Essays & Notes
Occasional writing about Dumas beyond the reference pages — why certain books still hold up, what changes in translation, how new adaptations compare to the source material, and the people behind the scenes of his work. New pieces added periodically.
Why The Count of Monte Cristo Still Works, 180 Years Later
Nearly two centuries on, adaptations keep coming — and keep working. A look at what makes Monte Cristo's revenge story structurally durable, and what modern revenge fiction still borrows from it.
Read the Essay →What Changes Between French and English Dumas
Almost nobody reading Dumas in English is reading his actual sentences. A look at what gets lost, changed, and occasionally improved in the public-domain translations most readers actually encounter.
Read the Notes →The 2023 French Three Musketeers Films vs. the Novel
Martin Bourboulon's two-part French production treats the material as a national epic rather than a costume romp. Where it stays faithful, where it compresses, and what it gets more seriously than most versions.
Read the Comparison →The Real Auguste Maquet: Dumas's Most Important Collaborator
A historian whose research and plotting shaped The Three Musketeers and The Count of Monte Cristo, and who never quite got his name on the cover for it.
Read the Story →More essays and notes will be added here periodically.