Penguin Classics Notre Dame Of Paris [Paperback]

Without giving away the story or ending, I'll just say that despite having known about this story all these years, it held many surprises and interesting scenes for me. Understanding that Hugo is a quintessential 19th Century Romantic, the reader will encounter two different worlds in one here, as Hugo creates a 19th Century gothic romance using exquisite research and detail from the late 15th Century. His general commentaries on architecture and history are worth reading in themselves. Without being overly dry or pedantic, Hugo manages to convey the importance of historical preservation (the popularity of this book was greatly responsible for refurbishing Notre Dame to its present well-being), as well as creating an enthralling, imaginative human story which is accessible to every reader throughout time. Esmeralda & Notre Dame (strangely, not Quasimodo, "the Hunchback") remain the most memorable and haunting characters to me. Overall, Notre Dame is an impressive accomplishment, especially for a story with an edifice as its central character!

You may have seen a play or the Disney movie based on this novel. These productions are by necessity abridged down to the bare plot. Unfortunately, the plot is really not what earns this title entry into the annals of the classics. On its own merits, the story is rather absorbing (and tragic) but replete with random coincidences that are often crucial to the progress of the tale but detract from its believability and by extension the likelihood of total immersion. For example, Phoebus's appearance near the end of the chapter "The Little Shoe" is a contrived coincidence. Events like these make the plot itself more suitable for teens than for adults. Thirty-one years later Hugo would use similar plot devices in the otherwise wonderful Les Miserables.

There's really not much else to say. Notre-Dame is one of the finest classics ever written. You're surely missing out if you haven't read it!

Many things make this book an incredible read. The most obvious is the incredible prose. Hugo was a beautiful writer and his writing flows so smoothly. He also described with incredible detail the Paris of the late 15th century--the city's skyline, its culture, some of the notable people, and the issues of the day. He spent three years researching the book and he turned his noted into an historical epic. Finally, the action and characters of the book are well developed, exciting, and unique while still representing the values and controversies Hugo wanted to explore.

I originally picked this book up when I was in the 7th grade and was unable to make it more than 20 pages without giving up in frustration, but having more knowlegde of European history, a greater appreciation for literature, and more patience with a book that admittedly starts slowly, I am very glad I came back to it. I don't think this is a book that a young reader will find interesting--though the story itself is great so an abridged version would keep them reading--but any fan of great literature, beautiful prose, French history, architecture, or Victor Hugo will love this book if they give it a chance and do sit patiently while it revs up for 30-40 pages. I highly recommend it.