Alexandre Dumas was born on 24 July 1802 in Villers-Cotterets near Paris.His father, who was the son of a French marquis and a former slave, died when Alexandre was three years old. He was brought up by his mother and later moved to Paris to work as a clerk. He wrote plays, travel books, children's stories and memoirs as well as novels and was a keen traveller and cook. His most famous works are The Three Musketeers (1844) and The Count of Monte Cristo (1844-5). Alexandre Dumas died on 5 December 1870.
The greatest of escape stories Guardian What makes The Count Of Monte Cristo such a superior story is that revenge is not the only emotion driving the plot... it is an almost perfect story - also in the mix are love, friendship, jealousy, faith, education, snobbery and class Sunday Express The Count of Monte Cristo sustained my sanity and my life. It is a beautiful book. Incarceration coupled with interrogation can play cruel tricks on the mind and many are driven to suicide.The book taught me to hope when I was living at my mental limits -- Zhuang Zedong, former world table tennis champion and the greatest sportsman in China's history The Times One of the most romantic of all novels Mail on Sunday The Napoleon of story-tellers Washington Post