Interesting and intelligent stuff, but tends to be very dependent on the quality of the translation. I've read some pretty stilted versions, which I suspect are pretty far off the original text.

Voltaire had a huge sense of humor and plenty of balls- he got into BIG trouble for criticizing his government:but his writing outlasted those who sought to silence him.His portrayal of the bizzarre is brilliant.

Crap!

People hold up Candide as Voltaire's greatest work but I have found Zadig and Micromegas to be more compelling. Zadig is an especially lyrical work that is influenced by the Arabian Nights; it explores the nature of human stupidity and wisdom. Micromegas is a short sci-fi story about how the human beings compare with beings from superior, alien races. These stories are, in my opinion, more entertaining and expository of Voltaire's philosophy than Candide. Candide requires an understanding of Voltaire's contemporaneous political and philosophical environment, while the other two do not. So I suggest that people wishing to explore Voltaire's ideas read those works before they read Candide.

Utterly brilliant, not only was he a great storywriter but he was an even better philosopher. I feel a quote coming on... There are only three things you need to know about the Holy Roman Empire, it's not holy, it's not roman and it's not an empire

He's cynical and funny. He dared to insult the leaders of his time.

Voltaire - great stories..very interesting..good plots.