Les Misérables

Victor Hugo's monumental 1862 epic plunges into the grimy underbelly of 19th-century France, tracking the relentless odyssey of Jean Valjean, an ex-convict striving for redemption against the backdrop of societal injustice and the unyielding pursuit of Inspector Javert. After a transformative encounter with a benevolent bishop, Valjean reinvents himself as a respected factory owner and mayor, but his past, embodied by Javert, clings to him like a shadow. The narrative unfurls a sprawling tapestry of interconnected lives, including the tragic Fantine and her orphaned daughter Cosette, who Valjean rescues from the clutches of avarice. Amidst the personal dramas, Hugo masterfully weaves in "digressions" on subjects as diverse as monastic life, Parisian slang, and the Battle of Waterloo, painting a vivid, panoramic portrait of a nation in flux.