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anovelstart 's review for:
The Hunchback of Notre-Dame
by Victor Hugo
After visiting Paris last month, I decided it was time to give the book that saved Notre Dame a try. I'd been meaning to read it for a while so it finally encouraged me to get around to it. The version I read had all the missing chapters that weren't originally published.
First off, the storyline isn't much like the Disney movie. There are quite a lot of differences but I'd say it's still ok for children. I knew it would be quite different but I wasn't sure how much.
One bit of the story that was quite confusing was the authors habit of going on a tangent. One minute you'd be happily reading the storyline, the next it would randomly be describing some architecture and going into its history or something of the like. You had to remind yourself which part of the book you were up to.
The storyline itself was quite good, I liked the side-story of Esmerelda and her mother. You do have suspicions through the story about this but it was nice there was a conclusion. Both parties were so miserable without the other it was comforting to know they finally found each other.
Frollo doesn't seem to have the same amount of authority as in the Disney movie. This was ok because he is actually an archdeacon and not a judge. The story worked well with him in this role.
I really liked Quasimodo's comparisons with beauty after Esmerelda has taken sanctuary. For example, the two vases. One is a beautiful glass vase but the flowers have withered and died overnight (it had cracks), the other is a plain pottery jug but the flowers are blossoming and still are still alive. To me it says beauty isn't everything and even something plain can be beautiful.
The language used in the book is better for adults, but at the time it was written it was probably still a children's novel. The book is quite descriptive and there are words children may not know, but to me it adds to the character of the novel.
I gave this book three stars because of the tangents the author kept going on, it was quite distracting! However the storyline was quite enjoyable so I hope you enjoy this classic tale too.
If you like my review, please visit my book blog at: http://a-novel-start.blogspot.co.uk
First off, the storyline isn't much like the Disney movie. There are quite a lot of differences but I'd say it's still ok for children. I knew it would be quite different but I wasn't sure how much.
One bit of the story that was quite confusing was the authors habit of going on a tangent. One minute you'd be happily reading the storyline, the next it would randomly be describing some architecture and going into its history or something of the like. You had to remind yourself which part of the book you were up to.
The storyline itself was quite good, I liked the side-story of Esmerelda and her mother. You do have suspicions through the story about this but it was nice there was a conclusion. Both parties were so miserable without the other it was comforting to know they finally found each other.
Frollo doesn't seem to have the same amount of authority as in the Disney movie. This was ok because he is actually an archdeacon and not a judge. The story worked well with him in this role.
I really liked Quasimodo's comparisons with beauty after Esmerelda has taken sanctuary. For example, the two vases. One is a beautiful glass vase but the flowers have withered and died overnight (it had cracks), the other is a plain pottery jug but the flowers are blossoming and still are still alive. To me it says beauty isn't everything and even something plain can be beautiful.
The language used in the book is better for adults, but at the time it was written it was probably still a children's novel. The book is quite descriptive and there are words children may not know, but to me it adds to the character of the novel.
I gave this book three stars because of the tangents the author kept going on, it was quite distracting! However the storyline was quite enjoyable so I hope you enjoy this classic tale too.
If you like my review, please visit my book blog at: http://a-novel-start.blogspot.co.uk