Monday, June 28, 2010

Tackling One Of The Big Ones

I hate to admit this, especially because I have a very theater loving family but I have never seen Les Miserables. I know a lot of the music but have never seen the movie or the musical. The movie version is available to watch instantly on Netflix and I have had it on my queue for a long time but I decided that I am not allowed to watch it until I've read the book. As a general rule, I prefer to read the book before seeing the movie. It's just a personal preference.

So starting tonight I plan on taking on the massive Les Miserables by Victor Hugo so I can finally watch the movie and hopefully, someday, the musical. The sheer size of this book is intimidating but I'm going to attempt to tackle one of the five volumes each week. Though that may change once I get started depending on how it reads.

Wish me luck and if you are willing to tackle this huge book, read along with me.

13 comments:

Rachel said...

I've never read the book, but I've seen the movie and the musical (a bit backwards, yes). I hope you enjoy it.

Red said...

Good luck with this one! I read this years ago and it was a lot of work to make it through. Perhaps I should try to read it again and see if I appreciate it more, but I liked The Hunchback of Notre Dame better than Les Mis. I loved the Les Mis Broadway show, so if you get a chance to see that I do recommend it!

Kate said...

Good luck!

Jenny Q said...

This has been on my list and I'm scheduled to do a guest review on Royal Reviews for French historical week and I thought I might finally read Les Mis. I've never seen the musical either.

Leah said...

I have the same need to read before watching. I have actually seen the play, but it was forced on me while I was in London (forced maybe the wrong word). But I didn't know it was based on a book at the time - the play has taken on a life of its own.

I hope you enjoy it. My huge read for this summer is Paradise Lost.

Julie P said...

Wow! That is a hefty one. Hope you enjoy it....

B said...

Good luck! I think you'll find it enjoyable. I read it in my French class one year and loved it once I got into it.

Rachel said...

Thanks all, for the well-wishes. I read a few chapters last night but not enough to get a good feel for it yet. I'm hoping it's a good read. It's been one I've been wanting to read for quite awhile.

Carin Siegfried said...

Wowsers, good luck! I read this in high school... but we were assigned to read the Abridged version (which still came in at 350 pp.) One girl in the class read the Unabridged, and she'd occasionally tell us something new that wasnt in our version, but it seems like Hugo goes off on historical tangents occasionally. I bought the Unabridged in college - and 15 years later it's still sitting on my bookcase, untouched.

Anonymous said...

Oh no, I have to read this one and am daunted by its size. Maybe I will just wait till you're done to tackle it :)
Am looking forward to the review!

Hilde said...

I read Les Mis about 10 years ago, and if I remember correctly, it's one of those rare books that actually made me cry. I think it just went on my to re-read list. ;) I like the movie, but I am in love with the musical. It's perfect.

Good luck with your reading, hope you'll like it!

Jen said...

I absolutely love the musical Les Mis, so thought reading the book was a good idea as well. It is taking me a very long time to get through - I started in December 2009 and am still on volume 4. Carin S. is very right about historical tangents...a basic understanding of France history would really come in handy with this one!
Keep us updated on how you are enjoying it, maybe you will motivate me to finally finish, 7 months later!

Rachel said...

Funny how many mixed reviews there have been about this book. Some love it, some can't finish it. Interesting.

Related Posts with Thumbnails