After 3 months of reading, this has finally made it to my list of favorite books.

Synopsis: After breaking parole, Jean Valjean runs away from Inspector Javert, adopts an orphan named Cosette, and gets pulled into the June Revolution of 1832. (It’s hard to make a one sentence summary of a 1463 paged book.)

There’s so much to say about Les Mis. There’s a great combination of action, romance, and discussion, which makes it a very diverse book. The book dragged in the middle (and during “Waterloo”), but for the most part, it’s an exciting read.

I liked the random discussion/analysis that Hugo throws in the most. I really enjoyed “Parenthesis”, “Argot”, and “Mines and Miners” though some aren’t not included in the abridged editions of the classic. Hugo makes you think by introducing some of these unrelated topics, but at the same time, I felt like he restricted my thoughts because he explained his views so well that I couldn’t help but agree with what he was saying. 

Despite its title, Les Miserables proves to be a very hopeful book. There’s an emphasis on love (not necessarily romantic though), redemption, forgiving, and equality. I’m not so sure why people say it’s a very depressing book.

Truth be told, I had forgotten most of my World History, so I could only remember bits and pieces of the French Revolution and that made me rather uninterested in all the political talk. After finishing the book and reviewing (thanks to Sparknotes), I can better appreciate so much more of the book. I’ll have to go through the entire book again sometime, because now I can understand what’s going on when he says Jacobin and bourgeois.

Concluding Thoughts: Well-written and thoughtful, Les Miserables probably the best book I’ve read this year (thus far…I have a lot more books to get through before my summer is over!).

1. pulledheartstring said: EEP i wanna read
2. melan-chloe likes this
3. irisistable posted this