One of the best novels by a classic of world literature. Jean Valjean, Cosette, Gavroche — the names of the characters in the novel have long become household names, and the number of its readers has not decreased in the one and a half centuries since the book was published, the novel remains popular. A kaleidoscope of faces from all strata of French society in the first half of the 19th century, bright, memorable characters, grotesque and romance, sentimentality and realism, a tense, captivating plot, — these are the main reasons for the success of Hugo's book and also the main reasons for its frequent adaptation by world cinema.