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3.85 AVERAGE
3.85 AVERAGE
I started listening to this book on tape, but I got so into it that I had to find a hard copy so that I could finish it faster. Such a tragic book, very melodramatic, but Victor Hugo gets inside people's heads in such a way that the events seem plausible.
An incredibly intense and depressing story. Applicable today to the way an obsessive, abusive person can destroy the life of his/her unfortunate object. Poor Esmeralda - she never has a chance. And Quasimodo's plight echoes that of the Frankenstein "monster" - physically ugly so cast aside from human society and connection.
"It's Quasimodo the bell-ringer! It's Quasimodo the hunchback of Notre Dame!"
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Spoilers/ Review for the Hunchback of Notre Dame (I didn't like this one so here we go)
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Set in 1482, Paris, the Hunchback of Notre Dame tells the tale of the deformed and deaf Quasimodo feared and shunned by the Parisians. It also tells us of the beautiful gypsy, Esmeralda, the poet Pierre Gringoire, arch deacon of Notre Dame, Claude Frollo, the adoptive father of Quasimodo and how these lives are connected to Notre Dame...
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Me and @dannireads_allthetime chose this one as a buddy read but I don't think either one of us like it that much. I don't get the hype around it. I read it and kept expecting it to get better page after page but nothing really happened. It just didn't grip me in the slightest. I kept expecting something to happen or the plot to pick up but alas no. I just plain don't like it. I did try to like it and pushed on with it but I really don't see the appeal to it. Can someone explain what I'm missing here? I do feel like something big has been lost in translation with this one
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Overall 1/5
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Spoilers/ Review for the Hunchback of Notre Dame (I didn't like this one so here we go)
.
Set in 1482, Paris, the Hunchback of Notre Dame tells the tale of the deformed and deaf Quasimodo feared and shunned by the Parisians. It also tells us of the beautiful gypsy, Esmeralda, the poet Pierre Gringoire, arch deacon of Notre Dame, Claude Frollo, the adoptive father of Quasimodo and how these lives are connected to Notre Dame...
.
Me and @dannireads_allthetime chose this one as a buddy read but I don't think either one of us like it that much. I don't get the hype around it. I read it and kept expecting it to get better page after page but nothing really happened. It just didn't grip me in the slightest. I kept expecting something to happen or the plot to pick up but alas no. I just plain don't like it. I did try to like it and pushed on with it but I really don't see the appeal to it. Can someone explain what I'm missing here? I do feel like something big has been lost in translation with this one
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Overall 1/5
Le roman se compose de 59 chapitres répartis en onze livres de longueur inégale.
L'intrigue se déroule à Paris en 1482. Les deux premiers livres (I et II) du roman suivent Pierre Gringoire, poète sans le sou.
Le livre III évoque Notre-Dame de Paris, son histoire et ses restaurations mal pensées, puis donne une vision d'ensemble de la ville de Paris telle qu'elle apparaissait à un spectateur médiéval regardant la capitale du haut des tours de la cathédrale.
L'intrigue se déroule à Paris en 1482. Les deux premiers livres (I et II) du roman suivent Pierre Gringoire, poète sans le sou.
Le livre III évoque Notre-Dame de Paris, son histoire et ses restaurations mal pensées, puis donne une vision d'ensemble de la ville de Paris telle qu'elle apparaissait à un spectateur médiéval regardant la capitale du haut des tours de la cathédrale.
The beginning was painful to get through and desperately needs abridged. Although, there are gems. This book is like a love letter to Paris. Hugo is clearly smitten with the city and spreads his adoration. Oh but by the end. all i can say is that the heart aches. i felt so much. Hugo once again delivers as he always does
It shouldn't take 140 pages for your title character to show up.
And I LIKE long-winded, 19th century literature but there are LIMITS.
EDITED 4/17/19: Never in a million years did I imagine that three months after I finished this Notre Dame would nearly burn to the ground. I wrote in my original review that I like long winded, 19th century literature (which I do) but the real reason I read this is because I am a medieval historian by training if not profession and as such have always adored Gothic cathedrals. Watching Notre Dame burn was like someone tore a piece of my soul out and set it on fire too.
