Gulliver's Travels

Gulliver's Travels

by Martin Rowson (Author)

Synopsis

On 5 November 1699, the Merchant Ship Antelope foundered on a rock at the Latitude of 30 degrees 2 minutes south. The only survivor of the crew was the ship's physician, Lemuel Gulliver, who some hours later awoke, bound by hundreds of tiny ropes, lying on a beach in the Empire of Lilliput.

On 31 August 1997, Gulliver's direct (although unwitting) descendent was being driven back from a conference in Paris when, travelling through an underpass, his vehicle was struck with great force from behind. Rendered unconscious, he was next aware of being thrown from a helicopter into a shallow sea. On awaking next morning, he found himself bound by hundreds of tiny ropes, lying on a beach and surrounded by tiny figures welcoming him to... a modern Lilliput.

This is only the beginning of his adventures, as he finds himself, quite by chance, visiting the same places as his famous forebear, only three centuries later. Thus the Modern Gulliver learns how history has unfolded for the Lilliputians, discovering the secrets of the 'New' Lilliput's economic boom and accidentally precipitating its crash. He finds out how the giants of Brobdingnag were inspired to transform their way of life by his ancestor's example, impressed by their encounter with one of 'the most pernicious Race of little odious vermin that Nature ever suffered to crawl upon the surface of the Earth'. Then, after witnessing the diplomatic initiatives of the floating island of Laputa, the immortal Struldbruggs and other medical miracles in Luggnagg, he's finally shown exactly what the Houyhnhnms now do with their surplus Yahoos...

Jonathan Swift's classic satire about little people, big people, mad scientists and rational horses has not only gripped our imaginations for generations, it is also one of the greatest - yet most compassionate - indictments of humanity ever written. Martin Rowson's caustic and provocative updating of the story is both a homage to the original and an entirely up-to-date indictment of the enduring human idiocies that enraged Swift so magnificently and memorably 300 years ago.

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More Information

Format: Hardcover
Pages: 176
Publisher: Atlantic Books
Published: 01 Mar 2012

ISBN 10: 1848872828
ISBN 13: 9781848872820
Book Overview: From the inimitable Martin Rowson, a modern illustrated retelling of Swift's classic, Gulliver's Travels

Media Reviews
Outstanding... Rowson's superlative art is part 18th-century baroque and part Spitting Image-style punk * Daily Telegraph *
A thoroughly enjoyable update of Swift's classic. The artwork serves up grotesque detail with glee * Guardian *
Rowson's inventive illustrations crackle with dark energy...delivered with a razor wit that would do the old Dean Swift proud. Gulliver's Travels is sharp, scatological, sinister and side-splitting... A splendid tribute to an all-time classic and a savage, brilliant satire in its own right. * Morning Star *
Author Bio
Martin Rowson, born 15 February 1959, is a British cartoonist and novelist. His genre is political satire and his style is scathing and graphic. His work frequently appears in The Guardian and The Independent. He also contributes freelance cartoons to other publications, such as The Daily Mirror and the Morning Star.