Review - The Three Musketeers

[wilderthan]

I tried reading this when I was younger. I suspect my failure was partly due to lack of interest, and partly due to a bad translator. I've found the Penguin "Read Red" series, so far as I've read them, to be pretty well translated and easy to read. Including this one.

The Three Musketeers is an unrepentant adventure story, with some politics and romance thrown in. It's exciting to read -- it only took me so long because I got distracted: shame on me -- and fun. It isn't that heavy on characterisation, I suppose. For the most part we don't learn much about the musketeers, only what they are doing at the immediate time. Possibly Milady gets the most character building, since she's so evil and we see so much of her during the last part of the book.

Not all of it is happy fun adventure, I suppose: there are some bits that drag. Possibly if you found a good abridgement, that'd be worthwhile. But I liked the way it all came together. I'm a little sad that I don't actually own it, and it's going back to the library, but that's easily remedied. Once I'm allowed to buy books again, anyway...

Comments

[misura.livejournal.com]

Personally, I've read (and own) the TOR Classics edition, with an introduction by Steven Brust - meaning it's a translation I'd recommend to you wholeheartedly, if you'd happen to come across it.

... Of course, I'm also a big fan of Steven Brust's Paarfi romances, the style of which was based on Dumas's, so I may be a wee bit biased here.