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The Essential Victor Hugo
To the English, I am "shocking"...What's more, French, which is disgusting; republican, which is abominable; exiled, which is repulsive; defeated, which is infamous. To top it all off, a poet...'
Victor Hugo dominated literary life in France for over half a century, pouring forth novels, poems, plays, and other writings with unflagging zest and vitality. Here, for the first time in English, all aspects of his work are represented within a single volume. Famous scenes from the novels Notre-Dame, Les Miserables and The Toilers of the Sea are included, as well as excerpts from his intimate diaries, poems of love and loss, and scathing denunciations of the political establishment. All the chosen passages are self-contained and can be enjoyed without any previous knowledge of Hugo's work. Much of the material is appearing in English for the first time, and most of it has never before been annotated thoroughly in any language.
Victor Hugo dominated literary life in France for over half a century, pouring forth novels, poems, plays, and other writings with unflagging zest and vitality. Here, for the first time in English, all aspects of his work are represented within a single volume. Famous scenes from the novels Notre-Dame, Les Miserables and The Toilers of the Sea are included, as well as excerpts from his intimate diaries, poems of love and loss, and scathing denunciations of the political establishment. All the chosen passages are self-contained and can be enjoyed without any previous knowledge of Hugo's work. Much of the material is appearing in English for the first time, and most of it has never before been annotated thoroughly in any language.
576 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2004
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About the author
Victor Hugo
6,377 books13.2k followersAfter Napoleon III seized power in 1851, French writer Victor Marie Hugo went into exile and in 1870 returned to France; his novels include
The Hunchback of Notre Dame
(1831) and
Les Misérables
(1862).
This poet, playwright, novelist, dramatist, essayist, visual artist, statesman, and perhaps the most influential, important exponent of the Romantic movement in France, campaigned for human rights. People in France regard him as one of greatest poets of that country and know him better abroad.
This poet, playwright, novelist, dramatist, essayist, visual artist, statesman, and perhaps the most influential, important exponent of the Romantic movement in France, campaigned for human rights. People in France regard him as one of greatest poets of that country and know him better abroad.
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Displaying 1 of 1 review
September 19, 2021
At times beautiful and at other times rambling; this is a solid introduction to Victor Hugo's works. It opened my eyes to how much poetry he wrote and to how talented he was.
This book contains many poems by Hugo as well as excerpts from his novels and also some of his letters. He was obviously an intelligent, well versed man.
However it was his poetry that really spoke to me, in particular; A Ball at the Hôtel de Ville, O That I Could Fill Your Deep Reverie, Life, Dear Sir, is a Comedy and Veni, Vidi, Vixi. I highly recommend that any fan of poetry read Hugo's poems; they're deep, thought provoking and truly lovely.
His novels however didn't captivate me in the same way. Notre Dame de Paris was perhaps the only story I would read in its entirety. I found his descriptions far too rambling and that it took him forever to get to the point.
Lastly, I'll include a quote from Hugo that I read over and over, as I appreciated his wit immensely throughout this book; "Louis Bonaparte thinks he's ascending a throne. What he doesn't realize is that he's ascending a scaffold."
This book contains many poems by Hugo as well as excerpts from his novels and also some of his letters. He was obviously an intelligent, well versed man.
However it was his poetry that really spoke to me, in particular; A Ball at the Hôtel de Ville, O That I Could Fill Your Deep Reverie, Life, Dear Sir, is a Comedy and Veni, Vidi, Vixi. I highly recommend that any fan of poetry read Hugo's poems; they're deep, thought provoking and truly lovely.
His novels however didn't captivate me in the same way. Notre Dame de Paris was perhaps the only story I would read in its entirety. I found his descriptions far too rambling and that it took him forever to get to the point.
Lastly, I'll include a quote from Hugo that I read over and over, as I appreciated his wit immensely throughout this book; "Louis Bonaparte thinks he's ascending a throne. What he doesn't realize is that he's ascending a scaffold."
Displaying 1 of 1 review