Alonso Quijano, a lean, less-than-affluent man of 50, lives modestly in a village in La Mancha with his niece and housemaid. An avid reader, he gradually becomes obsessed with books of chivalry and sells off acres of his farmland to expand his book collection. Eventually, "from little sleep and too much reading”, his brain “dries up” and he loses his wits. He decides to “turn knight-errant and travel through the world with horse and armour in search of adventures” with the purpose of “redressing all manner of wrongs." 

Outfitting himself in rusty armour and a cardboard helmet, Quijano mounts his old nag and sets out in search of adventures, dubbing himself "Don Quixote de La Mancha" and his horse - "Rosinante"...