Les Misérables in The Roundtable

Nov 11, 2016 Viv JM rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: fiction-classic, in-translation, author-male, read-in-2016, 1001-books-project, 100-novels-in-translation, rt-challenge-oct-16

It feels like sacrilege to say as much, but I think I may have enjoyed reading an abridged version of this book more! If I were rating the story of Jean Valjean, Cosette, Javert and Marius, I would definitely give this a 5 star rating. It’s a fabulous story of redemption, full of wonderfully drawn characters, a gentle humour and some amazingly emotionally wrenching scenes. But, for me, the frequent, lengthy and occasionally eye wateringly boring transgressions detracted from my enjoyment of the ...more

45 likes · Like · see review

Apr 08, 2013 Christopher rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: french, 500-pages-or-more, historical-fiction, classics, 19th-century, 1000-pages-or-more, fiction

M. Victor Hugo
President
Hugo Heavy Books, Inc.
Hauteville House
38 Hauteville
St Peter GY1 1DG
United Kingdom

Dearest M. Hugo,

Having arrived at the completion of my quest to faithfully and fervently examine each and every jot and tittle of your most beloved masterpiece Les Misérables, I would like to express my undying admiration for your work. You possess an incredible ability to cultivate character. Jean Valjean shall reign throughout history as an exemplar of faith, goodness, compassion, longsuffer ...more

17 likes · Like · see review

Jan 07, 2013 Sera rated it it was amazing

Shelves: literary-fiction, 1001-books, favorites, own, kindle, classics

Absolutely stunning. Hugo was able to evoke an incredible amount of emotion from me as I read this book. A master storyteller, Hugo also provides tremendous insight into most everything from good versus evil to politics to the joy of love to the inner conflict that people suffer in their quest to do the right thing. The book is well over 1400 pages, but yet every word is important to the story.

I absolutely adored Jean Valjean. What an amazing character whom I still deem to be the first superhero ...more

4 likes · Like · see review

Jan 08, 2021 Dawn rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: classics, audible, audiobook

Interminable

Seriously, this book took forever. Even in audio. It is 58 hours long, I listen at x2 so I cut that time in half, and it still took me a whole year to finally get through it.

3 likes · Like · see review

Jan 09, 2009 Irene rated it really liked it

This is a 5* story of human redemption, a novel that challenges the reader to greater commitment to social justice and compassion for all people. Unfortunately, the writing style which was in vogue in mid-19 century Europe diluted the power of that message for me. By the time I waded through detailed analyses of the battle of Waterloo, the history of Parisian sewer system, detailed descriptions of 19 century cloister convent life, essays on the appropriate place of slang in literature and those ...more

2 likes · Like · see review