It is true that Victor Hugo takes some editing to be digestible. But I am referring to the common perception that Quasimodo rescues Esmeralda and they both live happily ever after, and only the wicked monk dies. Wrong. Yes, the monk dies. But Esmeralda is hanged for no reason even after it is clear that she did not commit the crime she has been accused of. Her mother dies just after realizing Esmeralda is her long-lost child. Quasimodo dies in despair. The story is most definitely a tragedy. (Well, OK, her goat lives.) I guess I was also disappointed because the person who recommended I read it said that Hugo does a masterful job of portraying Quasimodo first as some hideous criminal monster, and then as a gentle, beautiful being. I disagreed completely. I saw Quasimodo transformed from a pathetic, laughable lap dog to a valiant human, but never saw him as monstrous.