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thymussilvestris's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
violetturtledove's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
This is really quite a charming book, I didn't go into it with any real idea what it was, and it's not really a novel - it's a series of amusing events concerning the same main group of characters.
I don't know if it's a feature of the translation, but it feels very fresh and modern (if you ignore one or two outdated stereotypes). It could be that translators tend to refresh the prose a little, or maybe it's just that the habits of artistic types never change!
It's sweet and light, there's no main plot to speak of but it's a lovely, witty trip to the past that still feels very relevant.
lgpiper's review against another edition
3.0
This is yet another book read by the protagonist of Of Human Bondage, Philip. Fortunately, it's much better than that previous piece of crap I read as a result of reading about Philip's life. But, it's not great. If I could give +s and -s, I'd give it a 3*-. With luck, I'll manage to avoid Peregrine Pickle, another book Philip read, but then since that book also figured prominently in David Copperfield's early life as well, perhaps not. We'll see.
This book is essentially a set of short stories, or vignettes about the lives of four (mostly), young artists living in Paris in the 1840s. As nearly as I can tell, none of them has much talent, and none of them have any sense of responsibility. So, it's sort of a parody of art-wanna-be poseurs. I don't find that particularly fun or interesting. Perhaps I'm just too much of a jaded, non-romantic old fart, but I find that reading about obsessively irresponsible and self-indulgent youth wears thin after a while. I think it was telling that half way through this book, I found myself reading WonkBlog rather than continuing to plow through this book. I did manage, eventually, to finish it.
Interestingly, there was a weird chapter thrown in about three-quarters of the way through the book that introduced two completely new characters, who then didn't show up again. However, my vague recollection is that the part of this particular book that served as the basis of the opera, La Boheme was mostly taken from this chapter, although the character names in the opera were those of two of the more prominent characters in the rest of this book. Kinda weird I thought.
This book is essentially a set of short stories, or vignettes about the lives of four (mostly), young artists living in Paris in the 1840s. As nearly as I can tell, none of them has much talent, and none of them have any sense of responsibility. So, it's sort of a parody of art-wanna-be poseurs. I don't find that particularly fun or interesting. Perhaps I'm just too much of a jaded, non-romantic old fart, but I find that reading about obsessively irresponsible and self-indulgent youth wears thin after a while. I think it was telling that half way through this book, I found myself reading WonkBlog rather than continuing to plow through this book. I did manage, eventually, to finish it.
Interestingly, there was a weird chapter thrown in about three-quarters of the way through the book that introduced two completely new characters, who then didn't show up again. However, my vague recollection is that the part of this particular book that served as the basis of the opera, La Boheme was mostly taken from this chapter, although the character names in the opera were those of two of the more prominent characters in the rest of this book. Kinda weird I thought.
grubstlodger's review against another edition
5.0
Scenes from the Latin Quarter by Henri Murger should have annoyed me. The lives of amoral, egotistic, snotbags who think they are a special kind of person because they make ‘art’ usually turn me right off - I hated ‘Rent’. But I loved this book, finding the characters very endearing and their stories funny.
One of the main reasons I think I enjoyed this, is because the Bohemian society at the centre of this book (Schuanard, Marcel, Colline and Rodolphe) know that they are only going through a phase in their life and hope (if they survive it) to come out the other side as respectable artists. Nor do they display a feeling of superiority about their way of life, they don’t think they are better people for their hardships, nor do they think poverty improves their art. Indeed, there is a group of artists in a different club called ‘the water drinkers’ who ban one of their members because he’ll take up commercial uses for his sculpting skills and the main Bohemian club in the book feel the water drinkers are pretty stupid for this attitude.
