I first read this book as a youngster and enjoyed it although i didn't really follow all of the plot. I just read it again about 60 years later. I loved it. At first it seemed a little juvenile but I quickly fell under its spell.

The reviews above have mentioned many of the things I liked, but I would like to add one thing not mentioned heretofore.

I just finished reading an excellent long account of the English Civil War, which made me want to read fiction of the period. I was very impressed with the accuracy of Dumas's depiction of events. My newly acquired knowledge of the period greatly increased my enjoyment of Dumas's imagination. There is nothing in the novel that disagrees with the history of that period. Plus he adds all these lovely imaginary details, e.g. the motives of the fanatic who assassinated Buckingham. Great stuff. Milady has to be one of the most fascinating characters in fiction. ( )

This book is the adventures of d'Artagnan and is friends Porthos, Athos, and Aramis. Together the live by the motto "all for one, and one for all" and protect the rulers of France from the evil Cardinal Richelieu.

This story has a little bit of everything, action, adventure, romance, comedy, it just a fun read all around.

I would use this book in a unit on French literature or in conjunction with a unit on medieval romances as it shares many of the same themes as they have. ( )

I was surprized at how complex and detailed the writting is. Absolutly every thought and movement is stated by the author. And the vocabulary was huge. I was thinking about how many more words people knew one hundred years ago. ( )

The Three musketeers tells the adventures of the hot-headed young Gascon, d'Artagnan, and his three companions Athos, Porthos and Aramis. In their gallant defense of the Queen of France, Anne of Austria, they pit their wits and swords against the machinations and men of Cardinal Richelieu, as he schemes to hold on to his political influence over King Louis XII.

This book is indeed a work of art, and very exciting. You want to keep reading to know what will happen next, and there is a lot going on. However some parts slowed down quite a bit, and I think the book could have been better if those parts had been edited a bit so they were shorter. But, all in all, this was a classic I highly enjoyed reading! ( )

Like many people, I had seen movies based on the novel. A few were excellent, most mediocre, and none able to capture the magic of the novel. A book with political intrigue, duels, action, adventure and a love story is hard to match! D'Artagnan is the quintessential hero. He's young, handsome, brash, idealistic and passionately loyal. France is in disarray, thanks to a manipulation of a ruthless cardinal. Can four companions save king and country?

This is the kind of book that will get young people to see the value in reading. Though the language is a little old fashioned (it is historical fiction after all) it does not make reading difficult as in some works. Highly recommended! ( )