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 1 500 titles Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors as well as up to date translations by award winning translators Candide deals with the problems of suffering and evil Voltaire attacks the hopelessness and callousness of the all is for the best philosophy personified by tutor Pangloss The resilience of human nature is emphasized in the amazing reversals of fortune which Candide and his friends survive With its vibrant new translation perceptive introduction and witty packaging this new edition of Voltaire s masterpiece belongs in the hands of every reader pondering our assumptions about human behavior and our place in the world Candide tells of the hilarious adventures of the nave Candide who doggedly believes that all is for the best even when faced with injustice suffering and despair Controver - from Amzon