Never too Late to Read Classics discussion

We are reading by Alexandre Dumas. The book was first published in 1844 in French. Originally it was published as a series in a journal.

We plan to read according to this scheme.

October: chapter 1- 40
November: chapter 41- 80
December: chapter 81-117

To read in this order is not obliged, but can help us to keep going with a hefty classic. But it is all your choice.

Free ebook : http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/1184
Free audiobook: https://librivox.org/the-count-of-mon...

Some interesting links:

http://mentalfloss.com/article/64861/...

https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.ph...

Is anyone going to read this book?

A great reading schedule should make it easier to acheive.

Not sure for me, one of his books I do not ow.

Appreciate the free link.

I believe I have an ebook copy of this. I do plan to read, but I need to take a few days and really focus on finally finishing On the Road. I took time away from it, as I got more into Life on the Mississippi.

Samantha wrote: "I believe I have an ebook copy of this. I do plan to read, but I need to take a few days and really focus on finally finishing On the Road. I took time away from it, as I got more int..."

Super!

I got a copy of this almost a year ago & still haven’t started to read it. So it’s definitely on my list for this month...

Oh you will all enjoy this one so much. I loved it.

This is my first activity in the group; I had this book for so long, but I never tried to read it due to my poor English. Now, watching you guys embarking on this difficult, long journey really inspire and encourage me, and for that Thank You. I'm going to try my best to keep up.

Welcome to the discussion, Gania.

Gania wrote: "This is my first activity in the group; I had this book for so long, but I never tried to read it due to my poor English. Now, watching you guys embarking on this difficult, long journey really ins..."

Wonderful. Welcome to our group. We’re here to support eachother.

Welcome Gania and Trisha! Thanks Doreen for the support.

I read quite a lot of this last night & was pleasantly surprised. It’s easier to read than some of the classics - I hope you agree with me, Gania! I think I may have read this many years ago, & have possibly seen a film based on the story, but don’t remember it so it’s like reading a new book for the first time.

That's always a good thing, Trisha.

Trisha wrote: "I read quite a lot of this last night & was pleasantly surprised. It’s easier to read than some of the classics - I hope you agree with me, Gania! I think I may have read this many years ago, & hav..."
I had some difficulty with the start (the settings) and there were new terms, too, other than that, the reading was smooth and nice. Hey, there's an anime adaptation, too!( its setting is in the outer space tho)

Heyoo! I thought I would join in on the discussion as well. I’m a few chapters in and really enjoying it so far, was a little confused about the whole political situation at first, but I think I’ve got it somewhat figured out now haha

Mimmi wrote: "Heyoo! I thought I would join in on the discussion as well. I’m a few chapters in and really enjoying it so far, was a little confused about the whole political situation at first, but I think I’ve..."

Great you join us. If you have questions, shout. Together we know more than alone.

How is everyone doing on his reading?

Claire wrote: "How is everyone doing on his reading?"

I’ve read the first 30 chapters. It’s a fascinating story so far with a lot of interesting characters.

Trisha wrote: "Claire wrote: "How is everyone doing on his reading?"

I’ve read the first 30 chapters. It’s a fascinating story so far with a lot of interesting characters."

Good to hear that. I need to get back to my reading of it. Are you going to read according to the scheme or your own speed?

Claire wrote “Good to hear that. I need to get back to my reading of it. Are you going to read according to the scheme or your own speed?”

I’m reading at my own speed, reading sections of it in between reading books for other challenges. I think that if I try to keep to the scheme I’ll probably lose interest. I won’t post any spoilers as some of the group may prefer to spread their reading over the 3 months. But I’m happy to take part in discussions at any time.

I'm behind the schedule thanks to a 'research paper', by the way, this is my first time writing one and it's so demanding >.> but please don't mind me and continue your discussion; I'm still curious about your thoughts, and spoiler won't hurt since I'm already familiar with the events
I wish I could read more books at a time without actually losing my concentration, you guys are so awesome, Claire and Trisha>.> -i did not say that :D -

Don’t worry, Gania. Sometimes life events, obligations, or stress get in the way of reading. The stress is doing it for me right now.

Thanks, Samantha. You too don't worry yourself too much! hopefully, you'll soon get better and start enjoying reading again

Trisha wrote: "Claire wrote “Good to hear that. I need to get back to my reading of it. Are you going to read according to the scheme or your own speed?”

I’m reading at my own speed, reading sections of it in be..."