The reader is introduced to Schuanard the musician first and I thought he was to be the main character. He’s the tricksiest of the group, a scourge on landlords everywhere. We meet him slipping out of a room he can’t pay for and, with a series of slights-of-hand, becomes the co-renter with the artist, Marcel. A lady’s man, he has one trick where he uses fake coins to trick dancing girls to go out with him. His nightwear is one of the dancing girl’s pink petticoats. When the characters of the the men’s girlfriends enter the picture, he is paired up with the wildest, Phéme. Although he’s the catalyst for the group to get together, he becomes the least mentioned of the main four. I loved the story of how he comes into some money by playing very loudly and badly on a piano to annoy a rich man’s next door neighbour.
The next we meet is Marcel. He’s a painter who is originally flush with cash but, like all the characters when they come into money, seems to get through it quickly. He’s been painting a depiction of the Egyptians being swept by the Red Sea for four years but it keeps being sent back. He retools the painting to depict other things but that doesn’t work either. Later, he makes a small fortune selling it for an inn-sign. His girlfriend is Musette. She’s a beautiful courtesan and the two of them fall in love despite knowing that it can’t last, as Musette will have to go with someone richer eventually. Even when she does leave, she is still romantically entwined, dropping a rich keeper to spend time with him whenever he’s in funds.
Then we meet Colline the philosopher. I mainly liked him for his large, hazel overcoat filled with books. I have a large, old coat that often has a book in the pockets but he has an entire library. It’s even organised with a ‘foreign languages’ pocket. He considers a day lost when he doesn’t buy at least one book, I know how he feels. His romantic partner is never named or seen, though we are told he has one. He’s probably the most stable of the four, whatever that’s worth.
Finally we meet Rodolphe the writer, who becomes the main focus of the book. He is the editor of a fashion magazine and the trade magazine for hat writers but he gets called to do other commissions, such as when his uncle locks him in a house with no clothes to write a book on wood-burning stoves. He falls in love with Mimi, and theirs is the most fractious relationship in the book. It’s presented as semi-abusive, with he being on the alert for other lovers and she looking for them. Eventually, she’s the one to suffer the emotional death.
I think my fondness for this book was helped by the fact that I read it eight floors up in a Parisian loft, with a view of the rooftops and the Sacré-Cœur glowing on the hill. It also helped that I have been a grubbing writer for the last twenty years and have served my time in my own bohemia. Like the people in the book I experienced real want and hunger but I also found true friendship and kindness. Despite their messy lives, it’s the friendship of the four men that shines most in this book.
One of the main reasons I think I enjoyed this, is because the Bohemian society at the centre of this book (Schuanard, Marcel, Colline and Rodolphe) know that they are only going through a phase in their life and hope (if they survive it) to come out the other side as respectable artists. Nor do they display a feeling of superiority about their way of life, they don’t think they are better people for their hardships, nor do they think poverty improves their art. Indeed, there is a group of artists in a different club called ‘the water drinkers’ who ban one of their members because he’ll take up commercial uses for his sculpting skills and the main Bohemian club in the book feel the water drinkers are pretty stupid for this attitude.
The reader is introduced to Schuanard the musician first and I thought he was to be the main character. He’s the tricksiest of the group, a scourge on landlords everywhere. We meet him slipping out of a room he can’t pay for and, with a series of slights-of-hand, becomes the co-renter with the artist, Marcel. A lady’s man, he has one trick where he uses fake coins to trick dancing girls to go out with him. His nightwear is one of the dancing girl’s pink petticoats. When the characters of the the men’s girlfriends enter the picture, he is paired up with the wildest, Phéme. Although he’s the catalyst for the group to get together, he becomes the least mentioned of the main four. I loved the story of how he comes into some money by playing very loudly and badly on a piano to annoy a rich man’s next door neighbour.
The next we meet is Marcel. He’s a painter who is originally flush with cash but, like all the characters when they come into money, seems to get through it quickly. He’s been painting a depiction of the Egyptians being swept by the Red Sea for four years but it keeps being sent back. He retools the painting to depict other things but that doesn’t work either. Later, he makes a small fortune selling it for an inn-sign. His girlfriend is Musette. She’s a beautiful courtesan and the two of them fall in love despite knowing that it can’t last, as Musette will have to go with someone richer eventually. Even when she does leave, she is still romantically entwined, dropping a rich keeper to spend time with him whenever he’s in funds.
