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Alexandre Dumas was best known for his historical novels of adventure and romance which blended fact and fiction with real and imagined characters. The Black Tulip wasn't as popular among his critics as his better known works such as The Count of Monte Cristo, but his readers were happy with it when it was first published back in 1850. My book club chose to read it for February, to discuss a classic with some romance, in honor of Valentines Day. And it was a good choice for an entertaining read that was also informative.

This was a story of passion and obsession, love and hatred, fidelity and duplicity, regret and redemption. And it all began with the political atmosphere of that time in Holland during 1672, when Cornelius de Witt, accused of treason and sent into exile, was brutally assassinated along with his brother, an event which truly occurred under unthinkable circumstances. Against this historical backdrop of political unrest, flowers the fictional story in this book of de Witt's godson, Cornelius Van Baerle, as told by an omniscient narrator who at times addressees the reader with quips and asides.

Cornelius Van Baerle, 28, an independently wealthy doctor and painter, in reaction to the madness in the world around him, decides to devote his life to cultivating beauty in the face of such ugliness as what befell his godfather. And so, when a contest with a large prestigious award arises, calling for the discovery of the elusive black tulip, it's just the thing to absorb Cornelius for years. Unfortunately, unknown to him, his neighbor, Boxtel, a less talented horticulturist, also covets the prize and will do anything to obtain it, consequences to himself or others be damned. So when Boxtel learns Cornelius might be on the verge of cultivating a black tulip, stealing the prize out from under him, he hatches a plan which lands the unsuspecting Cornelius in the same shoes and same jail cell as his godfather, accused of treason and facing execution. But unlike his godfather, he is to spend his life imprisoned for what remains of it.

What follows is an increasingly farcical story centering on Cornelius continuing his cultivation in prison of what might be the first black tulip in history. He is aided by his jailer's daughter, Rosa, a possible rival when it comes to the love of his tulip. Will Cornelius succeed or fail, both in tulip growing and in love? Will he forever lose his freedom or end up losing his life instead? Or will he just lose his lust for life when things take a turn for the worse? And what of Boxtel? Will he succeed in winning the coveted prize for himself by means fair or foul, and at what cost to himself and to others? These are questions you'll find answered in this humorous, but dark story, of both the breaking and the making of the human spirit. Along the way, you'll learn some political history concerning Holland and the craze known as tulipmania which peaked during that time. You'll also learn some fascinating facts about tulip cultivation and how it takes six years for a tulip to journey from seed to flower. And in case you're wondering if such a thing as a black tulip ever existed, my research says no, though people have come very close with cultivating the darkest of purples. Come on board for this unusual story and take a trip through much zaniness amongst the more serious elements to find out how it ends.

Romanzo delizioso, che mi ha divertita molto.
La storia, ambientata nell'Olanda del '600, racconta le vicende di Cornelio Van Baerle, abile coltivatore di tulipani, ingiustamente accusato di tramare contro Guglielmo d'Orange. Van Baerle va in prigione, ma il suo sogno di creare il primo tulipano nero della storia e guadagnare un ricco premio continua anche dietro le sbarre grazie all'intervento della bella Rosa...
Non racconto il resto della trama, per non rovinare una lettura resa frizzante dalla sequenza di colpi di scena e trovate di Dumas.
Certo ci sono alcune ingenuità, alcune casualità davvero troppo convenienti ai fini dell'evoluzione della storia e i personaggi sono nettamente divisi tra buoni e cattivi, ma è stata una lettura davvero piacevole, che permette di "passare sopra" questi difetti.

The Black Tulip is set in the Netherlands in 1672. It is the story of Cornelius van Baerle and Rosa Gryphus. Hindered by some very unfortunate circumstances they join forces to grow the elusive black tulip. Whilst it is not precisely historically accurate, I think Dumas did an excellent job to capture the tulip-mania zeitgeist.

For me, it was a very easy to read classic, because of my familiarity with the Dutch language and some of the historic events, but that set aside, it is just a wonderful and passionate story in which you can really sympathize with its characters.

5 star rating.

I've always been in love with tulips and how delicate they are, how about a magnificent Black Tulip?

The events take place in Holland during the tulip-mania era which is the Dutch golden age of the 17th century. A great amount of money is offered as a prize to whoever cultivates a grand black tulip, the thing that nobody had succeeded to achieve before. Here appears the hero.

My first impression of the book was not that great. Reason? I dislike political history, and that's how the first few chapters started off, just not my area of interest, but you definitely will enjoy them if you're into politics and/or history. Don't skip the first 4 chapters though, they're very necessary to base the story of the book on.

