This book is about mankind, about the difficulty of making honest decisions in the face of disaster and doom. It is about the difficulty of doing what is right, despite the awful events that you know will unfold for doing so.

It is rare that a book has brought me to tears for the insight it reveals into man's psyche. I have a Ph.D. in Psychology but none of the research I read nor the textbooks I studied, captured the heart and mind of man as vividly and as honestly as Victor Hugo. The torment that Jean Valjean experiences in the course of making the decisions he must make - particularly when he struggles with his conscience over the decision to reveal his identity at the risk of returning to prison - gave me chills. I read and reread that passage. It was so well-written and so insightful! I consider that passage the best writing I've ever read. (I'm no professional book reviewer, but I know what I like and I know when I'm being manipulated and when I'm reading brilliance).

The book is simply great. Hugo takes you on a ride through the Paris of his time, - Napoleon, the Paris sewer system architecture and more than I can remember (I read the book about 8 years ago). He makes it all come alive and makes you envision it.

The characters are real and they are romantic. This is romanticism at its absolute best.

I've seen the play which I enjoyed, but it is no match for the book. At some point in my life I hope to have the time to read it again. It's very long but thank goodness. After it is over, you want it to go on.





Recommended: Yes