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nodroz 's review for:
The Hunchback of Notre-Dame
by Victor Hugo
I tried to read this when I was a teenager. I got about twenty pages in then, put it down, and ignored it on my shelf for about 5 years. I wanted to start reading classics, but at the time this one was a bit too intimidating for me. I hadn't read anything like this before, and I think in retrospect this was an ambitious attempt. Instead I decided to start with easier works like Pride and Prejudice, Great Expectations, Wuthering Heights, the usual suspects.
As time went on, and with the more classics I read, I began to have a heart-felt appreciation for them. This sounds like a good ending? We all lived happily ever after? Not quite. Even after 5 years I could still remember the one classic I couldn't handle. This book was always at the back of my mind, and before I knew it, it was in my hand. I would not let it defeat me a second time.
Firstly, if you are going into this thinking that it's anything like the Disney adaptation, let me tell you now that you are in for a world of shock. Half of the book is Hugo giving commentary on Parisian architecture. I remember being hundreds of pages into it and still being no closer the the actual story. Hugo does paint a beautiful picture of Paris as he knew it, and I could appreciate the love he clearly had for the city. But... I'm afraid I didn't pick up the book to read about architecture. It is a bit of a trek, and I can see a lot of people being put off by it. However like I mentioned earlier, this is only one half of the book.
The other half is a heart-wrenching love story that is so beautifully tragic that it will emotionally break you. We have Quasimodo, who is shunned from the world because of his deformity. He is pitied by archdeacon Claude Frollo, who to this poor boy is the only source of love he has ever known. Into this mix we bring in the ravishing Esmerelda, a gypsy dancer who has stolen the heart of the hopeless writer Gringoire. Unfortunately for him her heart taken by none other than Captain Phoebus. Esmerelda believes they are in love, and the handsome young Captain does nothing but encourage her feeling for him. Throughout this courtship there is an individual who stalks the girl, who craves her with such passion that he will do anything to claim her. Who is this person you might ask? You have already met him, for he is no other than the archdeacon himself and he will stop at nothing until he get what he wants. Abusing the love Quasimodo has for him, Frollo begins his plans to snare our Esmerelda. Throughout this tale we are taken on a journey of romance, treachery, and murder.
As I said, this is a love story. Love sought, love given, love ignored, love betrayed, love forcefully taken, love lost. In the end I fell in love with this book myself. Unfortunately, not all love stories have a happy ending...
As time went on, and with the more classics I read, I began to have a heart-felt appreciation for them. This sounds like a good ending? We all lived happily ever after? Not quite. Even after 5 years I could still remember the one classic I couldn't handle. This book was always at the back of my mind, and before I knew it, it was in my hand. I would not let it defeat me a second time.
Firstly, if you are going into this thinking that it's anything like the Disney adaptation, let me tell you now that you are in for a world of shock. Half of the book is Hugo giving commentary on Parisian architecture. I remember being hundreds of pages into it and still being no closer the the actual story. Hugo does paint a beautiful picture of Paris as he knew it, and I could appreciate the love he clearly had for the city. But... I'm afraid I didn't pick up the book to read about architecture. It is a bit of a trek, and I can see a lot of people being put off by it. However like I mentioned earlier, this is only one half of the book.
The other half is a heart-wrenching love story that is so beautifully tragic that it will emotionally break you. We have Quasimodo, who is shunned from the world because of his deformity. He is pitied by archdeacon Claude Frollo, who to this poor boy is the only source of love he has ever known. Into this mix we bring in the ravishing Esmerelda, a gypsy dancer who has stolen the heart of the hopeless writer Gringoire. Unfortunately for him her heart taken by none other than Captain Phoebus. Esmerelda believes they are in love, and the handsome young Captain does nothing but encourage her feeling for him. Throughout this courtship there is an individual who stalks the girl, who craves her with such passion that he will do anything to claim her. Who is this person you might ask? You have already met him, for he is no other than the archdeacon himself and he will stop at nothing until he get what he wants. Abusing the love Quasimodo has for him, Frollo begins his plans to snare our Esmerelda. Throughout this tale we are taken on a journey of romance, treachery, and murder.
As I said, this is a love story. Love sought, love given, love ignored, love betrayed, love forcefully taken, love lost. In the end I fell in love with this book myself. Unfortunately, not all love stories have a happy ending...