Les Miserables, Complete in One Volume, Translated From The French by Isabel F. Hapgood

by Victor; Isabel F. Hapgood [tr.] Hugo

Hardcover

Published January 1, 1915

Reviews

[Deanna · Rating 5 out of 5]

I listened to 'Les Miserables' as an audiobook as I couldn't comprehend trying read it as a physical book.

To start with, I love the musical score to Les Miserables and had a basic idea of the story. What drove me to listen to the audiobook was a curiosity to know the story more deeply and to garner details I couldn't derive from the musical rendition.
I went into 'Les Miserables' preparing to be bored. Surely, such a long book can't be all that interesting. Well, it didn't take long to find myself getting sucked into the story, and one by one I found myself growing attached to all the different characters. My favorite character is little Gavroche. His parents didn't love him and didn't want him and was put on the street very young, but despite all that, he seemed to have a good heart and he doesn’t seem to take life too seriously despite the lot he's been dealt.
As I listened to this book, I have smiled and laughed and felt saddened even disgusted.
I have listened to this book over the course of six months and it's fair to say it is burned into my soul. I love it that much. It is worth another listen someday or even to read the physical book. There is so much, still, to take in. I know I missed things in my first listen that I would pick up if I were to read it yet again. I never imagined 'Les Miserables' to be such powerful and heartfelt story. On a stage is one thing, the book, though, far surpassed my expectations and can't speak highly of it enough.