OMG! I love this! I was a little worried they wouldn't be able to do the story justice in a Manga format--but I was hopeful. And they did it! Some aspects of the original story had to be cut/edited to fit this media, but they did it so well. I didn't feel like I lost anything with this telling. The art was amazing, and perfectly brought this epic story to the frontline. If you've ever been interested in reading the Count of Monte Cristo, but didn't want to read a book as large as a brick? This is it.

As a sort of side note, I recently attended a Frankenstein weekend, with Indiana Humanities, and one of the guests asked about classics being available to deaf individuals. ASL is different than English and it can be exceptionally difficult for young deaf learners to understand the format/style of classics. I think this is a great solution. A great mix of language and visuals that work together to bring a difficult story to life.

So read it!

Manga Classics have become a favorite when recommending classics to the uninitiated. They are such a visual treat, Every time I find the need to go back to read a classic, I find myself picking these up.

The Count of Monte Cristo has had numerous adaptations. Books and movies have retold the tale in so many varied settings that the original was a bit hazy when I began reading this Manga Classic. Alexander Dumas's powerful story of vengeance is classic for a reason and the Manga adaptation does complete justice.
Highly recommended

Il Conte di Montecristo è stato uno dei romanzi che ho letto nella mia primissima giovinezza, e che ho amato molto. Mi affascinava, allora, l'idea della vendetta, e il fatto che il protagonista, Edmond Dantes, riuscisse ad escogitare una punizione adatta ad ognuna delle persone responsabili della sua rovina, così da farle cadere una ad una, quasi stesse giocando una anomala partita di scacchi.

A distanza di molti anni ecco il manga tratto dal romanzo di Alexander Dumas, la cui uscita mi ha visto entusiasta, per la possibilità di incontrare di nuovo un "vecchio amico", ma anche incuriosita, perché Il Conte di Montecristo è pur sempre un romanzo di quasi 1000 pagine, e deve essere stata una sfida, nonché un lavoro veramente impegnativo, adattarlo per un formato così diverso ed avendo a disposizione uno spazio piuttosto ridotto.

La sfida può dirsi vinta: la storia è raccontata in modo da essere del tutto comprensibile anche a chi non abbia mai letto il romanzo originale e, cosa più importante per me, mi è sembrato che nessuno degli eventi significativi della storia sia stato escluso, cosa che non sempre accade, ad esempio, in molti degli adattamenti cinematografici e televisivi che sono stati realizzati nel corso dei decenni - vedi, ad esempio, la storia di Valentina -.

Riguardo alla trama in sé, questa volta sono state lampanti le sue caratteristiche da feuilleton (l'ambientazione in luoghi esotici, la dilatazione della trama, l'inserimento di rapimenti e banditi) che probabilmente oggi non gradirei del tutto, ed anche il tema della vendetta ha perso qualsiasi fascino potesse mai aver avuto, lasciando il posto, piuttosto, ad un bisogno di giustizia, che mi ha fatto apprezzare di più l'Edmond dubbioso riguardo alle proprie azioni, che quello accecato dalla sete di rivalsa.

Le tavole sono molto belle e i personaggi ben caratterizzati. Il protagonista, in particolare, è una figura affascinante e dannata, capace di far mettere sull'attenti, con la sua imponenza (e il suo patrimonio) un'intera masnada di furfanti.

This book had me running for my TV to look for movie adaptations on Netflix and Amazon Prime! I adore the story of The Count of Monte Cristo, and this Manga version is no exception. I loved revisited Emond Dantes and his quest to seek revenge against those who set him up and wrongly imprisoned him for 14 years. Edmond's story will have you cheering for him, but also wishing that he would see the good direction his life could take if he would simply recognize the love that is in front of him. Read it!

I feel like there’s a belief by some that if you’re a true book nerd, you were reading the classics as a kid. Especially women. Did you not read Jane Austen as a young girl? No, I did not. Because I was a freaking child. I was all about Beverly Cleary, Judy Blume, Sweet Valley High, and some Encylopedia Brown. I didn’t truly appreciate the classics until I was well into adulthood and most days I would still rather read a more modern fantasy or YA novel than an epic classic. Classics are often large and drawn out. They were, afterall, the main at home entertainment in ye olden days of no tv, radio, etc. Sure there are some great stories but they’re still not the sorts of things you want to read every day. There are some exceptions. The Count of Monte Cristo being the number one exception. I could read that every year. It’s my absolute fave.

