After finally working my way through Les Mis, I decided that Victor Hugo was pretty much a god, and went out and bought Notre Dame to read. And pretty much hated it. :-) That has nothing to do with Hugo, of course...I just really didn't like the story that much. Most of the characters annoyed me, and I didn't find myself caring what happened to any of them in the end. I found Phoebus and Esmeralda to be petty and self-absorbed, and not even Quasimodo appealed to me very much. However, I really enjoy the musical! Explain that one to me. :-) If you liked this book, please feel free to email me and tell me why, and I'll add it to this page!

Here's an email I received from Robert Brown, who is a fan of this book - here is what he has to say:

I read this book a year ago for my English Literature GCSE examination and, even though I have not read it since, I still remember it and how deeply it touched me. It may very not be a novel for everyone (as no piece of literature ever is) but the story stayed in my heart all this time and perhaps someday I will have the time to read it again. I had the opportunity to go to Paris a year ago and though the day was freezing cold and the walk to the top of Notre Dame was steep and arduous I found myself teary-eyed as I faced the giant bell in the tower of Notre Dame and looked out upon the beautiful city from the top of the church and saw myself surrounded by the gargoyles which might have surrounded Quasimodo as he peered out at the city had he been a real person outside our hearts.

I liked the suspense in the novel, but most of all, I like the symbolism portrayed through the priest. Victor Hugo represented him as the fallen angel and this is so different to what we expect as readers. This book is so different from other novels that it has become a classic in it's own right.

This is the reason the book is so special to me. I feel you need to read the book with other people of the same age and then visit the place where the events happened before they become really magical. Quasimodo is my favourite character as he is such an emotional part of the text.

I can only thank Disney deep inside my heart for transferring this book into a film and then a hit musical so that it can live on inside all our hearts.