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A review by jay_sy
Les Misérables by Victor Hugo
adventurous
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
4.0
Les Miserable by Victor Hugo follows the story of Jean Valjean and his struggles to find redemption.
Thoughts while reading:
-the story opens with a description of the bishop known to the people as Mr. Bienvenue and I have to say that I really love his character so far and found it really engaging to hear about how he tried to help people
-The part where the bishop lets Jean Valjean take his silver made me cry, I was so moved
-Victor Hugo is a very descriptive writer, and there’s parts where he talks about what must have been a contemporary time for him that had my eyes glazing over, but when it comes to the main story, I’m deeply engaged
-Reading about Fantine’s downfall wrecked me. I cried so hard, and even thinking about it later still makes me want to tear up. The injustice of it all hit me really hard, and then to have people treat her badly because of the choices she made was even worse
-Javert is both infuriating and fascinating, with his rigid and unmoving view of what justice is. He’s basically “the system,” in the most unwavering and ruthless way
-The extremely long description about the battle of Waterloo was hard to get through. It was just too much
-Poor Cosette, I feel so bad for her. And for Jean Valjean to be arrested again after all the good he did for that village. I wish people could look at the bigger picture to do good, instead of tearing people down
-the descriptions massively affect the pacing of the story. While the descriptions of the convent are more interesting than the Battle of Waterloo it's still tedious to listen to
-Hmm, there’s a lot more characters being introduced and because the descriptions are meandering, I’m struggling to keep track of them
-I know that young men in love can be blind and foolish, but a part of me really wants to grab Marius and just shake him
-the section about the Thenardiers’ ambush with the aid of the bandits was so tense and interesting
-I felt moved by Éponine’s courage when she stood up against the bandits to protect Marius. I know he’s experiencing young love which makes him blind to things, but I feel so bad for how he treats her
-Marius’s meeting with his grandfather was so sad. It’s unfortunate when people love one another but don’t know how to express it, and push others away instead
-M. Mabeuf’s fall into deep poverty is so depressing
-I wasn’t really invested in the section about the barricade, though Éponine’s and Gavroche’s deaths were sad
-considering that Jean Valjean hated Marius and was basically stalked by Javert, it is such a powerful moment when he saves Marius’s and Javert’s life
-the reunion of Marius and Cosette is so cute
-Marius is so infuriating at the end! But I’m so relieved about how it ended, with him discovering the truth
I found it to be a moving story, though some parts were incredibly slow and overly detailed. I liked hearing about Jean Valjean's moments of weakness, where you wonder if his morality will falter, and whether he will make the selfish choice or the right one. The depictions of poverty were also very moving and sad. Overall, I would give it a 4 out of 5. Between all the slow parts was a fascinating story.
Thoughts while reading:
-the story opens with a description of the bishop known to the people as Mr. Bienvenue and I have to say that I really love his character so far and found it really engaging to hear about how he tried to help people
-The part where the bishop lets Jean Valjean take his silver made me cry, I was so moved
-Victor Hugo is a very descriptive writer, and there’s parts where he talks about what must have been a contemporary time for him that had my eyes glazing over, but when it comes to the main story, I’m deeply engaged
-Reading about Fantine’s downfall wrecked me. I cried so hard, and even thinking about it later still makes me want to tear up. The injustice of it all hit me really hard, and then to have people treat her badly because of the choices she made was even worse
-Javert is both infuriating and fascinating, with his rigid and unmoving view of what justice is. He’s basically “the system,” in the most unwavering and ruthless way
-The extremely long description about the battle of Waterloo was hard to get through. It was just too much
-Poor Cosette, I feel so bad for her. And for Jean Valjean to be arrested again after all the good he did for that village. I wish people could look at the bigger picture to do good, instead of tearing people down
-the descriptions massively affect the pacing of the story. While the descriptions of the convent are more interesting than the Battle of Waterloo it's still tedious to listen to
-Hmm, there’s a lot more characters being introduced and because the descriptions are meandering, I’m struggling to keep track of them
-I know that young men in love can be blind and foolish, but a part of me really wants to grab Marius and just shake him
-the section about the Thenardiers’ ambush with the aid of the bandits was so tense and interesting
-I felt moved by Éponine’s courage when she stood up against the bandits to protect Marius. I know he’s experiencing young love which makes him blind to things, but I feel so bad for how he treats her
-Marius’s meeting with his grandfather was so sad. It’s unfortunate when people love one another but don’t know how to express it, and push others away instead
-M. Mabeuf’s fall into deep poverty is so depressing
-I wasn’t really invested in the section about the barricade, though Éponine’s and Gavroche’s deaths were sad
-considering that Jean Valjean hated Marius and was basically stalked by Javert, it is such a powerful moment when he saves Marius’s and Javert’s life
-the reunion of Marius and Cosette is so cute
-Marius is so infuriating at the end! But I’m so relieved about how it ended, with him discovering the truth
I found it to be a moving story, though some parts were incredibly slow and overly detailed. I liked hearing about Jean Valjean's moments of weakness, where you wonder if his morality will falter, and whether he will make the selfish choice or the right one. The depictions of poverty were also very moving and sad. Overall, I would give it a 4 out of 5. Between all the slow parts was a fascinating story.