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3.68 AVERAGE
3.68 AVERAGE
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
dark
emotional
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Poor, poor Tess. I love this book, though it was a sad read.
dark
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Moderate: Blood, Murder
Minor: Rape
dark
emotional
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I had a lot of college exposure to Thomas Hardy. His foreboding lifeworld, taken in under my "duteous" college grind, put me off reading him again. But thanks to two friends' recommendations, I was drawn into doing so this summer, and I got a clarity on Hardy my earlier days didn't afford: Despite his fatalism, Hardy is an extraordinary, beautiful writer, well worth reading. I was fortunate enough to read Tess with a terrific book group, with leaders superb in their discussions about the book's theme(s) and characters, and about major questions like how much of Hardy's pessimism reflects a judgment about life and the universe in general, and how much is a criticism of his society. I worried that its sad-if-not-tragical storyline would pull me down from enjoying it, but it didn't too much. There was a sunlit awareness of life embedded in its prevailing dark and doom, affirming life amidst its blightedness, and it was a pleasure to follow such brilliantly-drawn characters, and to find a dramatic facilitation of human truths, particularly pertaining to the evil social mores of the of the 19th century. Splendorous heights aren't to be found in Tess, and much despair is, but the author's descriptions are lustrous, his characters are deep, and his soul is great.
(Thanks, Kelly and Lisa.)
(Thanks, Kelly and Lisa.)
Marvelous!!! Can't stop loving the way these beautiful landscapes are described to us. It's impossible not to be completely immersed in the narrative and wanting to know where it's going. It's perfectly paced! It gives us so much to think about, all these faulty characters are so realistic.
This story follows Tess, a poor woman who has a noble family background. Learning this early on in the book begs the question of how do nature and nurture work together. Early on in the book, Tess undergoes a difficult experience that marks her and hangs over her head for the rest of the story. It impacts her agency and she feels a lot of guilt over something not her fault and others treat her badly because of it. This was such a tragic story, but illustrated the importance of understanding pride in ourselves so as to not scorn help and also to remember that we have agency and difficult circumstances change us, but don't define us. Hardy is also a master of description, and I could often completely picture what he was describing.
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated