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4.16 AVERAGE
4.16 AVERAGE
I'm no literary scholar, and anyway in that respect I couldn't say anything new, so let me just leave a simple recommendation here.
The danger of the 'Classic' label is that it conjures up the smell of dust, memories of dozing in school and, frankly, boredom.
But the thing is, no matter how much time has passed this book is still relevant today. Not only that, but it's a really enjoyable read - you just need to know how to approach it. It shouldn't be read like a modern, plot-driven novel, but as Hugo's social agenda, built up around and illustrated by the personal stories of the characters.
Oh, the characters! These people, in any other book would be extras, unimportant and expendable - an ex-convict, a random cop, a worker forced into prostitution and her child, a handful of revolutionaries on their small, unimportant barricade - here they become grand, important and sublime. These little lives matter - that's the central point of the book.
(Also a thing generally overlooked - tragic and sad as it is, the book has a surprising amount of humour though, as it mostly presents itself in Hugo's sarcastic narration and puns - whether this comes through largely depends on the translation.)
The danger of the 'Classic' label is that it conjures up the smell of dust, memories of dozing in school and, frankly, boredom.
But the thing is, no matter how much time has passed this book is still relevant today. Not only that, but it's a really enjoyable read - you just need to know how to approach it. It shouldn't be read like a modern, plot-driven novel, but as Hugo's social agenda, built up around and illustrated by the personal stories of the characters.
Oh, the characters! These people, in any other book would be extras, unimportant and expendable - an ex-convict, a random cop, a worker forced into prostitution and her child, a handful of revolutionaries on their small, unimportant barricade - here they become grand, important and sublime. These little lives matter - that's the central point of the book.
(Also a thing generally overlooked - tragic and sad as it is, the book has a surprising amount of humour though, as it mostly presents itself in Hugo's sarcastic narration and puns - whether this comes through largely depends on the translation.)
I fell in love with the stage show when I was in middle school, and when I had a longish bus commute for my job last summer, I decided to read the unabridged version to pass the time during the ride. I'm so glad I did. What a beautiful piece of literature. What a tragic story. I spent the last 200 pages (which I luckily read at home) crying. The unabridged version is over 1400 pages long, so be warned. His tangents can go on for a hundred pages or more. They reveal a lot about Hugo's philosophy, but can take you out of the story for a while. But even with them, this ranks among the top five books I've ever read.
beautiful, but so so long.
i started this book a year ago, got stuck halfway after a month or so, ended up in a huge reading slump, pulled myself out of the reading slump with books for work and the last few unread books on my shelf, picked les mis up again, and finally finished it!!!
i remember very little about the first half. javert’s last appearance was by far the best section in the book. and the book ended well, tying the it all together finally. but gosh, the length. i am proud of myself for getting through it but it was excessive. some of hugo’s tangents were fun (like the one on the parisian sewers), but some i just couldn’t bring myself to care about. but i knew i was only going to read this book once, so i read each page.
i knew very little about the french revolution before reading this book, and while i learned that it seemed to be a lot longer and complicated than i imagined, this book taught me surprisingly little about the history of it given how many side tangents of parisian history that hugo went on. i’m lost in that regard.
also… marius and cosette annoyed me a bit :(. i wanted to love them but i really just don’t agree with hugo’s vision of love and relationship. what do you mean they fell in love without ever speaking to each other? what do you mean that their love for each other meant that they don’t need to talk about big things together? why is cosette’s role in this relationship just to be an image of purity and goodness?
i started this book a year ago, got stuck halfway after a month or so, ended up in a huge reading slump, pulled myself out of the reading slump with books for work and the last few unread books on my shelf, picked les mis up again, and finally finished it!!!
i remember very little about the first half. javert’s last appearance was by far the best section in the book. and the book ended well, tying the it all together finally. but gosh, the length. i am proud of myself for getting through it but it was excessive. some of hugo’s tangents were fun (like the one on the parisian sewers), but some i just couldn’t bring myself to care about. but i knew i was only going to read this book once, so i read each page.
i knew very little about the french revolution before reading this book, and while i learned that it seemed to be a lot longer and complicated than i imagined, this book taught me surprisingly little about the history of it given how many side tangents of parisian history that hugo went on. i’m lost in that regard.
