"I lived only to achieve this goal: to escape, to escape from prison. It doesn't matter if I escape alone or with someone, the important thing is to escape. This was a constant thought in my mind." "A Journey Towards Freedom" is how I would describe this novel. My expectations for it were different from what I found. I don't mean that the novel is bad or that I didn't like it, but I just expected it to be different.At first, I thought I would find what I expected, as here is Henri Charrière, ...

Henri Charrière, nicknamed Papillon because of the butterfly tattoo on his chest, is sentenced to life imprisonment for a murder he swears he didn't commit. He's shipped off to Saint-Laurent-du-Maroni, from which he escapes with two other convicts. This marks the start of his unbelievable adventure. This story is multifaceted. First, it's filled with moments of pure, indescribable joy, especially during the early, successful stages of his escapes with his companions. These moments often happen ...

Based on the true life events of author Henri Charrière, *Papillon* tells the story of Charrière, a man wrongly convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment, and his desperate, thirteen-year escape attempt. A journey fleeing injustice, cruelty, violence, and pain, ultimately reaching salvation and freedom. It's a bitter, human experience, fueled by an unwavering determination to survive, break free, and find hope for a peaceful life. A gripping true story and a must-read for fans of prison esc...

At twenty-five, Papillon was sentenced to life imprisonment for a crime he didn't commit. After numerous failed escape attempts, he finally succeeded. He fled the prison after eleven years of injustice, suffering, and longing for freedom, successfully reaching the capital of British Guiana. From there, he escaped to Venezuela, where he settled. *Papillon* is a moving and inspiring human epic for those who yearn for freedom. If you've seen the movie, you've missed a lot. The book delves into eve...

Henri Charrière's utterly consuming autobiography, *Papillon*, has blown me away! Henri was called "Papillon" because of his butterfly tattoo—which you can see right there on the cover. Unjustly convicted for murder in Paris in 1931 and sentenced to life imprisonment in French Guiana, he became completely obsessed with escape. The book superbly covers his planning and execution of numerous escapes, and as a reader, you'll be transfixed, desperately hoping he succeeds. His intense fight for free...

Why I chose to listen to this audiobook:I read *Papillon* back when I was in high school during the late 1970s. As a young, impressionable reader, I had given it 5 stars. A few years ago, my daughter and her husband gifted me with a copy of *Papillon* after they watched (and liked) the 2017 movie version. I found an audiobook recording to follow along with the book.Praises:1. A memoir written by Henri Charrière, focusing on his unjust incarceration at a penal colony in French Guyana during the e...

You've got to think Henri Charriere (Papillon, or just Papi to his fellow inmates) was a cat in a past life, still blessed with nine lives in this one—believe me, he needed every single one. Nine death-defying escapes from the brutal penal settlements of French Guiana in eleven years, pushing his stubborn body to the absolute limit each time? Wow! That's seriously something. How a man of flesh and bone didn't die a hundred deaths while also going completely insane is beyond me. He flat-out refus...

I read *Papillon* by Henri Charrière in the mid-70s, as a teenager. Then I read it again. And then, a little while later, I saw the movie. The three events have subsequently blended into one, and I certainly now have difficulty differentiating the book from the film. But that's no big deal as I know the film followed the written narrative pretty closely. It's a true story of one man's battle against injustice and the terrible personal consequences that transpired. It left a big impression on me...

What a story! *Papillon* is an autobiographical novel about a man who in 1931 was charged with killing someone (of course, Henri Charrière claims he was innocent) and sentenced to a life of hard labor at a penal colony in French Guiana. Talk about a gripping true crime story!After weeks of meticulous planning, he managed a daring escape on a raft, sailing hundreds of miles to Colombia. He spent several months living the good life in a fishing village -- with not one, but two wives! -- before the...

My mother actually knew Henri Charrière, the real Papillon, and another character from his book, Francoise. He used to be a regular at my uncle's restaurant, Il Padrino, in Venezuela, back in the '60s and '70s—this was after the events described in *Papillon*, of course. My brother was just a baby then, and Papillon and Francoise would take turns tossing him in the air and swinging him around. I told a friend, Neil, about this, and he was amazed that my family knew him. He'd read *Papillon* and ...