Les Miserables

NOW A SIX-PART MINISERIES ON MASTERPIECE ON PBS The only completely unabridged paperback edition of Victor Hugo’s masterpiece—a sweeping tale of love,lossvalorand passion. Introducing one of the most famous characters in literatureJean Valjean—the noble peasant imprisoned for stealing a loaf of bread—Les Misérables ranks among the greatest novels of all time. In itVictor Hugo takes readers deep into the Parisian underworldimmerses them in a battle between good and eviland carries them to the barricades during the uprising of 1832 with a breathtaking realism that is unsurpassed in modern prose. Within his dramatic story are themes that capture the intellect and the emotions: crime and punishmentthe relentless persecution of Valjean by Inspector Javertthe desperation of the prostitute Fantinethe amorality of the rogue Thénardierand the universal desire to escape the prisons of our own minds. Les Misérables gave Victor Hugo a canvas upon which he portrayed his criticism of the French political and judicial systemsbut the portrait that resulted is larger than lifeepic in scope—an extravagant spectacle that dazzles the senses even as it touches the heart. Translated by Lee Fahnestock and Norman Macafeebased on the classic nineteenth-century Charles E. Wilbour translation Inlcudes an Introduction by Lee Fahnestock and an Afterword by Chris Bohjalian