Anyone read "The Last Wish" ?
 

For obvious reasons I've been thinking about ordering the book by
Mr.Sapkowski - "The Last wish". It's available for 8,49e at play.com.

Anyone here read it? Any opininions on the matter?

Before it was published there were Polish readers on the official game forum who were surprised it was being translated because his use of Polish idiom was part of his "charm".

I bought the book but found the translation to be extremely patchy. I wouldn't recommend it. No knock on the author though, I'm sure he's great, but the translator phoned it in.

Personally I loved it (please allow a lot of room for personal taste here ;) ).

I liked the dry humor. The witty and deft twisting of the familiar faerytale themes
used to tackle modern issues (but then again this is a subgenre that is very dear
to me of late). I also liked the well fleshed out characters both monstrous and
touchingly humane at times.

This is pretty much what I came to expect from the author, and it made me
appreciate the game that much more also. Its also indicative of his skill, bearing
in mind that the short story is a particularly difficult discipline and it is always
impressive when the author is able to pass on a coherent vision/atmosphere
of the World he creates (especially for this collection of mostly early attempts).

But yes the translation is lacking. Even someone not able to compare with other
languages (or the original) can get a sense of this from the existence of various
"awkward' passages (sounds familiar ?)…

Still (imho) recommended for anyone who enjoyed the game or enjoys the modern reworking of Faerytales subgenre.

I agree witj JonNik. I have read "Last Wish"in both Polish and English and, while I prefer the Polish one, I would still recommend English version as worth reading.

JonNik pretty much nailed it. I read it and enjoyed it and can see how the game is derived from the world Sapkowski created, as well as the character of Geralt. The translation into English is sub-par, I think, but no worse than many such efforts. Definitely worth the day or so it takes to read it. :)

I've read it and loved. I think it's worth of buying, as whole The Witcher saga anyway (though in english there are available only two books or so). I don't know about quality of translation, because I've read it in polish.

Just got back from Italy.
"The Last wish" was waiting for me when I got home :D

It was a work-related trip but we had a couple of days of "spare" time and
we got to see Florence and Pisa with the friend I was traveling with.
Changing planes at Charles de Gaulle was a nightmare.
Italy was cool.. kinda.

Well - back to playing the witcher :D

hi,does anybody have the last wish .pdf, i don`t have money to buy the book, PLEASE
Email kile.evil@gmail.com

Do you have the last wish .pdf,i don`t have money to buy it PLEASE
kile.evil@gmail.com

I don't understand Polish, so read it in English only, and enjoyed it very much. As I had no possibility for comparison, as purely a book in English, I didn't notice any problems with the translation at all, and it seemed perfectly idiomatically correct.

If other posters mean that the translator did not "Americanise" it : -um, well that is what I would want and expect.
I would expect it to retain at least some of it's Polish flavour, I wouldn't want a completeley "USian" book, sanitised amd stripped of its original flavour, the way that they did with the US version of the game.