II.V.IV Fumbling for a Way Out

Here's what happens in this chapter: JVJ looks around for an escape route and decides he might be able to force a boarded-up gate, but it's actually a boarded up wall. 

The end.

I did, however, learn a lot of building terminology. 

I learned:

- A gable is a triangular shape under roof eaves, like this: 

Creative commons work by KDS444

But it can also refer to the entire "end wall" of a building, which seems to be how Hugo was using the term, because he was describing a solitary window on the gable and other things that seemed un-gable-like to me.

And yes, I confess: I've somehow made it through 28 years of life without fully understanding what a gable is, even though I lived near the House of Seven Gables for a time.

- "Bollard" refers not just to the sort of post you see at a dock, but any short post, including one in a Parisian alley that you can make your adopted daughter lean against while you figure out how to evade the police. 

- It's hard to picture what "old lead rainwater heads" and associated "bizarre espalier"-like piping might look like, but this Pinterest album has you covered. (Just imagine it's in France instead of England.)

- "Espalier" refers the type of clinging plant that grows against a building facade or fence, like this: 

Public domain photo by KVDP.

Building features looked up: 4.

Actions taken by main characters: 1. (Maybe 2 if you count Cosette sitting next to a bollard.) 

Up next: II.V.V Something Gas Lighting Would Make Impossible