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Summary: This novel changed me.
Review: The courage, sacrifice, and simple kindness of Jean ValJean, as revealed by Victor Hugo, had a profound influence on my character as I prepared to face the world. Read for the first time at the age of 17, I was moved to tears quite often before I finished. (pretty unusual for a young man bent on stoicism!) ValJean is a criminal who finds redemption through the kindness of a priest, and his life is forever changed. He develops a superior sense of morality, but never a moral sense of superiority. He is a hero. In my opinion, this book was Hugo's greatest creation. Because of its popularity, a large number of bad translations and abridged editions have begun to circulate. Be careful what you buy. In my opinion, the older the better.
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Summary: Jean Valjean...strong, brave true.
Review: My rating of Les Miseables is far more than this world has ever counted. I being only 11 am honored to be able to understand the strife in France at that time. I saw the play on Broadway in New York City, and since then have been fascinated with Fantine, Cosette, Jean Valjean, Javert, Eponine, Marius, and every one else in the cast. If you have seen the play, or if you are going to see the upcoming movie with Uma Thurman and Claire Danes... you are in for something even more breathtaking when you read this maasterpeice by the notorious Victor Hugo.
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Summary: The best book I'll ever read.
Review: Les Miserables is by far the most compelling book I've ever read. Hugo takes you on a winding tour from the well-known high society of Paris, to it's underbelly: the part most neglected. It was so well written, many parts nearly moved me to tears, although they are too numerous to mention. I noticed in one review that some person wrote that Hugo's descriptions of Paris were too long. That is due simply to his love of his city and country! He discribed to us the sewers of Paris because they, like the slums of Paris, contained the thrown away and forgotten.
If you are reading this and haven't yet read the book, do yourself a favor. It might influence you for the rest of your life.
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Summary: Trying to live up to fiction.
Review: I am a different man after reading this book. I hope to give more freely to those less fortunate. It's kind of silly to feel so profoundly about fictional characters, but I learned about love, courage, mercy, and justice from this book.
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Summary: Beautiful
Review: I've read all of the other reviews and i don't know what else I can say. It is a masterpeice of epic proportion. The beauty and brilliance of the book is not only in the story of Valjean, but in larger issues. I read this book two years ago when I was in the 7th grade and fell in love with it. If you are thinking of reading it please do. The authors forward to it explains exactly how I feel about it.
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Summary: Great story..when it was being told
Review: The story of Les Miserables is a beautiful one of life and love and redemption. The characters in this book were real, romantic and moving. I've seen the musical and the book was even better. However, there is one serious detraction from this magical novel, and that is the 50-100 page tangents the author went on in the middle of the novel. The biginning of the novel contained a 50+ page narrative on the life and history of the Bishop, a very minor character. In the middle of Valjean's flee through the city with an unconscious Marius, there is a long narrative on the history of, of all things, the Paris sewers!! I really wanted to like this book because I absolutely fell in love with the musical. The story is wonderfully told, but I could do without the running commentary on the setting. If I want to know about sewers, I'll look them up. I recommend this version only to those of us with unending patience and hours to spare. If that's not you, read the abridged version or see the play. You'll get the story, the whole story, and nothing BUT the story.
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Summary: Terrific!!
Review: I have read Les Miz twice, and love it. Jean Valjean is defiatly my favorite character. I cry every time I read it. The characters are created so vivid and clear. If you haven't read this book, I'd advise you to read it. You won't regret it. I can't put it down once I start reading it.
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Summary: A novel with everlasting and universal themes...
Review: Although a prolific writer whose varied works carry great merit, Les Miserables has to be Victor Hugo's best. The story boasts an epic tale that is rich in both history and fiction, and one of the most interesting characters in literature, Inspector Javert. (Hugo himself noted that Javert was perhaps his greatest creation.) What more can I say? Hugo makes 1400+ pages fly by like a novella. A staple for every library...enjoy.
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Summary: "Les Mis": the never-ending (coincidence-ridden) story
Review: It's easy to tell which 19th century writers were paid by theword, isn't it? Don't get me wrong--Hugo did an outstanding job withthis book--it just has two problems that preclude it from serious contention as one of the greatest books ever written. First, at 1500 pages it suffers from a serious (although not terminal) case of long-windedness. Second, the book is riddled with coincidences that are worthy of Ripley's. One example: Javert just *happens* to meet Valjean coming out of the sewer. My heavens, do you know what the *chances* of that are? Ok, ok, so we can't judge a 19th century author by our late 20th century sophistication; however, it does sort of jar you out of your suspension of disbelief, doesn't it? But read the book, enjoy it, it's worth it, and if you ever get the chance to see the play, go see it. Absolutely the best play I've ever seen.
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Summary: The Only Positive Experience I Had during School This Year!
Review: My experience with Victor Hugo's classic, Les Misérables, was quite by accident. While studying France's political turmoil during the 1800's, my tenth grade world history professor decided to waste some class time by showing us a video. At first, I paid no attention to the video, considering the fact that most of the movies he showed us were taped off of the history channel a good century ago. Soon I found myself intrigued with the plot twists and characters. After we finished the movie, I decided to read the book for English. Thinking that if the book was too boring, I had already seen the movie so I could fake my way through the essay test. I have never loved a book so much in my life! I found myself reading it during films in Spanish, under my desk in history, and losing sleep because I was staying up all night to read. I finished the complete unabridged novel in five days, a very enormous feat for a busy teenager! I found Javert to be the most interesting character and felt that if his dedication to justice hadn't been misguided, he could have been a hero in the story. He could have been Enjolras. I wish every high school student was required to read this book, although I know it would not bring them as much joy as it brought me. The only reason I love this story so much, is because it wasn't force-feed to me. I now have tickets to see the musical this summer in Toronto and can hardly wait to go. Everyone can find a character they identify with. Many young girls can relate to Eponine's love for Marius that is not returned, while others may relate to Enjolras' continued struggle for his beliefs. There are many lessons Hugo has included in this book: redemption, forgiveness, justice, honor, love, war, poverty, bravery, and the division among social classes. Even though this book was written in a different time, in a different place, its controversy and story will always live on because its themes are timeless.
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