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Monday, October 29, 2007

Want to read it with me?

I'm going to spend the month of November reading through Les Miserable by Victor Hugo. If you want to join in, feel free! I'll post my review when I'm done with it and welcome comments.

Happy Reading!

13 comments:

B said...

Ooohhh. I'm going to volunteer to join you, since I've never read it. Just keep me accountable, or I'll quickly fall behind.

Carrie said...

I can't believe YOU haven't read it! Anyway, thanks for joining me in the...sufferings? Or the joy? Mirlandra is reading it as well. It's as she said -- she wants to have read it but she doesn't really want to be reading it. I feel that way, too.

Anonymous said...

ugh, I read it of my own volition once and have no desire to read it again...long, dry and verbose

Queen of Carrots said...

You might try an abridged edition, one that leaves out the long lectures on the sewer system. Like many 19th century novels, there *is* a good story under all that verbiage.

Sherry said...

I would love to read Les Miserables again, but I'm not sure I have the time this month. I'm going to look at it and see if I could read a couple of chapters a day and get there by the end of the month. Les Miserables is my favorite novel ever.

B said...

You know, as a student of English lit, I haven't delved that deeply into French literature. And I also tend to fall into the category of medieval mythology (Celtic and Scandinavian), which doesn't find itself overlapping with nineteenth-century French lit all that often. Also, I have this bizarre objection to reading books in translation when I should be reading them in their original language (assuming that language is somewhat accessible). So, I think that part of me was waiting until I have a better grasp of French. But (among other things) that's such a bad excuse that I'm going to jump in now and reread in French in a year or two.

Sherry said...

OK I started tonight. I love Monseignor Bienvenu.

Sherry said...

I'm commenting again so tht I can the emails to see who else is reading and commenting.

Carrie said...

I started today and I have to say....I'm flabbergasted and floored and ready to quote the book to anyone and everyone. Don't know who "Anonymous" was but I think you're missing out!

Seriously, I think after Anne, Monseignor Bienvenu is my favorite literary characters of all times.

B said...

I can't get started on it until tomorrow, but I'm going to try to cover some ground. For some bizarre reason, the university library didn't have it...

return home gnome said...

One of my absolute favorites: get the unabridged and read all the French History too: it's educational and gives such deep context for the story.

B said...

I made it through "Fantine." What a beautiful book. I love scene when Valjean goes into the garden to decide what to do about the man who has being accused of his crimes; there's that beautifully subtle comparison to Christ in the garden before His arrest and makes the scene so much more poignant, forcing the reader to think about the sacrifice that Valjean is making and just how obviously wrong it is given all the good that He has done.

*carrie* said...

Carrie,

Thanks for commenting on my blog today. I've gotten some great advice about holiday birthdays!

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