The Count of Monte Cristo (Penguin Classics) by Robin Buss (Epub)

Description

“On what slender threads do life and fortune hang.” Nominated as one of America’s best-loved novels by PBS’s The Great American Read

Thrown in prison for a crime he has not committed, Edmond Dantes is confined to the grim fortress of If. There he learns of a great hoard of treasure hidden on the Isle of Monte Cristo and he becomes determined not only to escape, but also to unearth the treasure and use it to plot the destruction of the three men responsible for his incarceration. Dumas’ epic tale of suffering and retribution, inspired by a real-life case of wrongful imprisonment, was a huge popular success when it was first serialized in the 1840s.

Robin Buss’s lively English translation is complete and unabridged, and remains faithful to the style of Dumas’s original. This edition includes an introduction, explanatory notes and suggestions for further reading.

For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,700 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.

User’s Reviews

Alexandre Dumas (1802–1870) was the son of Napoleon’s famous general Dumas. A prolific author, his body of work includes a number of popular classics, including The Three Musketeers and The Man in the Iron Mask. Robin Buss (1939–2006) was a writer and translator who worked for the Independent on Sunday and as television critic for the Times Educational Supplement. He was also the translator of a number of volumes for Penguin Classics.

Reviews from Amazon users, collected at the time the book is getting published on UniedVRG. It can be related to shiping or paper quality instead of the book content:

⭐ I grew up under the cultural bias that “Dumas was for middlebrows”, not literary, hence one should quickly read “The Three Musqueteers” when still in puberty, followed by Dickens, then move on to “real” and “literary” novelists like Flaubert, Zola, or, perhaps Balzac, as a preparation for, some day, the Russians. Dumas reputation was not helped by a posthumous smear campaign that spread the rumor that Dumas used an entire workshop (“atelier”) of ghostwriters, no doubt fed with the French wordplay around a racial connotation (“ghostwriter” has a double meaning in French).So it was the most pleasant surprise that, during the lockdown of COVID-19, I accidentally got into this. Owing to the early developments around the pandemic, I could not easily concentrate on the usual material, so looking for a historical novel, I opened the book and could not stop. In spite of its length is built like a short (theater) play: there is not a single detail at any point that does’nt later on come to count in the resolution –and you know it instinctively so you do not miss anything. It moves very fast, but is… 1600 pages long (I read the French version).I cannot vouch for this translation (as I said I read it in the original), but I have not read more absorbing novel written in the past 180 years.Read old books.

⭐ I have the Robin Buss translation of THE COUNT OF MONTE CRISTO in paperback, but that copy was old and worn. I wanted a more durable hardcover edition to read and to display on my bookshelf in my new house. The hardcover I bought from Total Books arrived in near-perfect condition, exactly as advertised, and looks gorgeous on the shelf.Why Robin Buss’ translation for Penguin Classics? That’s a reasonable question since Alexandre Dumas has been dead long enough for his works to enter the public domain. Several translations of his major novels are not only available in cheaper editions (such as Barnes & Noble Classics), but for free on Project Gutenberg.These are inferior and, in the case of THE COUNT OF MONTE CRISTO, censored translations. Most of them date back to the Victorian period, and render Dumas’ evergreen French into English prose that feels old-fashioned and stilted today. Furthermore, because these are translations from the Victorian period, the translators filtered Dumas through their own moral sensibilities to give us Bowdlerized versions of a novel that ran on sex, drugs, and rock ‘n roll a century before rock ‘n roll was something you could do without a machine gun.Robin Buss’ unabridged translation comes directly from the original French and renders Dumas into fresh, readable modern English. Material previously omitted by Victorian-era translators such as Franz’ hashish-fueled sexual fantasies and the strongly implied lesbian relationship between Eugenie and Louise remain intact and uncensored. As another reviewer pointed out, Buss will provide footnotes to explain subtleties that aren’t easily translated from French to English, such as insults delivered by using the formal you (vous) rather than the informal/friendly/intimate you (tu).A detailed appendix provides valuable historical and cultural context that aids the reader in understanding Dumas’ masterpiece, and includes a primer on the rise, fall, return, and final downfall of Napoleon Bonaparte that is crucial to making sense of the politics driving the novel’s plot.If you cannot read Dumas in his native French, and you want a definitive English version, Robin Buss’s unabridged and uncensored modern English translation is essential reading. No other translation will suffice.

⭐ Love the book so far! Robin buss is an amazing translator!!Now, mistakes were made by penguin with this flaking of the print on the cover. They obviously don’t use a fabirc friendly paint. It’s really sad because it’s a beautiful visual. But it can all be fixed for under $5. IF you think it’s worth it, and IF you have the patience and are a little bit crafty, buy this fabric paint pen at walmart and paint over all the masks and they will stay on the book! This took me about 2 hours total but I felt it was worth it to keep the book looking pretty for a long time.

