The Count of Monte Cristo

Back in my teenage years I read a book by Stephen Fry called the ‘The Stars Tennis Balls’. It was an entertaining story with a protagonist named Ned. He was young, successful, in love and in the 80‘s. However as he prepared to go to university, tragedy struck. Three ‘friends’, jealous of Ned, caused him to be arrested. At this point a secret service agent sent him to a Scandinavian mental home for entirely selfish reasons. After spending 20 years trapped, Ned escaped to the 21st century world, and set about gaining his revenge…

Let’s cut to the real world, and to my birthday this year. I received The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas as a present. Within 20 pages of the book I was noticing similarities between this and Fry’s novel. A quick Wikipedia search revealed the two books to be almost entirely identical in plot! Now, Stephen Fry has admitted to taking the plot from Dumas, who himself based it on a true story, but he sure as hell didn’t admit it in my copy of the book. As such, I realised I was embarking on an epic story to which I already knew the plot.

Would Stephen Fry’s carelessness cost me the enjoyment of a classic? In short, No. I’m glad to report that good writing always shines through, and you can enjoy plot twists even if you see them coming.

Of course, there is more to it than just that. I remember being saddened by Ned’s 20 year imprisonment, his institutionalisation in the Norwegian mental home and his ruined life. With The Count of Monte Cristo there’s too much fun to be had in revenge for that to be a factor. When the time does come for the Count to face up to his period of incarceration, it’s done with a maturity and credibility that leaves the reader with a feeling of closure, not one of despair.

That does leave us with the question of which novel to recommend. Personally, I would always choose the source material. In these situations, the beauty of the original is that it has a charm which merited a re-make. The copy might well have the charm of the original, but then again it might well not. Why take the chance? In this case, while I have forgiven Stephen Fry for my mistake, you should read The Count of Monte Cristo. It’s quite simply a better book.