The Adventures of Pinocchio
Originally serialized in an Italian children's magazine between 1881 and 1883, The Adventures of Pinocchio by Carlo Collodi is one of the most widely translated books in the world and the source of a story far stranger and harsher than its Disney adaptation suggests. A poor woodcarver named Geppetto carves a puppet from a magical block of wood, and the puppet, Pinocchio, immediately runs off into a series of misadventures involving a talking cricket, a fox and a cat who try to rob him, a fairy who repeatedly saves him, and a giant fish that swallows him whole. Pinocchio's nose famously grows when he lies, but the book's deeper preoccupation is with idleness, schooling, and the cost of disobedience in nineteenth century Italy. The story closes with the puppet earning his transformation into a real boy through work, honesty, and care for his father.
What you might want to know about The Adventures of Pinocchio
The questions readers send us most often, answered without spoilers.
Carlo Collodi's 1883 Italian classic about a wooden puppet who lies, runs away, and slowly learns to become a real boy.
Yes. The book is darker, more episodic, and rooted in nineteenth century Italian social concerns.
Some scenes are frightening, so it is usually read with younger children or alone by readers around age nine and up.
The Adventures of Pinocchio was written by Carlo Collodi, published in 1921 by CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform.
The Adventures of Pinocchio is 104 pages in standard print editions, though page counts vary slightly between hardcover, paperback, and large-print formats.
At an average reading pace of about 250 words per minute, The Adventures of Pinocchio takes most readers about 2 hours to finish.
The Adventures of Pinocchio is available in hardcover, paperback, ebook, and audiobook formats from Amazon, Bookshop.org, ThriftBooks, and most major bookstores.