Then we meet Colline the philosopher. I mainly liked him for his large, hazel overcoat filled with books. I have a large, old coat that often has a book in the pockets but he has an entire library. It’s even organised with a ‘foreign languages’ pocket. He considers a day lost when he doesn’t buy at least one book, I know how he feels. His romantic partner is never named or seen, though we are told he has one. He’s probably the most stable of the four, whatever that’s worth.
Finally we meet Rodolphe the writer, who becomes the main focus of the book. He is the editor of a fashion magazine and the trade magazine for hat writers but he gets called to do other commissions, such as when his uncle locks him in a house with no clothes to write a book on wood-burning stoves. He falls in love with Mimi, and theirs is the most fractious relationship in the book. It’s presented as semi-abusive, with he being on the alert for other lovers and she looking for them. Eventually, she’s the one to suffer the emotional death.
I think my fondness for this book was helped by the fact that I read it eight floors up in a Parisian loft, with a view of the rooftops and the Sacré-Cœur glowing on the hill. It also helped that I have been a grubbing writer for the last twenty years and have served my time in my own bohemia. Like the people in the book I experienced real want and hunger but I also found true friendship and kindness. Despite their messy lives, it’s the friendship of the four men that shines most in this book.
digitalmozart's review against another edition
4.0
3.5 stars, closer to 4
What a lovely read! Don't know why Illica/Giacosa added a lot more drama to their operatic adaptation, as it works very well as a comedy. Sure, the some of the story beats are the same or similar, but these are almost completely different entities.
What a lovely read! Don't know why Illica/Giacosa added a lot more drama to their operatic adaptation, as it works very well as a comedy. Sure, the some of the story beats are the same or similar, but these are almost completely different entities.
fifthavenuelion's review against another edition
emotional
funny
lighthearted
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
margaretann84's review against another edition
5.0
Stream-of-Consciousness Review Shamelessly Lifted from my Seasonal Reading Challenge Post:
I'd like to apologize in advance for the massive rambling review-type thingy below. It's late and my brain is kinda fuzzy, but I'm too excited about the wonderfulness of the book to sleep without posting.
I actually read a version from Project Gutenberg, so I'm not sure which edition I read from the list of copies on GR, but it was an unabridged translation, so the page number should be roughly correct.
This book was hilarious. I loved it, and I spent a lot of time picking out bits and figuring out the counterparts of various characters in Rent (which was based off La Boheme, which was based off this book). Musette was pretty much the same as Maureen (her Rent counterpart), and the four main guys were all pretty much the same: Marcel/Mark was the artist (because they didn't have movies back in 1851), Colline/Collins was a philosopher, Schaunard/Angel was a musician (Angel--DuMotte-Schaunard~! Also, "Today 4 U" is lifted from one of the chapters in the book, only it's a parrot and a piano instead of an akita (Evita!) and some drums, but the point is the same!), and Rodolphe/Roger was a writer (this is the biggest stretch, but Roger spent most of the musical trying to write his "one song," so it works).
The biggest and most interesting change was with Mimi. Her Rent character was a composite of her story character (coquettish woman who likes a good time) and a character named Francine, whose story is told in arguably the saddest chapter of the book. "Light My Candle" comes directly from Francine's first meeting with Jacques, who becomes her lover--her candle blows out and she asks Jacques for a light, and they end up getting to know each other and fall in love (though, rather than losing her "stash," Francine drops her key somewhere in the room). Their love is doomed, however, as Francine is dying from tuberculosis, and she and Jacques only have about six months together. Mimi in the story also dies, but her death is due to a naturally weak constitution and (romantically) a broken heart. Both of these stories were combined to make the Rent character of Mimi (although, if I remember my synopsis correctly, Mimi from La Boheme isn't too much different from the one in Rent, aside from not being an exotic dancer).
