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brookeimcfeely's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Animal death, Sexism, Alcohol, Death of parent, Gun violence, Misogyny, Stalking, Suicide, Abandonment, Adult/minor relationship, Religious bigotry, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Excrement, Toxic relationship, War, Death, Suicidal thoughts, Animal cruelty, Physical abuse, Police brutality, Violence, Child death, Grief, Self harm, and Sexual harassment
iammmartina_'s review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Child death, Grief, Death, Classism, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, War, and Police brutality
Moderate: Alcoholism, Violence, Suicide, Injury/Injury detail, Medical trauma, Blood, Alcohol, and Suicidal thoughts
Minor: Gun violence
bashsbooks's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
Other than that mind-numbling digression (and a couple others like it), I deeply enjoyed this book. The five narrators of this particular version are all very talented. The story itself is much funnier than any adaptations convey it. Les Amis de l'ABC are iconic, I have the tenderest sympathies for their plight. (Combeferre's 'to be free' mic-drop is incredible.) Marius and Cosette are endearing idiots. Jean Valjean and Javert have a surprising amount of tension. What kind of tension, I could probably write a whole book of essays on. It's well-worth the read. Oh, I also feel like I absorbed a lot about 19th century French politics. Which is information I didn't necessarily need, but it helped my reread of Ellie Valsin's Virago. Over all, I would say that it's worth the insane amount of time required to read it. And this Penguin audiobook version is especially good to listen to while you work.
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Death of parent, War, Violence, Classism, Child death, Child abuse, Blood, Death, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Grief, Misogyny, and Xenophobia
Moderate: Suicide, Medical content, Religious bigotry, Alcohol, Abandonment, Racism, Xenophobia, Murder, Police brutality, and Fatphobia
Minor: Excrement, Sexual violence, Pandemic/Epidemic, Vomit, Cursing, and Antisemitism
Some of these content warnings are more of a side-effect of the time period the book was written rather than a deliberate choice to engage with these topics by the author, if that makes sense. Particularly for the more minor ones.linnylionheart's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0
Graphic: Terminal illness, Abandonment, Medical content, Murder, Religious bigotry, Suicide, Violence, Child abuse, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Grief, Misogyny, Blood, Emotional abuse, Gore, Sexism, Slavery, Death, Gun violence, and Child death
Moderate: Alcohol, Alcoholism, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Body horror, and Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Racism, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Antisemitism, Confinement, Animal cruelty, Chronic illness, Miscarriage, Animal death, Excrement, Kidnapping, and Racial slurs
amberinbookland's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Graphic: Murder, Child death, Death, Death of parent, Grief, Violence, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Suicidal thoughts, Police brutality, Emotional abuse, Confinement, Child abuse, and Blood
lesty_gibbs's review against another edition
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Ah, but there it is, the whispering in the wind; "What about the length?"
Listen, did Hugo say "we must be brief" and then ramble on for 40 pages about the Battle Of Waterloo, but then never give his characters full names because, again, "we must be brief"? Yes. Are over 150 characters named Jean? Also yes.
Les Miserables isn't called "The Brick" for nothing. Just acknowledge that his ramblings about the streets of Paris are so intricate and long that we can map it out in Paris to this day, accept that the Sewers are really the main character, and you'll have a ball reading it. I will admit though, I docked some marks for this. We didn't need 50 pages on the sewer system, we really didn't.
Graphic: Physical abuse, Child abuse, Death, Violence, Sexual violence, Alcoholism, Emotional abuse, and Terminal illness