In light of that terrible tragedy I am adding to my review. I'm not changing my rating (because it really DOES take that long for the title character to show up) but I will give Hugo some more credit.
It's well known that Hugo wrote this novel to save the cathedral, then in such a state of disrepair many people wanted to see it torn down. He loved it at least as much as everyone else realized they did this week and this book took him twenty+ years to write because he wanted to get all the details of the architecture correct. Quite honestly, this shows, because he's clearly less interested in things like character development and writing a coherent plot than he is in explaining the intricacies of cathedral design. This seems to be a common complaint about this book, that you end up getting a course in cathedral building rather than a story but if you're like me and you read it for the cathedral to begin with then it's still worth it.
He does actually manage to get most of the details correct and the experience is enhanced if you've been lucky enough to visit Paris and can visualize what he's talking about, because the book is really a giant tour of Notre Dame Cathedral, inside and out (including, sadly, the magnificent "forest" of wooden rafters and supports that burned this week) and the original spire. The descriptions are so evocative you can hear the bells as you read and picture the rainbow of light as it flows through the rose windows.
None of this, of course, changes the fact that the story doesn't really hold up in my opinion, even when compared to other relatively contemporary French literature (The Count of Monte Cristo, for example, remains as exciting as it was the day it was written despite being about three times longer). But Hugo's novel has the benefit of being almost singlehandedly responsible for the saving of one of the greatest treasures in Western art, so it does deserve kind of a pass. That, and it has what is probably the best description of medieval Paris I have ever read in what I think was chapter 4, if I remember right. It's long but when it comes to its end, it creates a complete picture of what medieval Paris was like in a symphony of words every bit as grand as the symphony of stone the cathedral itself is known as.
Basically what I'm saying is you can just read chapter four and get a good idea of why this book has survived the ages.
Victor Hugo would have been devastated to watch the cathedral he adored burn but it's thanks to him it is here today in the first place. I like to think that the outpouring of grief and love shown this week proves he succeeded in his goal in making Notre Dame the beloved landmark it is.
Fluctuat nec murgitur: She is tossed by the waves but never sunk. Notre Dame has risen from the ashes of tragedy before, and will certainly do so again.
And I LIKE long-winded, 19th century literature but there are LIMITS.
EDITED 4/17/19: Never in a million years did I imagine that three months after I finished this Notre Dame would nearly burn to the ground. I wrote in my original review that I like long winded, 19th century literature (which I do) but the real reason I read this is because I am a medieval historian by training if not profession and as such have always adored Gothic cathedrals. Watching Notre Dame burn was like someone tore a piece of my soul out and set it on fire too.
In light of that terrible tragedy I am adding to my review. I'm not changing my rating (because it really DOES take that long for the title character to show up) but I will give Hugo some more credit.
It's well known that Hugo wrote this novel to save the cathedral, then in such a state of disrepair many people wanted to see it torn down. He loved it at least as much as everyone else realized they did this week and this book took him twenty+ years to write because he wanted to get all the details of the architecture correct. Quite honestly, this shows, because he's clearly less interested in things like character development and writing a coherent plot than he is in explaining the intricacies of cathedral design. This seems to be a common complaint about this book, that you end up getting a course in cathedral building rather than a story but if you're like me and you read it for the cathedral to begin with then it's still worth it.
He does actually manage to get most of the details correct and the experience is enhanced if you've been lucky enough to visit Paris and can visualize what he's talking about, because the book is really a giant tour of Notre Dame Cathedral, inside and out (including, sadly, the magnificent "forest" of wooden rafters and supports that burned this week) and the original spire. The descriptions are so evocative you can hear the bells as you read and picture the rainbow of light as it flows through the rose windows.
None of this, of course, changes the fact that the story doesn't really hold up in my opinion, even when compared to other relatively contemporary French literature (The Count of Monte Cristo, for example, remains as exciting as it was the day it was written despite being about three times longer). But Hugo's novel has the benefit of being almost singlehandedly responsible for the saving of one of the greatest treasures in Western art, so it does deserve kind of a pass. That, and it has what is probably the best description of medieval Paris I have ever read in what I think was chapter 4, if I remember right. It's long but when it comes to its end, it creates a complete picture of what medieval Paris was like in a symphony of words every bit as grand as the symphony of stone the cathedral itself is known as.