WARNING! Beware of some graphic content of barbaric murder and bloody scenes. However, in the 5th chapter, Dumas' charm and Buss' brilliant translation finally started to enchant me, talking less of boring politics, and more of gorgeous tulips.

A piece of advice: Never put down a book if you didn't like it at first, you never know what you'd miss if you didn't give it a second chance. I was fighting off my lost appetite and desire to stop reading against my determination not to judge a book too early, especially when it's a work of my beloved Dumas.

I couldn't put down the book after that. The beautiful romance of Cornelius van Baerle (the hero) and Rosa (the Frisian jailer's daughter) is just too sweet to be described. It's a very good book. I highly recommend it to the gentle hearts; flowers and romance lovers.

Um livro muito querido e juvenil - uma boa prenda para pessoas entre os 12 e 15 anos, pela sua leveza de escrita, pela narrativa fluída e pelas personagens base de qualquer livro que se encontram bem definidas. Considerei as primeiras 50 páginas muito aborrecidas, tanto que decidi parar um pouco a leitura e avançar com outros, mas quando retomei senti que a história começou a seguir outro caminho e conquistou a minha atenção. Conhecemos Cornélio van Baerle, um homem que graças à herança monetária dos pais se dedica à plantação de túlipas, tornando-se num promissor botânico cujo principal desejo é criar uma túlipa negra perfeita, sem quaisquer manchas. Numa Holanda do século XVII governada por Guilherme de Orange (cujo cognome é taciturno), Cornélio vê-se envolvido nas intrigas políticas pela ligação ao seu padrinho, é acusado de traição e condenado à morte. Durante todo este processo conhece Gryphus e a sua filha Rosa, enquanto o primeiro é um ser cruel e antipático para com Cornélio, a querida Rosa torna-se fiel e disposta a ajudar em tudo. No entanto, o grande antagonista da história é Boxtel, o seu vizinho obcecado por túlipas que vê o seu negócio estragado quando Cornélio se começa a dedicar à botânica. No meio disto tudo à um concurso com prémio monetário para quem apresentar a túlipa negra. Quem será? E qual será o desfecho do Cornélio? É um livro muito fácil e rápido de ler, só é preciso ter força para ultrapassar as primeiras 50 páginas.

Y'all I am an Alexandre Dumas fan girl. If I could resurrect him and make him be my writer boyfriend, I totally would (sorry boo!). Last summer I read the unabridged Count of Monte Cristo translated by Robin Buss* over a period of two weeks. I am a generally fast reader, especially when I have few work hours, however, I really wanted to savor the experience.
Read the rest of my review here

I really enjoyed this novel, but after reading some of Dumas' other works it almost felt like a short story. :)
I think that this would be a good introductory novel for anyone who wants to read Dumas but is daunted by the size of some of his major works.
I also enjoyed this book for the small taste of Holland that it described. My grandfather served in the Navy during World War II. He never talked about his experiences, but he once mentioned that Holland was the most beautiful place he had ever seen. Whenever I see a tulip, I think of my Papa. :)

Pēc ilgiem laikiem atkal Dimā ar savu saldo ēdienu par mīlestību, intrigām, cietsirdību, nodevību un labā uzvaru. Riktīgi patika.

P.S. Es grāmatas editoru par tādu haltūru būtu atlaidis - gaužām daudz ortogrāfijas kļūdu.

I very much enjoyed this tale of drama around the development, growth, theft, and recovery of the Black Tulip in Holland of the 1670's. Throw in some romance and suspense, fear, hatred, and forgiveness, and add in a prison and a couple of mentions of the guillotine, and you have Dumas' formula for a very exciting and tantalizing story. Read it -- It's fun!!

"دنیای ادبیات کلاسیک فرانسه رو دوست دارم"،.سادگی لذت بخشی داره..و ارزش های روشن..خوبی,بدی..همه خیلی واضح و بدون شک و تردید به صحنه وارد میشن...دنیای ادبیات کلاسیک فرانسه رو دوست دارم...

سال ۲۰۱۸

This was - interestingly so - my first time reading a historical fiction novel set in the Early Modern Low Countries and I enjoyed every minute of it. Dumas' writing style is really immersive and his attention to detail was really powerful. I could not put this book down. I really enjoyed the story and the sheer sensation of it all, Dumas really knew how to deliver a story. The descriptions of settings and characters were lively, charming and engaging and the way Dumas wrapped up the story was impressive. I might change my rating from 4 to 5 stars later on, but for now, this book gets a very proud place on my 4-star shelve. If you're looking for a wonderful historical fiction with (political) intrigue set in the early modern Low Countries, definitely give this wonderful book a go.