3 Review(s)

Les Misérables is Victor Hugo’s monumental classic on the life of an ex-convict who searches for redemption. Summary of the Book Jean Valjean is a hardened convict with few morals. Recently released after 19 years of imprisonment, he struggles to find a job. No one will trust him because his yellow passport marks him as an ex-convict. He is reduced to sleeping on the street. One day, a generous Bishop gives him shelter. Sticking to his old ways, Jean Valjean steals the Bishop’s silverware and runs. He is caught by the police who bring him back to the Bishop. The Bishop tells the police that he personally gave Jean Valjean the silverware and had asked him to take the silver candlesticks as well. Confounded with the Bishop’s treatment, Jean Valjean begins to think about his crimes. Over the next six years, he changes his identity and has become a wealthy factory owner called Monsieur Madeleine. He is made the mayor of a town, and gains fame as a generous and just man. He believes his past is behind him and rests his mind. One day, he spots a man stuck beneath the wheels of a cart. He goes to help the man and lifts the cart to free the man. The townsfolk see him as a hero for this feat, but among the witnesses is the town police inspector, Inspector Javert. Javert once served as an adjutant guard at the Bagne of Toulon and he had seen such a superhuman feat only once before. In fact, he remembered that the man who managed that feat looked similar to the Mayor. However, that man’s name was Jean Valjean and he was a notorious criminal. Inspector Javert begins to poke around Monsieur Madeleine’s affairs, and his suspicions slowly begin to be confirmed. He will not rest until the former convict is brought to the justice he deserves, for no convict deserves to be a hero of the people. This tale is set against the backdrop of the 1832 June Rebellion in Paris and is considered to be Victor Hugo’s crowning achievement and one of the greatest novels ever written. About Victor Hugo Victor Hugo was a French novelist, poet and dramatist. Among his other works are: The Hunchback of Notre-Dame, The Man Who Laughs and The Last Day of a Condemned Man. Les Misérables was adapted into several films, most notably in 1998 by Bille August starring Liam Neeson, Geoffrey Rush, Uma Thurman, and Claire Danes.