Les Misérables

[ley mee-zey-ra-bl^uh]

noun

1. a novel (1862) by Victor Hugo.

Les Misérables

1. (1862) A novel by Victor Hugo. The central character, Jean Valjean, is sentenced to prison for stealing a single loaf of bread. Later, seeking respectability, Valjean is hounded by his archenemy, Inspector Javert.

The broad canvas of Hugo's novel has been adapted for numerous films and a long-running Broadway (see also Broadway) musical (usually known as Les Miz).

Example Sentences

The late Herbert Kretzmer, who wrote the English libretto for Les Misérables, felt he was not given enough credit for transforming the original French musical into the hugely popular English-language version, letters have revealed.

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"I think it will clarify matters if I spell out, for the first and I hope only time, the straight and verifiable facts about the authorship of the English version of Les Miserables," he wrote.

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"Les Miserables in English is virtually a new, rewritten show."

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"I regret that this letter has to be written at all, but in view of the unpleasant actions taken by others to downgrade my credit and contribution, I must emphasise that Les Miserables is not a show translated or re-written, but a show reborn," he said.

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Les Misérables was adapted from Hugo's 1862 novel for a French album in 1980 and a stage show the following year.

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