Classics Without All the Class discussion

Our reviewing system is divided between a donation box, a library bag, and a bookshelf. You don't have to follow this system, but it is a bit of fun. Post your reviews here please.

Donation box, couldn't get through it. :(

Haven't finished this one yet - I'm torn. Reading the library copy and don't really have any desire to purchase my own copy so I guess if I owned it I would probably donate it. I don't dislike it but I don't love it either. Donate.

Donation box.

Here's my review: "I bought this book for fifty cents at the Senior Citizens Thrift Store. It was really nice because I could underline text and write in the margins at my favorite parts (which I did a lot because I enjoyed it very much, though I think the ending was a bit abrupt.)

It's about a woman trying to make peace with change in her life.

Unlike most of the books I've read from this era, it's not a social satire it is legitimately looking at political issues of the time and incorporating them into a drama. (Oddly enough you can replace words like "Parliamentary smoke" with "solar panels" and many of the same arguments used in this book are pretty much word for word the same arguments people have today).

(The Southerner) Margaret Hale is the central character (though many others hold the POV at some point). She's very far removed from what I've come to expect from a woman in victorian times. Many times in the story she is referred to as "proud and haughty" but I ususally take those words to mean someone who is self-absorbed and acts superior to everyone else and Margaret doesn't act in this way (she's actually really eager to make friends with everyone, even if they're really different from her). I guess today we'd call her "assertive and professional".

She also takes a very active role promoting what she believes is right.

(The Northerner) John Thorton (AKA "Mister Milton") is the love interest who isn't really a love interest until the last two pages of the book. He's a business owner who's political views (but not moral) are in opposition to Margaret's. He's big, strong and tough on the outside but he's a momma's boy, he likes reading greek tragidy for fun, and gives away fruitbaskets.

Margaret's calm assertiveness makes his heart go all aflutter! (It's kinda cute and angsty at first but it actually gets annoying after a while. There are a lot of romantic quotes on goodreads about him, most of them are a bit creepy and weird when taken in context...Margaret, her family, her friends and her community are facing crisis after crisis and all he can think about is "She dunna liek meh...")

The discussions between various POV characters are well thought out and I loved that there wasn't a "right" or "wrong' character politically. Even though Margaret is pretty much a christian-liberal and John is pretty much a conservative.

There were a lot of other cool characters but most of them died and I'm not ready to talk about them yet.

The one thing I didn't like about this book was the pacing. I'd read that this book was originally written as a serial drama not a novel. So it's kind of more like a TV show then a movie. The episodaic structure was kind of nice in some ways because we got to know more about the side characters and see these awkward interactions between all these people that were totally relatable made you cringe or laugh because they were true to life, but it was bad in other ways because things like Mr Milton's #feels are reiterated to the umpteenth degree and Margaret Hale's don't evolve until late in the story.

The edition I have has these footnotes, and one of them included a quote from the author about the ending and how she didn't like it: "at last the story is huddled and hurried up [...] But what could I do? Every page was grudged me"

UMMM....MAYBE NOT MAKE IT SO FRIGGIN LONG??

Gosh, it's Four Hundred-and-twenty-five-pages!!

Overall, I think it was a great book. It's pretty unique, but if you like Charles Dickens and Jane Austen you might want to give this a try."

I own a copy of this book, and like I said I've written in the margins and underlined several passeges (so I'm keeping it) *hugs book*

I'd have to say donation box.:-(

Library bag

Bookshelf. I loved this book. It did start out a little slow, but I found the pace and flow of the book picked up the more I read it. I did not want the book to end.

My bookshelf, even in virtual.

Definitely, donation box.

Bookshelf! I listened on audio and am still looking to purchase a paper copy when I find a used one, because I intend to re-read it later, I enjoyed it that much!

I love reading most of Elizabeth Gaskell. I can't remember for sure if I read North and South or not. But I have seen the movie (which might have been a mini-series) and know I liked it.

Bookshelf.