The Black Tulip

Rating:
Summary: Everyone has an off day
Review: I find it amazing that the same man who wrote such literary masterpieces as "The Count of Monte Cristo" and "The Three Musketeers" could also write "The Black Tulip." I can only assume that it was written either very early, or very late in Dumas' career, or that he really needed the money.

"The Black Tulip" is the story of revolutionary Holland in the 17th century, and how Cornelius, the Godson of a political leader killed by angry revolutionaries, is wrongfully imprisoned based on the anonymous accusation of his next door neighbor, who covets Cornelius's ability to grow exceptional tulips. The story revolves around Cornelius who is forced to choose between which is more important to him: his love of tulips; or the love of Rosa, a simple peasant girl who befriended him in prison.

That's it.

Now, I can easily understand how, due to cultural differences, the cultivation of Tulips might have been a more significant part of seventeenth century life than it is today, but even so, its a pretty bland topic. Yeah, if the only other choice you're presented with is the new John Grisham best-seller and you're faced with a two-hour layover in National Airport, this book will definately hold its own -- but I don't think there's enough plot in the book to maintain a even a low-budget Movie-of-the-Week on TBS.

Rating:
Summary: An Exciting and Romantic Tale
Review: In "The Black Tulip", Alexandre Dumas proves again his ability to mix adventure and romance to create an exciting and romantic tale. Although Dumas may have distorted history significantly in this story, the image of late 17th century Holland which he presents is accurate and vivid enough to give the reader a lasting impression of society and culture in this period.

The execution of Jann and Cornelius De Witte and the romance between Van Baerle and Rosa are portrayed with such detail that readers are not likely to forget this book. I strongly recommend this tale to any who love adventure, history and romance.

Rating:
Summary: Flower power
Review: This book is not to be recomended by those who want an exciting swashbuckling tale on a par with Dumas' incomparable musketeer stories. It is to this end that many reviewers and readers of this book leave with an unfriendly opinion of this book. Although it is Dumas' last book, it is in my opinion one of his best. It tells the heartwarming tale of Cornelius van Baerle who lives purely to try and cultivate the rare and wonderous black tulip. However when Cornelius' godfather is asassinated he, without knowing it, enters a dangerous game of cat and mouse with his jealous neighbour (and tulip fancier) Issac Boxtel who has seen Cornelius being given a letter by his godfather. To this end Cornelius is jailed whereupon he falls in love with Rosa, the beautiful daughter of his jailer. Rosa aids Cornelius to cultivate his tulip inside the jail and they eventually succeed only to have it cruely stolen by Boxtel. I wont ruin the ending by telling you what happens, suffice to say I feel that for the first time in his writing career Dumas wrote a "Happy ever after" ending which irritated me to some extent. I do love this book and it earns its place alongside Dumas' great novels, my main reason for loving it so much is its final lines, it is one of the greatest pieces of philosophy I have ever heard, but it is important to read the book to fully understand its meaning, I know it so well that I can reel it off the top of my head thus, " ... he wrote above his door these lines that Grotius had carved on the wall of his prison on the day of his escape: "Sometimes one has suffered enough to have the right never to say: I am too happy"
To me these words have a beautiful resonance that is not only lovely to think of but accurate as well, I feel that anyone who reads this book and fails to be moved, if by nothing else by the bathos of the denoument, then they have ultimately failed to appreciate the true beauty and skill of one of the finest novelists to ever pick up a writing implement. This book is a thing of beauty, perhaps the tulip itself is a simple microcosm of the book, to start off it appears to be nothing special, but in the hands of someone who is aware of its true worth it is as priceless as the world itself.