Basically what I'm saying is you can just read chapter four and get a good idea of why this book has survived the ages.
Victor Hugo would have been devastated to watch the cathedral he adored burn but it's thanks to him it is here today in the first place. I like to think that the outpouring of grief and love shown this week proves he succeeded in his goal in making Notre Dame the beloved landmark it is.
Fluctuat nec murgitur: She is tossed by the waves but never sunk. Notre Dame has risen from the ashes of tragedy before, and will certainly do so again.
Full review available at:
https://sapphistication.wordpress.com/2018/02/26/reviewing-the-hunchback-of-notre-dame-by-victor-hugo/
If you are reading this because you’re a fan of the Disney movie this is a shame-free-zone, because that’s exactly why I read the book. The Hunchback of Notre Dame is not only almost two centuries old, but has also been a relatively well-recognised story to even young children since the release of said movie – that being said, I will attempt to keep this as spoiler-free as possible. I don’t want to ruin the book for you after all. I will say there are far fewer musical numbers and, in the general tone of Hugo’s work, less Disney-esque happy endings. You have been warned.
https://sapphistication.wordpress.com/2018/02/26/reviewing-the-hunchback-of-notre-dame-by-victor-hugo/
If you are reading this because you’re a fan of the Disney movie this is a shame-free-zone, because that’s exactly why I read the book. The Hunchback of Notre Dame is not only almost two centuries old, but has also been a relatively well-recognised story to even young children since the release of said movie – that being said, I will attempt to keep this as spoiler-free as possible. I don’t want to ruin the book for you after all. I will say there are far fewer musical numbers and, in the general tone of Hugo’s work, less Disney-esque happy endings. You have been warned.
Muy terrible que ninguno de mis amigos de Goodreads lo haya leído.
Leedlo
Es necesario.
Y la versión con dibujos de Benjamin Lacombe qué. No pueden combinar dos de mis cosas favoritas en el mundo e irse de rositas.
Leedlo
Es necesario.
Y la versión con dibujos de Benjamin Lacombe qué. No pueden combinar dos de mis cosas favoritas en el mundo e irse de rositas.
In case you were wondering, this is definitely not like the Disney film. I mean, obviously since Disney has to make a movie have a happy ending and this book’s is far from that.
This book was my classic pick for the month of February. I remember picking it up once but only got through 10% because of the slow beginning. This time I borrowed the audio book from my library otherwise I probably wouldn’t have got through it. The first 35% or so is pretty slow and many of the key characters don’t come into play until then.
One big difference from book to film is the characters. Quesimodo doesn’t actually have many scenes in the book. Although his ending is much happier than Esmeralda and Frollo. Esmeralda was very annoying and only cared about her dear Phebis who was kind of a dillweed. She does have her goat but other than that she is not the strong indepedent woman that Disney portrays her as. Her ending is also quite tragic. Frollo is still horny guy who only has eyes for Esmeralda. He wants her and he doesn’t want anyone else to have her. I would say that Disney made him more of a villain and really his only sees are lusting over someone.
Overall, it was a decent classic. I’m glad I listened to it as an audio book. I wouldn’t really say there is any exciting plot twists but I’d recommend this one if you like the movie and want to see what actually happened.
This book was my classic pick for the month of February. I remember picking it up once but only got through 10% because of the slow beginning. This time I borrowed the audio book from my library otherwise I probably wouldn’t have got through it. The first 35% or so is pretty slow and many of the key characters don’t come into play until then.
One big difference from book to film is the characters. Quesimodo doesn’t actually have many scenes in the book. Although his ending is much happier than Esmeralda and Frollo. Esmeralda was very annoying and only cared about her dear Phebis who was kind of a dillweed. She does have her goat but other than that she is not the strong indepedent woman that Disney portrays her as. Her ending is also quite tragic. Frollo is still horny guy who only has eyes for Esmeralda. He wants her and he doesn’t want anyone else to have her. I would say that Disney made him more of a villain and really his only sees are lusting over someone.
Overall, it was a decent classic. I’m glad I listened to it as an audio book. I wouldn’t really say there is any exciting plot twists but I’d recommend this one if you like the movie and want to see what actually happened.
challenging
dark
informative
slow-paced
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes