Les Misérables

Hugo’s monumental novel follows the ex-convict Jean Valjean, hunted for decades by the relentless Inspector Javert after breaking parole, as he seeks redemption and raises the orphan Cosette against the turmoil of nineteenth-century France. Sweeping from the battlefield of Waterloo to the barricades of the 1832 Paris uprising, it interweaves poverty, justice, love, and revolution on an epic scale. Through unforgettable characters—the tragic Fantine, the scheming Thénardiers, the idealistic students—Hugo mounts a passionate cry against social injustice. One of the greatest novels ever written, it is a towering work of compassion that has moved readers and audiences worldwide for over a century.