I understand that. You can allways post spoiler hidings:-)

Gania wrote: "I'm behind the schedule thanks to a 'research paper', by the way, this is my first time writing one and it's so demanding >.> but please don't mind me and continue your discussion; I'm still curiou..."

I know these things can be very demanding. I hope it all goes well. Keeping my fingers crossed!

This is a hefty classic so everyone should just read at their own pace and enjoy the book.

Doreen wrote: "This is a hefty classic so everyone should just read at their own pace and enjoy the book."
You are very right!
There is no pressure in any way to read at a certain pace.
I hope noone feels they have to.

The division in three months is only meant for those of us who like to have that support to get them going. It is an opportunity, no obligation.

I started reading this yesterday, at first was daunted by its length but now enjoying it thoroughly and I'm sure this will be an interesting effort.

I wish I could be in this challenge, but timing is bad ... mmmm

You can read the book any time because the book discussion threads stay open for comments even after we start another book. We have them in our Archive section.

I love that the discussions stay open for comments long after the group read is over.

I took advantage of that fact when I read Eline Vere in Dutch instead of English. It took me a few months to read it and I am glad I did. It was a wonderful book.

I’m nearly halfway through this book now, but disappointed with it. Perhaps it’s because it’s so long. The first third of the book was really interesting, but now I’m getting bored. Less is happening, with the occasional interesting bit. I guess a lot of it is setting up a background for later parts of the story, but I wish it was shorter!

This read is long but well worth it in the end.

I feel with long books, there are allways parts that are slightly less thrilling than others. I hope, Trisha, it will soon be interesting again.

Finished, at last! It started well, I enjoyed it up to the point where (view spoiler)[he escaped from prison (hide spoiler)]. From then on, it seemed to become increasingly far-fetched. Some parts were ok, some I found ridiculous.
Perhaps it was the fashion at the time of writing - but why did so many characters have so many different names? They were called by their title, forename, surname, various aliases. The most basic disguise was supposed to fool everyone - were people so stupid, or did the author assume his readers were stupid?
For so much time & effort spent reading this book, I expected something better. It was a massive disappointment to find my main reaction to it was relief that it ended, eventually.

Great you fnished it!
I think names were less organised in that time, so one could use pretty much everything.
I understand your reaction, but the readers the author knew were not used to stories as we are. We see stories on television, advertising, strips, books... So some parts look pretty naive to us now.

But I agree it is a lng read. I haven’t finished it yet..

Thanks for this, Claire - good points!

I have only read part of La Reine Margot, Tome I by Dumas and quit reading it after the first part because it just wasn't my type of book, so I understand your reaction, Trisha.
Dumas was a popular writer during his life time and many people still enjoy his works nowadays, especially this book.
Congratulations on finishing the book!

Rosemarie wrote: "I have only read part of La Reine Margot, Tome I by Dumas and quit reading it after the first part because it just wasn't my type of book, so I understand your reaction, Trisha.
Duma..."

Thank you, Rosemarie.

I started reading this book last night. I am on Chapter 15 of 177!!
The story pulled me in and I wanted to keep reading. My goal is to finish.

A few observations: the author went from 1810 to 1815 with no passage in x. The story started in 1810 and Dantes was arrested in 1815, a few days later! King Louis 18th had a telegraph which would have been only in the experimental stages.

Lastly French names. Proper names? Street names? Regions? It took awhile to sort this out.

Glad you enjoy it HR-ML. You are reading pretty fast!

Hi Claire--

Depends on the day as to how much I read. Tonight I found Dumas way too wordy! He must have serialized his books like Charles Dickens and others did?

Sorry to say Dantes has become a Svengali and tiresome at times.
Too many targets of his mechanisms are unobservant. But one
lady figured it out (?) and a 2nd lady recognized his voice.

HR-ML wrote: "Sorry to say Dantes has become a Svengali and tiresome at times.
Too many targets of his mechanisms are unobservant. But one
lady figured it out (?) and a 2nd lady recognized his voice."

What is a svengali?

Hi Rafael-

A Svengali is a person who uses his/ her power to manipulate others.

Are you still reading? Or are you finished? I'm curious of you impression of Dantes?

Thank you. I never read this word. No, I am not reading it, currently I have not time to read it.

Originaly it was published in 18 parts. That should have been quite different from a book and may explain some problems we encounter?

Rafael & Claire---

I have mixed feelings about the book. Dumas must have loved botany- he went on
occasional tangents about plants, flowers,& gardens. The stories within the story seemed @ times unconnected until chapters later when Dumas cleverly revealed how people and events were actually connected to Dantes.