Bienvenue à Marseille | 2025 The Count of Monte Christo, read-a-long

@Scatterbugg You're right about the red hat, how could I have forgotten that? 😂

It’s such a fun read! I totally get the children’s classic/YA thing - it really is an adventure story and things happen so fast (for us - not always for poor Edmond!). Like the end of today’s chapter - just when we were wondering how he would ever get to Monte Cristo in a manner that would enable him to hunt for the treasure in peace, the opportunity suddenly arises. Although the island is going to be pretty busy so I wonder how he’ll sneak away from everyone…

I’m enjoying this so much - the sense of freedom and possibility is huge.

I feel like he's settling into the story now Edmund has escaped from prison and after the first 20 chapters ending with cliffhanger after cliffhanger we're slowing down a bit because he has us hooked. Something tells me Edmund is going to find the treasure on the Isle of Monte Cristo...

Chapter 22

The Smugglers

• We learn that Edmond has found his way onto a smuggler's ship – it's right in the chapter title if you hadn't guessed it before.
• Accustomed to breaking the law, the captain doesn't worry too much about Edmond's origin.
• When they get to Leghorn, Edmond sets off to get a haircut. When he looks in the barber's mirror, he finds his face greatly changed. His complexion is pale, his eyes sad, his eyebrows arched, as if he were in constant thought. He finds himself an older, more compact and muscular man, and he realizes that his years of living in darkness have given him the ability see clearly even at night. He is, in short, totally unrecognizable.
• The captain of the smugglers, eager to hold onto a skilled seaman like Edmond, asks him if he will stay on. Edmond accepts. Edmond buys himself a new outfit and gives Jacopo back his clothing.
• One day, while out sailing, Edmond comes up on deck to see the island of Monte Cristo less than a league away. He considers leaping into the sea and making a swim for it, but decides it would be better to wait.
• Over time, Edmond befriends Jacopo; he takes the sailor under his wing and attempts to teach him in the same way that Faria had taught him.
• A few months pass.
• It just so happens that the captain wants to use the island of Monte Cristo as a meeting place for an upcoming smuggling operation.

I’m a day behind but was several days behind - nearly caught up!

One of the reasons I was so keen to join in was because one of my favourite films is The Shawshank Redemption. They make a passing reference to the book and I love following connections through films and books.

Now I get more of the humour behind the line in the film when they are sorting out the library and one of the men asks where TCOMC should go.
Andy replies “File it under education.” And how the film eventually pans out - the parallels run much deeper than I had realised.

Regarding the nakedness, didn't he get a fisherman's red hat to look more convincing. So he was naked with a red hat on which is an even more hilarious mental image.
I hadn't clocked he was naked driving the boat though. Finding that they let a random pulled out the sea have a go at an important job like that quite amusing

Lol at the 'sensitive' image 😅

Oops sorry @MotherOfCatBoy already mentioned RL Stevenson!

I think that's why I was initially reluctant to join this read-along; I had the novel categorised in my head as an adventure story, and that's not normally my genre. But I'm loving it.

Yes, ripped is the word I was looking for 😂

As @Sadik says btw, I think there are certain 'classics' that can be classified as YA lit but that have an adult readership as well. I'm thinking of other adventure stories like Robert Louis Stevenson's Treasure Island, or Mark Twain's Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn.

After 14 years in captivity the naked Dantes is strong and can manage a 5km swim across stormy waters.

Swoon.

Or am I letting my imagination get away with me! ?"

Blimey, lithograph Edmond is ripped! So glad he has made his, somewhat improbable, escape now. Let the treasure hunting and revenging commence!

Actually it looks like the poster was for a theatrical production?

MN suggested that I might want to label the image as 'sensitive' but I thought we brave readers would be hardy enough to view a close-to-naked Dantes.

Ha, yes, I was very amused by the nudity bit, partly because we're told at the beginning of Dantes' escape that he's naked, but then I kind of forgot about it, and then he goes on to have all of these adventures and stand at the helm of the ship that rescues him and give amazing steering directions, and everyone is very impressed, and they have a conversation about him joining their crew. At which point someone finally mentions that he's naked, and that maybe they should give him some clothes. 😂 So I belatedly realised that Dantes was naked the whole time he was demonstrating his captain skills. For some reason I found the mental image of naked Dantes at the helm very funny. Yes, I am immature.

By the way, the wikipedia page about the novel has the image below, labelled '^Dantès sur son rocher [Dantes on his rock] affiche de Louis Français pour Le comte de Monte Cristo^ d'Alexandre Dumas.'

I don't know the date of the image but Louis Francais was a 19th c. lithographer.

At least Dantes has a loincloth here, but check out the muscles! He's totally giving off the vibe of a man who's been incarcerated in a dungeon for 14 years. (Not.)

I always thought Monte Cristo was a fictitious place 😳
Yes. There was a casual conversation around his being naked alright 😄

I've definitely always thought of it as at least YA suitable - similar to Jules Verne's books.

You'll have to plan it for the end of the readalong then post photos for us all.

DS went to Marseille last summer but he didn't go to Chateau d'If, I just asked him! I would love to visit - actually Montecristo is closer to me so maybe I'll pop over to see if there is any treasure.....

I had always heard of the book as being a children's (or I guess young adults') book too but that wouldn't put me off. Some of my favourite books are children's books.

I’ve had Google Maps open as I read, especially for this chapter - it really brings it alive! And yes, bloody long swim! 😄 I really want to visit Marseille too.

@lifeturnsonadime Ooh, I have just had a look at some pics of Marseille. It looks beautiful, especially in summer. On the tourist map you can see some of the places mentioned in the book. I just didn't think that the book was geographically correct so didn't bother looking it up.

I quite fancy a trip to Marseille! I've always fancied it but this has added an extra reason.

Oh great! I will have a look as then it will add another layer to the book. Reading the book as slowly as this allows for this extra interest.

Yes, all the islands mentioned are in the bay of Marseille. There is also an island of Montecristo about 20 miles south of Elba.