About this title: In Elizabeth Gaskell's warmhearted last novel, Molly Gibson's father is remarried to a shallow woman right out of Jane Austen, and becomes friends with her new stepsister, Cynthia, who is involved in a secret engagement to a man in a class below her own. Then Molly herself falls in love with a man who is drawn to the more beautiful Cynthia. As, with her customary incisiveness and clear eye, Gaskell explores the relationships between these characters, she also provides a lively portrait of the class system in Victorian England, and of a young woman who thirsts for learning as she struggles to ...
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Note: This is a general synopsis. Each listing is described below.
Description: Acceptable. Book is in good reading condition. Cover has wear at edges and corners, and may have creases. Spine has wear at edges and creases. read more
Edition: Paperback
Binding: Fair to Good
Publisher: Penguin, Middlesex, England & New York
Date Published: 1980
ISBN-13:9780140430462ISBN:0140430466
Description: Good to Fair. No Jacket. Paperback Fiction Fiction: A paperback in only fair condition of the 19th century novel about marriage and family life in an English village. Intact, but in somewhat worn condition. read more
Edition: First Separate
Binding: Paperback
Publisher: Penguin
Date Published: 1999
ISBN-13:9780140272666ISBN:0140272666
Description: Collectible; Good. GOOD 1999 BBC TIE-IN PENGUIN PB WITH ORIGINAL COVER PHOTOS FROM THE ACOMPANYING TV SERIES. SPINE CREASED, LIGHT CORNER WEAR TO COVER, INNERS UNMARKED, TIGHT BINDING. IMMEDIATE 1ST CLASS/AIRMAIL DISPATCH WORLDWIDE. read more
Binding: Paperback
Publisher: Penguin Books Ltd
Date Published: 1999
ISBN-13:9780140272666ISBN:0140272666
Description: Very Good. PAPERBACK BOOK-VERY GOOD OVERALL CONDITION-TRUSTED DEVON (UK) BASED SELLER-IN STOCK-SENT WITHIN 1 WORKING DAY-AVAILABLE BY EMAIL FOR QUERIES-NO QUIBBLE REFUND IF NOT COMPLETELY SATISFIED- read more
Binding: PAPERBACK
Publisher: Penguin Books Ltd
Date Published: 1999
ISBN-13:9780140272666ISBN:0140272666
Description: Fair. Paperback, larger format, a good reading copy. Cover image is a stock image and may vary. Your book will be securely packed and promptly dispatched from our UK warehouse. read more
Binding: PAPERBACK
Publisher: Penguin Classics
Date Published: 1969
ISBN-13:9780140430462ISBN:0140430466
Description: Fair. Paperback, a good reading copy. Cover image is a stock image and may vary. Your book will be securely packed and promptly dispatched from our UK warehouse. read more
Binding: PAPERBACK
Publisher: Academy Chicago Pub
Date Published: 1971
ISBN-13:9780586037300ISBN:0586037306
Description: Good. Paperback, Lightly toned but otherwise very good condition. Your book will be securely packed and promptly dispatched from our UK warehouse. read more
Binding: PAPERBACK
Publisher: Penguin Classics
Date Published: 1969
ISBN-13:9780140430462ISBN:0140430466
Description: Fair. Paperback, a good reading copy. Cover image is a stock image and may vary. Your book will be securely packed and promptly dispatched from our UK warehouse. read more
Binding: PAPERBACK
Publisher: Penguin Classics
Date Published: 1969
ISBN-13:9780140430462ISBN:0140430466
Description: Fair. Paperback, a good reading copy. Cover image is a stock image and may vary. Your book will be securely packed and promptly dispatched from our UK warehouse. read more
Binding: PAPERBACK
Publisher: Penguin Books Ltd
Date Published: 1999
ISBN-13:9780140272666ISBN:0140272666
Description: Good. Paperback, a good reading copy. Cover image is a stock image and may vary. Your book will be securely packed and promptly dispatched from our UK warehouse. read more
Description: Very Good. No major defects-unabridged, clean, complete, not falling apart; some light wear. A perfectly good reading or reference copy. read more
"Gaskell died before finishing this book; I knew this going in, and was assured by others that it ends in such a way that you can guess at what was to happen. Despite the warnings and foreknowledge, I was still mad when I got there and there was no wrap-up or closure. So, be warned, all who decide to undertake the book. This book also holds the pleasure of having a character--Mrs. Gibson--who was so thoroughly detestable and annoying to me that I found myself vocalizing my disgust and having to put the book down I was getting so irritated. That is a credit to Gaskell's talent; she created a character so real that she got under my skin. All of the characters were pretty well-rounded and complex, which I found to be the main strength of the book itself."
If you've ever wondered how the Bennett sisters' daughters might have turned out, you may find this interesting. Although written in 1866, it is set 30 years earlier, in a time when Austen's universe of landed gentry was undergoing serious challenges from industrialization, scientific discovery, and social mobility.All are themes in the novel, which centers around a brilliant Scottish physician who marries a dim-witted, self-absorbed ex governess and social climber. Dr Gibson is admired by the local gentry for his intellect and integrity, but his imprudent marriage has disastrous consequences for his daughter Molly,who is saddled with a highly unsuitable stepmother. However, Molly's love for her flighty stepsister Cynthia ultimately redeems them all, and her selfless devotion to the dilettetantish aristocrats, gruff landowners, and querulous maiden ladies in her neighborhood wins all hearts...especially that of Roger, the local squire's unexpectedly brilliant son.
Wives and Daughters will often remind you of other, better novels, (the tart relationship between Dr and Mrs Gibson echoes Mr. and Mrs Bennett, and the brooding, dissipated Osborne is pure Bronte), and I do wish Molly and Cynthia didn't weep quite so often.Yet I can't recall any other such novels where two of the heroes are men of science, or where the various social classes are presented with such clarity and overall sympathy. While not a great novel, the large well-drawn cast of characters and winning heroine makes this a worthwhile read."
"Someone should have warned me that this book wasn't finished by the author. Another author wrote the last chapter and tried to wrap things up, but I felt very unfinished and disappointed at the end. The author wrote almost to the end and you knew what was going to happen, but I missed hearing how it would have happened from the author. I loved the female characters in this book. They were strong and well-developed. I was a little disappointed with the male characters. Molly's father was supposed to be the ultimate man and father, but he rushes into an ill-advised marriage. And Roger is supposed to be the ultimate man to marry, but he falls for the shallow, deceitful Cynthia. I can't help thinking that if the author lived to finish this I would have enjoyed it a lot more."
"This book was charming, and I enjoyed reading it from beginning to premature end.
I hate to be the two millionth person to compare Gaskell to Austen, but so many people are familiar with Jane Austen's work that she has become a handy shorthand author for this type of writing. Readers who love Jane Austen's work will love this book for its similarities, and they may be interested by the differences.
This book is a little darker than, say, Sense and Sensibility. Sometimes the characters acted silly and selfish, but other times they were sinister and complicated in ways that Austen never fully explored. Also, the references to social classes were more complex. Think, Jane Austen with a splash of Charlotte Bronte and a pinch of Charles Dickens. Quite my cup of tea.
This book is unfinished. The book was originally written in serial form, and the final couple of chapters were never written before Gaskell died. The reader isn't left wondering what will happen plot-wise, but you don't read this book for the plot (if you do, it'll be a pretty tedious slog). You read it for the whole experience, and it is extremely disappointing to have the experience cut to a jarring end."
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