Victor Hugo

Les MisÉrables

Translated by Charles E. Wilbour

Abridged, edited and with an introduction by Paul Bénichou

Published simultaneously in nine languages in 1862, Les MiséRables is a vast tapestry set against the chaos of post-Napoleonic France. A cast of hundreds is woven into the epic story of the ex-convict Jean Valjean and his valiant struggle to redeem himself. A potent social document of the poverty, ignorance, and brutality of man, Les MiséRables is also a rousing adventure and a passionate parable of love. Here, Victor Hugo displays his skills as a dramatist and poet, and shows his deeply felt compassion for all mankind.

Pocket Books' Enriched Classics present the great works of world literature enhanced for the contemporary reader. This edition of Les MiséRables contains the original introduction by Hugo scholar and Harvard professor Paul Bénichou, as well as his accomplished abridgment.