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A review by lesty_gibbs
Les Misérables by Victor Hugo
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Jean Valjean is quite possibly one of the most compelling characters of all time, and his relationship with Javert is equally so. I did an essay on this, which is why I read the book. Overall it is so intricate and deeply structured, with so much thought, effort, and time put into it, that, as a result, Les Miserables can't help but be a classic.
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.
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.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Physical abuse, Child abuse, Death, Violence, Sexual violence, Alcoholism, Emotional abuse, and Terminal illness