also… marius and cosette annoyed me a bit :(. i wanted to love them but i really just don’t agree with hugo’s vision of love and relationship. what do you mean they fell in love without ever speaking to each other? what do you mean that their love for each other meant that they don’t need to talk about big things together? why is cosette’s role in this relationship just to be an image of purity and goodness?
reading les miserables was like going on a wonderful slow-paced journey. it was beautiful, poetic, and thought-provoking. it pulled on my heart strings. (especially that ending
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Ich weiß ehrlich gesagt auch nicht, was das war 😂
Für manche Bücher muss wohl der richtige Moment kommen. Dieses Buch stand 7 Jahre im meinem Regal, und ich hatte gar keine Lust es zu lesen. Heute morgen habe ich es aber angefangen und nicht mehr aufgehört, ich habe heute nichts anderes gemacht 😭😂
Also... Das sagt glaube ich alles über die Story und die Figuren und ... Alles. Besonders die Figurenbeziehungen und wie viel es hier um (selbstgewählte) Familie geht sowie die Beschreibung der Gesellschaft, des Aufstandes und der ganzen historischen Welt haben mich sehr überzeugt. Auch das Motiv, dass es um Menschlichkeit in allen Varianten geht (zu sehen besonders an Jean Vajean), fand ich sehr, sehr gut. Ich bin etwas baff und irgendwie erschlagen von diesem Buch.
Abzüge gibt es nur für zwei Sachen:
1. Victor Hugo schweift extrem ab und schreibt auch selbst, dass die Sachen "nichts mit der Geschichte zu tun haben" (warum dann?). Die Abhandlungen zur Geschichte der Pariser Kloake und zu diesem einen Nonnenkloster habe ich auch nicht aufmerksam gelesen, sondern nur überflogen
2. Ausbaubedarf bei den Frauen (alles naive Mädchen, die komplett an Männer gebunden sind, Opfer, oder irgendwie böse? Ich habe hier zwar viele Ansätze gesehen, aber das war deutlich schwächer als bei den Männern)
Für manche Bücher muss wohl der richtige Moment kommen. Dieses Buch stand 7 Jahre im meinem Regal, und ich hatte gar keine Lust es zu lesen. Heute morgen habe ich es aber angefangen und nicht mehr aufgehört, ich habe heute nichts anderes gemacht 😭😂
Also... Das sagt glaube ich alles über die Story und die Figuren und ... Alles. Besonders die Figurenbeziehungen und wie viel es hier um (selbstgewählte) Familie geht sowie die Beschreibung der Gesellschaft, des Aufstandes und der ganzen historischen Welt haben mich sehr überzeugt. Auch das Motiv, dass es um Menschlichkeit in allen Varianten geht (zu sehen besonders an Jean Vajean), fand ich sehr, sehr gut. Ich bin etwas baff und irgendwie erschlagen von diesem Buch.
Abzüge gibt es nur für zwei Sachen:
1. Victor Hugo schweift extrem ab und schreibt auch selbst, dass die Sachen "nichts mit der Geschichte zu tun haben" (warum dann?). Die Abhandlungen zur Geschichte der Pariser Kloake und zu diesem einen Nonnenkloster habe ich auch nicht aufmerksam gelesen, sondern nur überflogen
2. Ausbaubedarf bei den Frauen (alles naive Mädchen, die komplett an Männer gebunden sind, Opfer, oder irgendwie böse? Ich habe hier zwar viele Ansätze gesehen, aber das war deutlich schwächer als bei den Männern)
I first read the unabridged version more than 10 years ago and absolutely loved it, many scenes still vivid in my memory. Despite multiple attempts to reread, I could not get myself to trudge through what felt like unnecessary history lessons, and so this edition was gifted to me. While a faithful retelling of the story and certainly digestible at a high school level, I struggled to feel much connection to the characters or the world in which they lived due to the 1000+ pages that were cut out. I enjoyed revisiting the tale of Jean Valjean and his miseries and joys, but if anything this edition has lit a fire beneath me to make another real attempt at the unabridged version again. I'd absolutely recommend this to someone familiar with the full story as a way to revisit it, but the unabridged remains a must-read in my mind.
adventurous
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes