either from the perspective of faith (everything that happens is God's will and must be for Divine purpose) or of reason (What do these events mean to you, as you interpret them subjectively?). Infuriated by the reaction by some members of the church to a horrible loss of life from an earthquake in Lisbon, Voltaire wrote this hard-biting satire of the human condition to explore these questions.

Before reading further, let me share a word of caution. This book is filled with human atrocities of the most gruesome sort. Anything that you can imagine could occur in war, an Inquisition, or during piracy happens in this book. If you find such matters distressing (as many will, and more should), this book will be unpleasant reading. You should find another book to read.

The book begins as Candide is raised in the household of a minor noble family in Westphalia, where he is educated by Dr. Pangloss, a student of metaphysical questions. Pangloss believes that this is the best of all possible worlds and deeply ingrains that view into his pupil. Candide is buoyed by that thought as he encounters many setbacks in the course of the book as he travels through many parts of Europe, Turkey, and South America.

All is well for Candide until he falls in love with the Baron's daughter and is caught kissing her hand by the Baron. The Baron immediately kicks Candide out of the castle (literally on the backside), and Candide's wanderings begin. Think of this as being like expulsion from the Garden of Eden for Adam. Soon the penniless Candide finds himself in the Bulgarian army, and receiving lots of beatings while he learns to drill.

The story grows more far-fetched with each subsequent incident. To the casual reader, this exaggeration can seem unnecessary and annoying. It will remind you of the most extreme parts of Swift in Gulliver's Travels and Rabelais in Gargantua and Pantagruel. But subtly, Voltaire is using the exaggeration to lure the reader into making complacent judgments about complacency itself that Voltaire wants to challenge. The result is a deliciously ironical work that undermines complacency at a more fundamental level than I have seen done elsewhere. Basically, Candide challenges any view you have about complacency that is defined in terms of the world-view of those who are complacent.

Significant changes of circumstances (good and ill) occur to all of the members of the Baron's household over the course of the story. Throughout, there is much comparing of who has had the worst luck, with much feeling sorry for oneself.

That is the surface story. Voltaire is, however, a master of misdirection. Beneath the surface, Voltaire has another purpose for the book. He also wants to expose the reader to questioning the many bad habits that people have that make matters worse for everyone. The major themes of these undercurrents are (1) competing rather than to cooperating, (2) employing inhumane means to accomplish worldly (and many spiritual) ends, (3) following expected rules of behavior to show one's superiority over others that harm and degrade others, (4) focusing on money and power rather than creating rich human relationships, (5) hypocritical behavior, and (6) pursuing ends that society approves of rather than ends that please oneself.

By the end of the story, the focus shifts again to a totally different question: How can humans achieve happiness? Then, you have to reassess what you thought about the book and what was going on in Voltaire's story. Many readers will choose to reread the book to better capture Voltaire's perspective on that final question, having been surprised by it.

Candide is one of my favorite books because it treats important philosophical questions in such an unusual way. Such unaccustomed matching of treatment and subject matters leaves an indelible impression that normal philosophical arguments can never match. Voltaire also has an amazing imagination. Few could concoct such a story (even by using illegal substances to stimulate the subconscious mind). I constantly find myself wondering what he will come up with next. The story is so absurd that it penetrates the consciousness at a very fundamental level, almost like doing improvisation. In so doing, Voltaire taps into that feeling of "what else can happen?" that overcomes us when we are at our most pessimistic. So, gradually you will find yourself identifying with the story -- even though nothing like this could ever happen to you. Like a good horror story, you are also relieved that you can read about others' troubles and can put your own into perspective. This last point is the fundamental humanity of the story. You see what a wonderful thing a kind word, a meal, or a helping hand can be. That will probably inspire you to offer those empathic actions more often.

After you have finished Candide, I suggest that you ask yourself where complacency about your life and circumstances is costing you and those you care about the potential for more health, happiness, peace, and prosperity. Then take Voltaire's solution, and look around you for those who enjoy the most of those four wonderful attributes. What do those people think and do differently from you?

It is probably fair to say that there is no book that is quite like Voltaire's 'Candide'. This is a venomous satire of the 'Optimistic' philosophy and outlook of enlightenment thinkers such as Leibniz and Alexander Pope. As such, it is served well by the unique combination of repeated brutality and a deft, light touch. If that last comment doesn't make sense, then you'll just have to READ THE BOOK.

At a mere 144 pages (in this edition), this is a classic that is a breeze to read. As to the charge that this book is too "violent" or "in bad taste", I would only ask you to remember that Voltaire was furious that learned members of a "civilized" society (like Leibniz, Pope, and even Rousseau)could claim that the apparent senseless violence and mayhem wrought by disasters, war, disease, man's cruelty, etc. was actually only a part of some 'greater good' - after all, God (being perfect) could not 'logically' created anything but the 'best of all possible' universes.

Voltaire's touch is so light and understated that I defy anyone to write anything that contains a third of the violence in 'Candide' and still manages to read as breezily and somehow be genuinely funny.

But dark satire must be funny - otherwise it lapses into pedantry.

Read it - even if you do not like it, I guarantee you that it will disturb you and make you think.

And for that, we can thank Voltaire.