⭐ When I first started this book I wanted to kick myself for having waited so many years to read it. It’s apparently a very praised piece of work all over the world for many years now.At first, I found it extremely hard to put this book down. The start off is great! A man is in love and due to be married, wrongfully accused of a wrongdoing and thrown into prison for it so that he can never marry his bride to be. That part was fascinating. The prison time was absolutely interesting, as was the Abbé’s part and Dantés’ escape. Even the part of Dantés going to Monte Cristo for the treasure was great.Then the story took a complete plummet into the abyss of boringness. This was a complete 180 turn from fascination to boring and confusing all in a matter of a few pages, introducing (throwing, more like) several characters into the mix and at times you don’t have a clue who in the heck is talking or doing what.I went from being incapable of putting this book down, to reading a few pages here and there when I felt like it, to removing my bookmark and completely just slamming the book shut with frustration.Good thing it was cheap.

⭐ This classic story of wrongful imprisonment, hidden treasure, and revenge is truly a masterpiece. Alexandre Dumas’ famous novel The Count of Monte Cristo has seen life not only in print but in film and television, but one cannot appreciate the novel unless you read it in its entire unabridged length.Edmond Dantes is wrongfully accused of a crime and thrown in prison without trial to be forgotten, after overcoming both mental and physical anguish and befriending a fellow prisoner, and finally he is able to escape. Thanks to his friendship Dantes knows where a potential hidden treasure is located and finds it to be real, and using it begins finding out why he was thrown into prison and chart is path to revenge through fortune and hidden identities. Yet what this quick synopsis omits is the numerous and fascinating major and secondary characters that Dantes interacts throughout the narrative.Originally published in serial form, Dumas was paid for how much he wrote and one would think that The Count of Monte Cristo might be riddled with meandering subplots that never go anywhere and/or have nothing to do with the central plot. But Dumas instead wove a tapestry of beauty with every word he wrote; instead of making meandering plots he described scenes and events in rich detail that it brings the story even more alive in the reader’s imagination.If pressed to find anything negative to say about this book, the easiest answer would be cultural references that are almost 170 years old. The only other negative was the completely different societal norms that were in Parisian society in the 1840s compared today’s. However both of these ‘negatives’ can easily be put down to a piece of fiction that was contemporary when it was written but now can be seen as historical fiction with the passage to time.The Count of Monte Cristo needs to be read in all its unabridged glory to fully appreciate why it is a masterpiece and classic. Dumas’ literary tapestry is a delight to behold once finished with the last page and makes the reader think about when they’ll have time to reread it in the future.

⭐ It’s a shame this is the only way to get the penguin translation besides the paperback. This translation is the best way to read “The Count of Monte Cristo” hands down, so if you are buying this just to read, it’s worth it. Sadly the quality of the book is really bad. Pages are thin and warped. Some pages have faded ink. It’s easy to tell the red pattern on the outside won’t last at all. The sticker with the price pulled off the red.

⭐ Before I could begin reading “The Count of Monte Cristo,” I decided to read “Napoleon” by Andrew Roberts to set the table for the fabled literary journey I was about to undertake. It helped put me back in that Bourbon-Napoleonic frame of mind.This book has never appeared on any syllabus for any class I took in school; that’s pitiful. My only reference to it was my 7th grade English teacher reading a few passages aloud to us and the excellent, eponymous 2002 Kevin Reynolds film. I knew going in that the book and film would not line up, but now I see they diverged significantly from one another on key plot details. I’m hardly straining to imagine why, since film is such a time-constrained, limited medium. The book and film are both excellent in their own ways, a rarity in adaptation attempts.What I will say is that I thought Edmond would most certainly rekindle his love for Mercedes. That would’ve been nice. Edmond’s transcendence, quest for revenge and her tragic infidelity made that impossible, I suppose. Marriage, then procreating with one’s mortal enemy, Fernand, surely contributed to extinguishing the flame of their early romance.Though Edmond extracted a great deal of righteous joy while delivering justice, he was rendered empty and purposeless at the end; that is, until, Haydee renewed his purpose by revealing her devoted love for him. The lesson here being that it’s fine to seek vengeance at G-d’s direction, but make sure meaningful plans are lined up once the job is finished. Vengeance itself is not an end that provides everlasting purpose.Certainly, Edmond’s vengeance satisfied me and him. After all, it’s why we’re reading this lengthy novel in the first place. Who doesn’t like a sweet tale of revenge?My favorite section of the book was Abbe Faria’s tutelage of Edmond. That was G-d’s intervention to save Edmond and a beautiful triumph. My least favorite thing about the book was some of the flowery, borderline effeminate dialogue among the men. But, that’s how they talked back then.Speaking of least favorite, Eugenie Danglars epitomized the spoiled, degenerate, high society artist. Dumas could’ve left her out of the book entirely.Baron Danglars got off the lightest, while Villefort, Fernand and Caderousse paid dearly for their various crimes. I’d argue Danglars and Fernand should have suffered more, since it was they who stole Edmond’s life from him. Villefort, an ambitious, secretly unscrupulous, despicable man himself, was merely a willing accomplice, a necessary tool for Fernand and Danglars.The ultimate message of the story is what makes it so important. That no matter how rotten the world may treat you, if you wait, hope, serve G-d, then rewards will come and punishment will find the wicked. Lastly, it is only after experiencing the depths of misery that someone can enjoy the heights of happiness. This novel, like “It’s A Wonderful Life,” is a book so powerful it can rejuvenate the soul/spirit, restore faith in G-d and renew a sense of hope for this world.