Oh! And one other awesome thing: after the sexy-awesome rap-ish part of "La Vie Boheme," the characters joke around with random crazy lists of things that other characters are going to present (like Collins says, "In honor of the death of Bohemia, an impromptu salon will commence immediately following dinner. Maureen Johnson, just back from her spectacular one-night engagement at the Eleventh Street lot, will perform Native American tribal chants backwards through her vocoder while accompanying herself on the electric cello--which she ain't never studied."). That whole section of the song is lifted from one of the chapters, too! Well, the idea of it anyway. The characters send out invitations for a party they're going to hold, and the invitations list similarly random, crazy entertainments. I enjoyed that part.
And if it weren't 230am, I'd go watch Rent again! Seriously, though--if you like the musical, definitely read the book. It's awesome.
Favoritest quote ever (or at least from this book):
"First reader: I told you that this was not a very lively story.
What would you have, reader? We cannot always laugh."
I'd like to apologize in advance for the massive rambling review-type thingy below. It's late and my brain is kinda fuzzy, but I'm too excited about the wonderfulness of the book to sleep without posting.
I actually read a version from Project Gutenberg, so I'm not sure which edition I read from the list of copies on GR, but it was an unabridged translation, so the page number should be roughly correct.
This book was hilarious. I loved it, and I spent a lot of time picking out bits and figuring out the counterparts of various characters in Rent (which was based off La Boheme, which was based off this book). Musette was pretty much the same as Maureen (her Rent counterpart), and the four main guys were all pretty much the same: Marcel/Mark was the artist (because they didn't have movies back in 1851), Colline/Collins was a philosopher, Schaunard/Angel was a musician (Angel--DuMotte-Schaunard~! Also, "Today 4 U" is lifted from one of the chapters in the book, only it's a parrot and a piano instead of an akita (Evita!) and some drums, but the point is the same!), and Rodolphe/Roger was a writer (this is the biggest stretch, but Roger spent most of the musical trying to write his "one song," so it works).
The biggest and most interesting change was with Mimi. Her Rent character was a composite of her story character (coquettish woman who likes a good time) and a character named Francine, whose story is told in arguably the saddest chapter of the book. "Light My Candle" comes directly from Francine's first meeting with Jacques, who becomes her lover--her candle blows out and she asks Jacques for a light, and they end up getting to know each other and fall in love (though, rather than losing her "stash," Francine drops her key somewhere in the room). Their love is doomed, however, as Francine is dying from tuberculosis, and she and Jacques only have about six months together. Mimi in the story also dies, but her death is due to a naturally weak constitution and (romantically) a broken heart. Both of these stories were combined to make the Rent character of Mimi (although, if I remember my synopsis correctly, Mimi from La Boheme isn't too much different from the one in Rent, aside from not being an exotic dancer).
Oh! And one other awesome thing: after the sexy-awesome rap-ish part of "La Vie Boheme," the characters joke around with random crazy lists of things that other characters are going to present (like Collins says, "In honor of the death of Bohemia, an impromptu salon will commence immediately following dinner. Maureen Johnson, just back from her spectacular one-night engagement at the Eleventh Street lot, will perform Native American tribal chants backwards through her vocoder while accompanying herself on the electric cello--which she ain't never studied."). That whole section of the song is lifted from one of the chapters, too! Well, the idea of it anyway. The characters send out invitations for a party they're going to hold, and the invitations list similarly random, crazy entertainments. I enjoyed that part.
And if it weren't 230am, I'd go watch Rent again! Seriously, though--if you like the musical, definitely read the book. It's awesome.
Favoritest quote ever (or at least from this book):
"First reader: I told you that this was not a very lively story.
What would you have, reader? We cannot always laugh."
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