Les Miserables read-a-long 2026 | Première Partie (1)

[AgualusasL0ver]

Welcome to the first thread of the Les Miserables Read-a-long.

I'll be using the Christine Donougher translation for posting in the main, but it doesn't matter which translation you have, they seem to follow the same breakdown. I have not seen the film, the musical, and have very little knowledge about the book, but suspect I will be doing all of these Christmas 2026.

The only rules
The plan is to read ONE chapter a day and contribute/follow the thread as you see fit. There are c. 365 chapters, so we plan to take the year to read slowly and really get under the skin. Sometimes we have clustered chapters in past read-a-longs, and people do sometimes read ahead. All fine - but No spoilers until the relevant day.

Notes from previous read-a-longs

• How you manage one a day is entirely up to you, some people prefer to store them and read all the chapters for the week at once, some read each day.
• Sometimes these books can go off on a tangent all their own (looking at Mr Tolstoy), stick with it :-)
• All formats and translations welcome. Sometimes the translation discussions are some of the most interesting conversations.
• You WILL get behind at some point, but don't worry, just catch up when you can.
• Tangents, things you discovered down a rabbit hole, articles, pod casts, clips of epic scenes when we get to them all very welcome on the thread.

Spoiler free summary , courtesy of Chat GPT below. Schmoop has book summaries so I will post those at the relevant points.

**

Les Misérables is a classic novel by Victor Hugo that explores justice, compassion, and the struggle for dignity in 19th-century France.
At its core, the book follows the lives of several interconnected characters from different social classes as they navigate poverty, law, love, and moral choice. Rather than focusing on a single hero or plotline, the novel paints a wide picture of society—showing how personal decisions are shaped by systems like the legal system, economic inequality, and social expectations.
Key themes include:

• Justice vs. mercy — how laws affect people differently, and whether strict punishment leads to fairness
• Redemption and moral growth — the possibility of change, even after hardship
• Poverty and inequality — the daily realities of people living on the margins
• Love and sacrifice — care for others as a powerful force for good
• Social responsibility — how individual actions impact the wider community

The novel is known for:

• Deep character development
• Emotional intensity
• Philosophical reflections on society and humanity
• Detailed descriptions of history and everyday life

Overall, Les Misérables is less about a single storyline and more about asking big questions:
What does it mean to be a good person? How should society treat its most vulnerable? And can compassion change lives?

I just nabbed a 14p Kindle version so not sure about translators either but yeah the town being blanked out really threw me at first.

The descriptions of the women were definitely something. I’m actually going to read over it again later as I was a little distracted while reading it too.

I did laugh that it told me I was 2% through the book and that was me just getting past the multiple pages of chapter titles. 🤣

Yes I’m sure it’s the case in some Austen novels. I think when she refers to regiments it’s written like that.

Checking in and feeling virtuous for managing to read the chapter in French. Thanks to @AgualusasL0veras I need to practise my French & this is the perfect way to do it.

I founc the French fairly sttaightforward despite being very out of practice - the main thing I had to watch was that the sentences are very long so I had to keep reminding myself to watch the beginnings of sentences to see if it was a question or not. The French also (in my out-of-practice opinion) feels really beautiful.

I felt that Hugo has quite a presence with his authorial voice - it’s not exactly a dialogue with the reader, but I felt he was asking the reader to think about the gaps in the information he provided eg the Curé’s past or why Napoleon made him a bishop. It’s a long time since I read Nôtre-Dame de Paris, but I remember it being a book that was engrossing but also one where readers were expected to think (oddly one of the bits I remember most clearly is a character considering whether the printing press would destroy Gothic architecture).

My favourite French quote from the chapter was where M Myriel tells Napoleon that Napoleon is seeing a good man and he is seeing a great man:

Quel est ce bonhomme qui me regarde?

Sire, dit M. Myriel, vous regardez un bonhomme, et moi je regarde un grand homme. Chacun de nous peut profiter.

I read bonhomme as quite condescending (the French for snowman is bonhomme de neige ).

Reading everyone’s comments made me realise that the comment is in keeping with M Myriel’s pre-Revolutionary past as part of a highly artificial society that valued wit.

I can’t find my copy of Les Mis (I’m sure I had it split into two volumes) on any of the book shelves so am going to ask for a copy for my birthday this week. Until then I will read a kindle copy.

Checking in - also feeling virtuous, as I read the first chapter (la unua ĉapitro) in Esperanto, needed my dictionary for a few words but got the overall sense without needing to read the English.

To give a flavour of how Esperanto is in some ways closer to French than English, here are the same lines @Benvenuto quoted in the post above:

Kiu estas tiu bonhomo, kiu tiom rigardis min?

Moŝto, diris S-ro Myriel, vi rigardas bonhomon, mi rigardas grandan homon. Ambaü ni povas profiti per tio.

I have not seen the musical or film so looking forward to the story.

Seems to be set in much the same period as The Count of Monte Cristo so you always feel that people have done well to survive through all the changes of regime. Our bishop seems to have reached a ripe old age - presumably he doesn't get to retire and just keeps going until he dies. Interesting that his sister is unmarried as more difficult in those times to remain single particularly if she has not always been able to live with her brother.

I don’t know anything about the story either so looking forward to it. I’ve just read Chapter 1 and found the description of Mademoiselle Baptistine interesting, particularly how she became more transparent as she aged and did more good deeds.

I am sooo intrigued by the Bishops past but, as the chapter states this doesn't have much to do with the actual story, I am guessing it will remain a mystery!