⭐ I absolutely loves this publishing. The people at Penguin are truly amazing because this adaptation is so much easier to read than others I’ve tried. I never found myself rereading a paragraph over and and over and I never found myself rereading a paragraph over and over like in other copies made by different publishers. The only reason I took a star away is because the little orange masks rub off with pretty minimal use. For instance, I bought mine after is read half of it from another publisher and as my picture shows it’s rubbed off considerably compared to the edges where I didn’t touch. And I knew this coming in from other reviews so I tried to be as delicate as possible. Still an amazing version. It also has a ribbon bookmark!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

⭐ I don’t think I really need to review the novel itself, as you’re no doubt a fan already if you’re considering spending money on a fancy collectible edition, so I’ll cut to the chase. This clothbound edition is really gorgeous to behold. The cover canvas feels great, the binding is excellent, and the design sense is quite nice. What I’m less stoked about is the red paint as well as a smudge on the pages that the book arrived with.You’ve no doubt seen the red paint issue presented in other reviews, and it holds true for every copy. No, there’s no way you can peel off the price tag carefully enough to prevent peeling paint along with it. This book should have been shrink-wrapped with the sticker on top for sure, but the paint would still peel away very easily with reading or basic friction. The acrylic paint marker solution another reviewer presented will indeed work, but you’re probably not going to get it to be the EXACT right color or gloss of the original, which is a little annoying for a book you’re no doubt buying for presentation purposes.If you can look past the paint flaw, this is still an excellent purchase. And of course, you should accept no English translation other than Robin Buss’, which is here. Just add a bright red acrylic paint marker to your cart as well.

⭐ Ahhh-ha! I’m quite surprised that I’ve not posted a review of this edition before! I guess that I tend to review books and film less often than physical objects/shoes/electronics, etc., because they are so much more personal to each individual’s psyche. I’d read a few abridged translations, then seen the more recent film, (not very close to the real story, but Caviezel WAS Edmond Dantés for those 2 short hours. In fact, the film was rather well-cast all around), but I’d never truly read Dumás’ tale as it was meant to be told, so I did a bit of research and decided to try the Robin Buss translation. I normally would not choose a Penguin Classic as a definitive version of anything, however, in this one case I feel it is that perfect translation to English, not only as an American reader (I’m generally floored if an American has read anything of this length or depth that didn’t involve dragons), but feel like this translation fits with English from the British Isles, as well as New Zealand and Australia. It definitely works for me, and I agree with a previous reviewer about her tattered paperback and wanting a better copy, but I’m glad I didn’t get this hardcover. Perhaps it will be done properly in my lifetime, but as I was saying, like said reviewer, for me this is the ONLY translation. I don’t read French, sadly, but this is greater than any abridged version or the other few unabridged versions in existence.###Spoilers###Boo on those who think the book falls apart midway through, if you’d been paying attention instead of “slamming it shut!”, you may notice the beauty of the change of heart that the Count has. It’s deep and profound, and he realizes he is still Edmond, only changed, and forgives as he can lest his soul be damned. He does right by his second father and friend, by adopting his friend’s son and forgiving him for who he loves. Edmond goes back into the East, leaving the feeling that he’ll always keep an eye on Maximilian Morell and his wife. Edmond has himself back, and can see the world again with refreshed eyes and without his sole purpose being revenge.

Keywords

Free Download The Count of Monte Cristo (Penguin Classics) in Epub format
The Count of Monte Cristo (Penguin Classics) Epub Free Download
Download The Count of Monte Cristo (Penguin Classics) 2003 Epub Free
The Count of Monte Cristo (Penguin Classics) 2003 Epub Free Download
Download The Count of Monte Cristo (Penguin Classics) Epub
Free Download Ebook The Count of Monte Cristo (Penguin Classics)