Written by Clancey Cheeley
The Count of Monte Cristo’s swashbuckling tale of adventure and revenge has become a cultural touchstone since its publishing in 1844. Despite this, Alexandre Dumas’ 13th standalone novel is far less recognized than his other works such as The Three Musketeers. This lack of exposure is likely due to the limited (and wildly inaccurate) adaptations that the novel has produced; understandable due to the book’s gargantuan size. What few adaptations that have emerged all manage to miss what makes the novel truly special; they nail the revenge, but leave almost everything else out. The Count of Monte Cristo is not only a classic but has defined what a true revenge novel should be; however, it is the stories and characters that surround the revenge tale that turn the book into a masterpiece.
Alexandre Dumas’ novel opens in 19th century France and follows Dante, a young man whose life could not be going better. He has just been promoted, has a loving father, and is about to be married to the love of his life. All of this happiness is unfortunately shattered when Dante is framed for a crime he did not commit and thrown into prison for years. Thus, begins Dante’s gripping and heartbreaking tale of revenge.
While Dante’s quest for revenge is the driving force behind the narrative, Dumas populates the story with a plethora of characters who are just as engaging. The supporting characters that surround Dante and his targets are some of the highlights of the book. One of the most cunning and like-able characters in the book is an old disabled grandfather who is only able to communicate with his eyes and a teenage daughter of one of the villains has my personal favorite side story of the novel. I was actually surprised how three dimensional and varied all of the female characters were, that is something I have seen many modern male writers struggle with, let alone classic authors. While the wide variety of characters is wonderful, you may want to keep a character glossary handy. Dumas has a nasty habit of bringing back characters you haven’t seen in 90 chapters (did I mention this book is long?) and not reminding you who they are. All of these elements combined with Dante’s heart-wrenching tale make for an incredible reading experience. If I have one critique of The Count of Monte Cristo it's that Dumas was paid by the word and boy, does it show! Sometimes events that could be described in a paragraph or two, are drawn out to be a page… or five. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing because it allows for Dumas’ incredible writing to shine, but it makes for a doorstop of a book.
I first read The Count of Monte Cristo when I was going through a extremely difficult period of my life and Dumas’ novel resonated with me in a way that few pieces of fiction ever have. The messages about life and the struggle with injustice will stay with me for the rest of my life. This is a book that I would not only recommend to everyone, but is also my favorite book of all time.
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