Seeing it was turned into manga had me so excited. This is a 400’ish page comic. That may seem short if compared to the 1,000+ page classic novel but fear not, they didn’t skimp on the story (and there’s a lot of it). Comics/mangas do, however, have the advantage of both text and images. They can present a story in a new way. The main aspects of the classic story of revenge are all here and presented well. It’s a good way to get someone into a classic without handing them a book that can double as a step stool.

I will probably check out some of their other classic manga titles because this one didn’t disappoint.

Nice artwork. This is an ideal introduction to classic fiction for children and young adults. There are many different ways to help them engage in the story.

Firstly, the artwork is beautiful! And secondly, the book to manga adaptation is done so wonderfully. I highly recommend this manga. This graphic novel definitely belongs in anyone's library who enjoys classics, and this story. This way a smart way to introduce Cristo to new audiences.

This manga made a daunting classic reader friendly. I remember reading the original for the first time and thinking I’d never finish it. Udon, however, kept me turning the pages at a quick pace. So many nuances of this tale of betrayal and revenge are laid bare by the tools of artistry of these fantastic men and women who put their souls into their drawings. Just fabulous!

Plot
On the very day of his wedding to the beautiful Mercedes, a young merchant sailor named Edmond Dantas is falsely imprisoned for life, laying to waste his plans of marriage and hard-earned fortune. Following several long years in prison he has managed to escape and reinvent himself as the mysterious Count of Monte Christo. It is the reign of Napoleon Bonaparte and the Count has been plotting his revenge on the three men who had him falsely imprisoned. With a new identity, an incredible education abroad and a vast fortune, has returned completely unrecognizable to those who had committed their crimes against him.

The Positives
I received this manga from Netgalley, and I am so glad that I did. From start to finish I was intrigued. I had never taken the time to read this classic novel, as I am not much for being able to stay interested when it comes to the classics. Having images provided for me helped tremendously in keeping me riveted.
The story itself is a tale of revenge, but it is also more than that. At times it seems like a tale of self-discovery and heartache. As I have never read the original novel I can’t make any comparisons on how well it stays true to the original. What I can say is that if the classic novel is anywhere near as good as this manga was then I may give that a shot.
Since this was an early review title the images weren’t high quality as they are in the printed format, but even still they were beautiful. The characters were easy to look at, and the art kept to the emotional feel of the book.
One of my favorite parts of this manga was at the end of the book. It includes notes from Crstal S. Chan on what was condensed, what was removed, and what was clarified to make the manga easier to read, but still keep it true to the original story. They also include a chart that shows how the characters relationships with each other. This would have been very helpful during the time I spent reading this manga.
Overall this manga took me a day to read, and that was with quite a few breaks as real life took over for hours at a time.
The Negatives
Many of the issues that I had when reading this manga were simple and didn’t deal as much with the content itself. The first issue was getting used to scrolling to the end of the eBook and moving backwards. I have been an avid reader of traditional manga, so it wasn’t weird for me to read backwards, but it was the first time reading a manga on an eReader.
The next issue was pacing of the manga. I understand the need to condense a novel into a format that is much shorter, and again I have not read the original novel for comparison at this time. The pacing however seemed to struggle at times, abruptly changing between sub-plots and skipping time. This made it difficult to keep track of who was who, even with an image to help keep them in my mind.
Overall
Overall, I would highly recommend this manga to anyone who was interested in the insanely revenge driven character of the Count of Monte Cristo but never thought they would pick up the classic novel version. It was a fun way to delve into a classic story without spending a copious amount of time reading a novel. You gather majority of the original story from reading, and you are able to do it within a few hours.
One recommendation I have is to buy this book not as an eBook but as a physical copy. It would be much easier to read the manga and flip back and forth to the character relationship guide in a physical copy.

Happy reading!

I received a copy of Manga Classics: The Count of Monte Cristo from NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.
I really enjoyed this book. This manga is a great adaptation to my favorite classic novel. It has a beautiful and very well detailed artwork and it is easy to read. This is my first book from Manga Classics and I will definitely read more.

