{"id":5515,"date":"2017-11-13T04:44:59","date_gmt":"2017-11-13T12:44:59","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.nicksenger.com\/onecatholiclife\/?p=5515"},"modified":"2024-11-28T05:31:07","modified_gmt":"2024-11-28T05:31:07","slug":"announcing-the-les-miserables-chapter-a-day-read-along","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nicksenger.com\/readalong\/announcing-the-les-miserables-chapter-a-day-read-along\/","title":{"rendered":"Announcing the Les Mis\u00e9rables Chapter-a-Day Read-along"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"LesThis is the official sign-up post for the\u00a0Les Mis\u00e9rables\u00a0<\/em>Chapter-a-Day Read-along.\u00a0Please join me in spending the next year reading one of the great works of world literature, Les Mis\u00e9rables<\/em>\u00a0by Victor Hugo. If you’ve always wanted to read the unabridged edition of Les Mis\u00e9rables<\/em>, this is your opportunity. Maybe you love the musical or one of the movies. Maybe you’ve read an abridged version and now you want more. Whatever it is that has brought you here, I invite you to join me in reading this epic work of historical fiction that touches on themes of justice, love, sacrifice, and redemption.<\/p>\n

Starting January 1, 2018, we’ll be reading it in little bites, a chapter a day, savoring the experience and making it a part of daily life for the next 365 days.<\/p>\n

Why a\u00a0Les Mis\u00e9rables\u00a0<\/em>Read-along?<\/strong><\/p>\n

The origins of this read-along are two-fold. First, I participated in Brona’s Hobbit\/Lord of the Rings Read-along<\/a> last year and really loved it, especially the slow pace of stretching Tolkien’s books out over seven months. And second, last March I read\u00a0Novel of the Century: The Extraordinary Adventure of Les Mis\u00e9rables<\/em><\/a>\u00a0by David Bellos. At the very beginning of that book, Bellos makes a remarkable statement that I have not been able to get out of my head:<\/p>\n

…the fact is that Les Mis\u00e9rables is made of exactly 365 chapters. You can therefore read one chapter a day \u2013 most of them are quite short \u2013 and complete Hugo\u2019s vast novel of love and revolution in the time that it takes planet Earth to complete its revolution around the sun.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

So, since\u00a0Les Mis\u00e9rables<\/em>\u00a0is one of my favorite novels, and since I taught it to eighth graders for over twenty years, I thought I would try hosting a chapter-a-day read-along of the complete novel. It may sound intimidating at first, committing an entire year to reading a book, but I think it has the potential to be a deeply transformative experience.<\/p>\n

Imagine getting up early each morning and as part of your daily routine opening up one of the truly great books of the world and spending a little time with unforgettable characters like Jean Valjean, the Bishop of Digne, Fantine, Javert, and little Gavroche. Or imagine settling in each evening before going to sleep, losing yourself in the world of 19th century France: galley slaves, the sewers of Paris, the battle of Waterloo, the barricades. And finally, imagine waking up on December 31, 2018, knowing that you are about to finish the last chapter of one of the longest and most profound books ever written. This is the extraordinary adventure of the\u00a0Les Mis\u00e9rables\u00a0<\/em>Read-along.<\/p>\n

How to Participate<\/strong><\/p>\n

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  1. Get an unabridged copy of\u00a0Les Mis\u00e9rables.\u00a0<\/em>See below for suggested translations\/editions.<\/li>\n
  2. If you have your own blog, write a welcome post explaining why you are joining the read-along and what you hope to gain from it. Include your past experience with Les Mis in any of its forms. Leave a link to your post in the linkup section at the end of this post. If you don’t have a blog, you can leave your information in the comments section below.<\/li>\n
  3. Download the Les Miserables Chapter a Day Reading Schedule 2018<\/a>.<\/li>\n
  4. Commit to reading a chapter a day. If you get behind or race ahead, no worries. Life happens. My blog posts will stay on track with the reading schedule, and I would ask that you please respect the reading experience of those who may not know the full story. In other words, no spoilers!<\/li>\n
  5. Please feel free to post the official\u00a0Les Mis\u00e9rables<\/em>\u00a0<\/em>Chapter-a-Day Read-along graphic<\/a> on your website or blog to spread the word.<\/li>\n
  6. Subscribe to One Catholic Life so you don’t miss any read-along posts throughout the year. You can get updates via email by using the form in the right-hand sidebar or you can subscribe via RSS<\/a>\u00a0and read them in your favorite blog reader.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Which edition should I read?<\/strong><\/p>\n

    You can read any edition (including audio), as long as it is unabridged. I don’t read French, so I will be reading a translation. Here are a few of the translations I’m familiar with and can recommend:<\/p>\n