Journey to the West is a classic
Chinese
epic novel about a Buddhist monk who
must travel to the west (which, in China at that
time, meant India) to acquire the holy books
(sutra). Journey to the West
records the trials and tribulations (mostly
monsters and demons -- yes, it's
a supernatural fantasy novel)
that he faces along the way.
The story is loosely
based on the real-life journey of the monk
Xuan Zang.
The most famous character from the book
(and its true protagonist), though,
is not the monk, but one of the monk's
travelling companions, the Monkey King,
who is known for his cleverness and his
mischeviousness.