The Count of Monte Cristo is one of my favorite stories...of all time. It is a story of love and revenge and learning to forgive. Second chances. It's got a little bit of everything for everyone in it. And to see it illustrated in this book was fantastic. The artwork brought it to life even more than I expected and I felt myself dropped into the story, almost as if I were an active participant in the book, itself. I read this book in one sitting, as I couldn't put it down, and with two small children that is no small feat. Definitely a book I recommend adding to your classics collection and I will be purchasing a paperback copy to add to my library, as well. One of my favorite manga reads of 2018!

After giving up on the unabridged version, I thought the shortened manga version might be easier to manage. And it certainly was. Unfortunately, I still found it a drag to read. So much was crammed into 400 pages that I was constantly confused as to who the characters were and which roll they played. (I learned only at the end that there was a character guide, which would have been helpful.) I couldn’t tell anyone apart! This was my first manga, so I’m not accustomed to the art style or the lack of color in the illustrations. I also didn’t like Dantés at all. I understand that he feels betrayed, but the things he does in the name of revenge are just as bad. He destroyed so many lives, and there was one thing in particular that completely ruined him for me. I honestly don’t know what people see in this book. However, I’m glad that I now know what the book is about, and I feel good about the decision not to force myself through the 1300-page version.

I have previously watched the movie and anime of the Count of Monte Cristo and enjoyed them both. I did want to read the book myself but I always put it off as it was quite daunting reading such an old novel. I am glad I got the chance to actually read the book especially in manga format!
I am a bit fan of manga and its great combining it with a classic novel.
The art was beautiful and I did like that you have a couple of pages at the end of the book so that if you are getting a bit lost with the character names you can look up how they are related to the other characters.

I have seen there are other books as part of the classical manga collection and in general this is a great idea. Hopefully schools will pick some of these up as I remember reading parts of Romeo and Juliet and feeling lost with the old language. I really feel that adding the Manga aspect to the story would help more children become interested in the classic literature.

Thank you for allowing me to read and review this lovely book!

Love this book. It threw me back in time. The enter action with the characters felt complete.with each step I took when reading it. For me the storyline was full of details from the original book. Loved the graphics as it showed the storyline unfold before our eyes.

I was auto-approved by the publisher Udon Entertainment through NetGalley to review this title.

I haven’t had the pleasure of reading the original yet, but this adaptation really got me in the mood.

It was a nicely condensed version with great graphics and not too much dialogue.

Life could not be better for Edmond Dantes. He is bethrothed to the love of his life, and he has the promise of a great career with the prospects of a great fortune. Then, all goes wrong. Three men conspire against Dantes and he is imprisoned under false accusations. While in prison, Dantes meets a wise man who tells him of a treasure of untold riches. Fourteen years later, Dantes escapes from prison, finds the treasure, and vows to take revenge on the men who have imprisoned him.
The Count of Monte Christo is a very complex novel with an array of characters connected by Dantes' quest for revenge. Manga Classics' adaptation concisely portrays Dumas' famous novel in a visual format. Although I have never read the original novel, I found Manga Classics' version to be very easy to follow and engaging. I read the entire manga in one sitting, and now I really want to read the original novel.
I received Manga Classics: The Count of Monte Christo via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Ok I know that the original novel has some very problematic content and while it was of its time that doesn’t excuse any harm it does nowadays. That said there is something enduring about Huckleberry Finn – it’s the original con artist adventure story and there is still much to get out of it. This Manga adaptation is charming and engaging, taking the good and ameliorating the bad. I think this is now my preferred version.

A stunning work of art, The Count of Monte Cristo graphic novel manages to expertly condense a vast and elaborate piece of literature. It is not an easy accomplishment, but it was excellently executed, keeping all the correct parts of this book, highlighting the most important aspects of the plot. The narrative is accompanied by gorgeous illustrations that breathe life into the text.

The Count of Monte Cristo is a graphic novel that all fans need in their collection.

This adaptation of Alexandre Dumas’s novel ‘The Count of Monte Cristo’ was excellent! The primary focus was the story of the Count, how he came to be and his revenge plans. I thought it was very well done.

I love these Manga retellings of famous classics.

This one is no exception! I loved the artwork, and the story is well told and easy to follow.