Also, does anyone have a version of the text where the words are not tightly packed together? I always find in classics they pack the words together super tightly, and while I probably just need glasses, I would ideally like a version where I can comfortably read it. Finally, is it a book that you can take a break from occasionally? I normally read books straight through, but if this one really is long, I would ideally like to read it in 3 periods. Thanks in advance!
by insertfunnyname88
1 Comment
Yes, it is a difficult read, even if you have a lot of historical context.
It is so, SO dense, and he spends hundreds of pages talking about things (like the Paris sewer system, or some local, trivial political intrigue) that have no bearing whatsoever on the story. I found myself feeling like I was missing something – like, okay, this HAS to be important to the story, what am I not getting? But nope, it has nothing to do with the story.
Characters go in and out over several hundred pages, so it can be really hard to remember who is who. The same things happen only with very slight differences over and over so sometimes I would ask myself “wait, didn’t I read this part already?” but, no, I hadn’t, it was just sort of a similar succession of events multiple times.
You can definitely take breaks while reading it; there are natural stopping points in the book where you might want to put it down for a few weeks.
The only solution I’ve found to that small print/crammed onto the page stuff is to read on Kindle. I have to, my eyes are terrible.