I like this idea to help cement the story in my head (I'll read other books at bedtime so don't want to get confused!) I might read the last chapter summary before moving on to refresh my memory. I'm reading it on my phone so I can do it if I get a quiet break at work, or whenever suits. If I leave it to bedtime when I normally read I fear I'll be too tired for any of the heavier chapters to come!
@DuPainDuVinDuFromage I love this connection! I was thinking of looking it up on google maps and promptly forgot, so thank you for the picture and the reminder!
I like the idea of doing this to read War and Peace. I enjoyed reading Anna Karenina solo but did find it long in places!

Yes this reminded me a little of Dorian Grey

I have read my chapter 1 in the Dongaher Kimdle version which seemed to be £1.99!

I am impressed by those who’ve read the French and maybe should try to put my rusty French A level to work (ambitious!) I often think there is something nicely democratic about modern translations because they often make the text much more accessible than if written in English in that era.

I am a bit worried about what is going to happen to this poor bishop man now. Nothing good I suspect. I haven’t read the book before or seen the film/musical, so I’m flying blind.

Chapter 1: Only seen the musical and never read Hugo (or any classic lit in quite a while!), so going into this half-blind/squinting as I try to recall how to read again. This chapter was spent wondering if it's the same bishop from the musical. Interesting that he would be the opening chapter.

Hugo writes with such authority it makes me wonder if the characters are real people, or based on real people, eg Cardinal Fesch (just looked it up - yes, apparently so). Was surprised by Napoleon's appearance, and the power he held over organised religion. Bishop a bit of a hobnobber there with a comment that felt worthy of an eyeroll.

Our setting: (After?) a politically turbulent time. Fleeing countries, patches of missing personal history. Uprisings that send the upper-crust in a flap. But our Bishop has returned. So have things settled, post-Revolution? Or only for the elites? Just an idea but I reckon the title of the book could be an important clue...

Our first poor female character of the book dies namelessly in one line and rather vaguely from a chest malady. RIP.

The Bishop's sister, Mademoiselle Baptistine, is described as an otherworldly, angelic force for good. For her maid Madame Magloire, who seems a bit more down-to-earth, I was surprised by the inclusion of the word asthma, which I figured to be quite a modern term/diagnosis, but that was just my ignorance on show as it is apparently a medical term originating from the time of Hippocrates. TIL.

Enjoyable lines:

"True or false, that which is said of men often occupies as important a place in their lives, and above all in their destinies, as that which they do."

"M. Myriel had to undergo the fate of every newcomer in a little town, where there are many mouths which talk, and very few heads which think."

"...it seems that a woman must needs be a mother in order to be venerable."

I just read Chapter 1 and was relieved it was more accessible than I'd expected. Thank you to those sharing French and Esperanto extracts - that really adds colour. And I loved the photo of Digne!

Thanks for sharing the photo @DuPainDuVinDuFromage

What a beautiful place!

I’m not sure I’m going to get on with my edition. Does anyone have anything better than ‘“Hold!” cried the Bishop’ that they recommend?

The Dongaher translation seems excellent- penguin and was £1.99 on kindle and also on Amazon in paperback

That was to you @CornishLizard

Thoughts on Chapter 1: The writing flows, it feels conversational and is easy to read - I have the Donougher version on kindle.
I am wondering if Myriel’s priestly vocation is real or a means of survival? His life has been thrown off course by the Revolution, and now in old age he is rewarded with a choice job by making a chance, charming remark to a powerful person - so now it is the human tendency to give favours to those we like that has caused a new turn in his life. I was thinking ‘oh no’ about his saintly spinster sexless sister, but the description of her is really more rounded and humane than that and I liked the insight in the line about how she can be considered respectable rather than venerable as she has no children.

Schmoop Summary for Chapter 1:

• So once upon a time there was this local Monseigneur (which is kind of like a high-ranking priest) who lived in a place called Digne. This guy was a partier and womanizer in his early years, but he eventually found God and became a really humble and virtuous guy. It's clear that the author likes him and wants us to like him, too.
• The dude now lives in Digne with his sister Mademoiselle Baptistine, who's basically his right-hand woman.

Hopefully I’m not too late to join everyone?? I would love to join in. I have never done a read-a-long- what a great idea, thank you to
AgualusasLOver for starting this thread.

I just downloaded a French edition and have managed the first chapter with a few words and phrases to check.

I read the book in French as an A level student because I saw the musical at the Palace Theatre back in 1987! Pleased to say the French seems a bit easier this time around!

Looking forward to some daily appreciation of the writing and themes at a pace that can be savoured.

Chacun de nous peut profiter!

Loving the thoughts of some very knowledgeable posters on this thread. I can only aspire to the depth and sophistication of some of the reflections here, but I look forward to learning a lot whilst savouring Hugo’s writing.

I am only now appreciating Hugo’s skill as a writer in engaging his audience in this first chapter. He makes us naturally curious about the character of the Bishop.

Thank you so much to all contributors on this thread and the OP for a brilliant introduction.

Just checking in. I've read Chapter 1 and will read chapter 2 later. Thank you for the summary.

Having just read chapter 2, I think it’s clear the bishop is a good guy! Mr Bigot (great name 😂) seems to have been the Daily Mail reading type though…

Yes! Wish we had the laugh emoji 😄

I was interested to know how much money we are talking about for the bishop's household, and found this thread

https://www.reddit.com/r/AskHistorians/s/VPbTQfmfA3

I have no idea how accurate this is, but they suggest that 1500 francs is an average income for a parish priest; 2000-3000 a modest income for a gentleman.

I was quite surprised by Chapter 2 as I had thought that potential reasons for the Bishop joining the Church could include safety (ie avoiding the guillotine) or wanting to retreat from the world due to the trauma of the Revolution. Neither of those reasons would have required him to give up his palace or his income, but he seems to want to lead a truly religious life.

I did like the part where the maid thinks that they have finally got some money for the household - only for M Myriel to give that away to charity too.