Alexander Dumas - The King of Romance

by F.W.J. Hemmings

The last of Alexandre Dumas's many mistresses, the American actress Adah Menken, called him "the king of romance." She was not thinking only of his immensely popular novels The Three Musketeers and The Count of Monte Cristo - everything about Dumas was touched with the spirit of romance, and it is that spirit which this exhilarating biography captures.There was romance in Dumas's ori­gins. He grew up in the country, the son of a general who fought under Napoleon in Egypt and Italy and whose own parents were a French marquis and a slave from Haiti. As a boy, Dumas's closest friends were local poachers and a gardener whom he once watched cut open a grass snake to lib­erate a frog. The world was full of magical possibilities, and, in his twen­ties, after moving to Paris and working as a clerk under the Duc d'Orleans, Dumas established himself, with Victor Hugo, as one of the leading Romantic playwrights.In its scope and richness, Dumas's life bears comparison to those of his fictional heroes. Drawing on Dumas's memoirs and surviving correspon­dence, Professor Hemmings constructs a fascinating story, first published in 1979, of a writer whose novels continue to excite our imagi­nation.

Genres: Biography

231 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1979

Reviews

[Cottageunderhill · Rating 3 out of 5]

A definitely well done biography on the life and works of Alexandre Dumas. The prose was excellent and wove a story on the life of one of the classical French authors, who is still able to enchant people today. Biggest surprise: Alexandre was half black! I guess I always assumed since he was French, that he was white. How horrid of me! Such an interesting family history. And, I must say it would have been awesome to have met the man in person. He seemed like such a jovial fellow with a sarcastic wit with words to die for. My cup of tea, Sir.

My only complaint is that it would have been better if there were footnotes on the bottom of the pages... instead of having to turn to the back of the book to see the references.

[Audry · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely fantastic, rip-roaring biography which shows how Dumas's life was just as much of an adventure as any of the stories he wrote. Worth reading for a million reasons, some of which I mentioned in the comments I made while reading this. If you love classic authors, adventure, history, France, or just Dumas himself, get this and read it.

[Wendy · Rating 4 out of 5]

So much fun to read, almost as good as a Dumas novel. Although the author could have been more critical, he certainly did his research. Perhaps now, 40 years on, more is known now about Dumas's life, but this book is certainly a good introduction.