~The Phantom of the Opera – A Review

After reading several glowing opinions of The Phantom of the Opera by Gaston Leroux, I became skeptical. Then intrigued. When I found an unabridged copy for two dollars, it seemed like a pretty good bargain. We bought it and I began reading a few weeks later. [Edited to add: I had this entire review written, then I mistakenly threw it away before typing it out in its entirety. Consequently, this is a rewrite and may not be as well written as my first review, when the book was fresher in my mind.]

The Author:
Gaston Leroux, a Frenchmen, born in Paris in 1868, grew up on the coast of Normandy. His education came from boarding schools, than as a young adult, he earned a degree in the law. After his father died, Mr. Leroux switched from the law to journalism. In 1917, he married Jeanne Cayette. His first book, The Double Life was published in 1904. He wrote several other novels, including, The Mystery of the Yellow Room and The Floating Prison. Gaston Leroux died in 1927, at the young age of 59.

Technical Details:
The Phantom of the Opera was first published in 1910 by Pierre Lafitte and Cie. My copy was published by Dalmatian Press in 2011. It was published using a manuscript translated into English by Alexander Teixeira de Mattos. The book is 26 chapters long, also including a short Prologue and Epilogue. The whole book is 276 pages.

The Story:
This musical tale opens in the Paris Opera House, set in the second half of the nineteenth century. Beautiful Christine Daae’s magnificent voice has caused a stir amongst the singers of the opera, as well as the audience. She has never been known to sing so beautifully before and yet, she refuses to tell anyone the secret to her newfound voice. Not even Raoul de Chagny, her childhood friend and would-be fiancé, can get her to talk. While rumors and fears circulate the opera house regarding the mysterious Phantom who periodically appears in odd places, causing singers and managers alike to take precautions, Raoul becomes determined to find out Christine’s secret. He can see that the young woman has changed, and he’s even heard her to speaking to or listening to a man at various times – a man he can’t find. He seems invisible most of the time! Yet, the farther he goes into his investigation, the farther he seems to push Christine… and the more he seems to learn about the mysterious Phantom of the Opera. When Christine completely disappears, Raoul finds himself going into the depths of the Opera House – depths that he didn’t even know existed a short time before – fighting desperately for his life and Christine’s freedom.

The Writing Style:
The writing style of this book decidedly reflects Mr. Leroux’s journalist past. The story is written factually, with constant “references” to a biography written by one of the characters. While still fiction, this lends an air of believability to the tale.

The narration was engaging, though serious. A good blend, considering the mysterious aspect of the story. Unfortunately, I found the story lacking when Mr. Leroux failed to explain a few things, such as the reason for Eric’s extreme ugliness. I found this a little dissatisfying.

The Characters:
The characters were well written and colorfully portrayed. I did find them a little on the dramatic side sometimes, but it wasn’t enough to really hurt the story.

My favorite character was probably Raoul de Chagny. Despite his occasional tendency to be slightly over-dramatic, I liked his perseverance of character, as well as how truly he showed his love for Christine. (Most of the time at least.) I also rather liked Raoul’s elder brother. Steady and quiet. Though I might have liked to have seen a little more of him in the story.

A Few More Thoughts:
I did have a few concerns while reading this story. For instance, one of the characters is a cold-blooded murderer. Yet, for reasons that I did not understand, (pity, perhaps or fear?), the murderer was never brought to justice. No one even tried. Our LORD made it very clear that murder is a sin, and that a murderer should be brought to justice. There were a few other things: superstitious omens and one character is shown praying for the dead. Most of these weren’t a huge part of the story, but they are worth mentioning.

Cautions:
I can’t actually remember if there was any foul language in this book. If there was, it was not used often.

There are a few descriptions of tortuous murders, that may well disturb a sensitive reader.

While the setting makes it realistic, some may like to be forewarned that that there is a steady dose of Catholicism throughout the story.

Conclusion:
Overall, The Phantom of the Opera was engaging, well written, and a good mystery. The book presented a good study for me as an aspiring author. I’m not sure, however, if it will be a book I reread. I may recommend the book to a discerning, mature reader, but it is certainly not for children.

To the KING be all the glory!

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