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The Enchanted April - Nov-Dec 2018
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Impromptu "light" fiction read to close out 2018
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What Members Thought
This is the first of Elizabeth Gaskell's books that I've read and I'm looking forward to reading the rest. This book is delightful in almost every way. I liked the story of Margaret and John, the characters are lively, diverse and interesting, the conflicts are enlightening of the ways & ideas of Victorian life.
I'm taking a star away for the abrupt ending. It's not as if one can't see the ending coming; it's written into the entire book. The suspense is in the trials & pitfalls that get in the ...more
I'm taking a star away for the abrupt ending. It's not as if one can't see the ending coming; it's written into the entire book. The suspense is in the trials & pitfalls that get in the ...more
After enjoying other Gaskell books, I found North and South disappointing. The writing was plodding, the plot was uninspiring. It was mostly a polemic about the working conditions in Victorian England, but those have been handled much better by other authors.
The love interest was unconvincing, and seemed to be there mostly because she needed some sort of emotional hook, but for me it didn't work.
I would recommend sticking with her Cranford series and Wives and Daughters. She wrote a few others ...more
The love interest was unconvincing, and seemed to be there mostly because she needed some sort of emotional hook, but for me it didn't work.
I would recommend sticking with her Cranford series and Wives and Daughters. She wrote a few others ...more
A very enjoyable read. Romance in the era of industrial revolution. Pride and Prejudice in an industrial town with an "equaliser" twist. The love affair between the two main characters is intense and believable.
However, North and South is not a work of realism. It's essentially a romance, where the industrial revolution only serves as background and plot driver. As you would expect from a romance, the writer idealised the relationship between masters and workers and social injustice was minimis ...more
However, North and South is not a work of realism. It's essentially a romance, where the industrial revolution only serves as background and plot driver. As you would expect from a romance, the writer idealised the relationship between masters and workers and social injustice was minimis ...more
Rather earnest in the way that only the Victorians could get away with but nevertheless an enjoyable story, with some good character development and quite a touching romance. Oh, and the audiobook was beautifully narrated by Juliet Stevenson (of course!)
This book is my second read of Gaskell. I had previously read Wives and Daughters, which I also had enjoyed. Gaskell is a lesser known Victorian author, who has a loyal fan base, and I can see why. Gaskell writes well, understands human nature and isn't afraid to include social commentary in her storylines. North and South tackles issues of class, and in particular, labor versus management in business, which I found interesting, because Gaskell does a nice job presenting an objective view of the
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Margaret Hale is forced to leave her beloved family home in the rural South of England when her parson father begins to experience religious doubts. He takes her and her mother to Milton, a manufacturing town in the North, where she meets millowner John Thornton. At first she dislikes her new environment and treats Mr Thornton with disdain, but gradually she comes to appreciate qualities in both that she hadn't suspected.
This Classic Victorian novel is beautifully written and Margaret is a likea ...more
This Classic Victorian novel is beautifully written and Margaret is a likea ...more
Jun 11, 2013
Kai Coates
rated it
really liked it
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
group-bookish,
group-the-victorians
I jokingly referred to this book as "Pride and Prejudice and Politics", but I feel the description has merit. Margaret Hale has been raised in London by her rich aunt and superficial cousin. When her cousin marries, Margaret is sent back to live with her parents, a parson and the wife who never forgave him for not having more money, in the idyllic setting of Helstone. Mr. Hale decides to leave his job and moves his family to the northern industrial town of Milton. It is an interesting novel of c
...more
I have been meaning to read this book ever since first seeing the BBC mini-series. I figured that if I loved a TV show so much and the book must be better, we all know this to be true, then I should read it. And was the book better than the show?? Absolutely.
I thought the industrial age era made a good setting for the preconceptions that are prevalent throughout the book and create most of the misunderstandings between our hero and heroine and I liked the growth of the characters into more tole ...more
I thought the industrial age era made a good setting for the preconceptions that are prevalent throughout the book and create most of the misunderstandings between our hero and heroine and I liked the growth of the characters into more tole ...more
