Take a photo of a barcode or cover
4.07 AVERAGE
4.07 AVERAGE
emotional
mysterious
I'm thoroughly amazed at Anne Bronte's work in this book. Having read Jane Eyre and Wuthering Heights, I thought I had read the top Bronte books, this tops it for me. Helen's character is truly amazing, written in the mid-19th century to be called the 'First Feminist novel' was extremely courageous for Anne to make. Arthur Huntingdon describes everything novelists such as Margaret Atwood want to highlight to be ridden from patriarchal power.
There was a slight drawback when Anne decided for Helen to give Markham the diary and read it from his perspective. I do believe Helen's take on her own story could've been better. However, the way Markham was a key piece in this book, where most importantly it was his story and education, so giving the diary to Gilbert was meaningful for readers to watch him piece her story together.
I genuinely believe this was fantastic, not even in the way that it was written before women's legal rights etc, but even when Ibson wrote 'A Dolls House' he definitely had Helen in his mind.
There was a slight drawback when Anne decided for Helen to give Markham the diary and read it from his perspective. I do believe Helen's take on her own story could've been better. However, the way Markham was a key piece in this book, where most importantly it was his story and education, so giving the diary to Gilbert was meaningful for readers to watch him piece her story together.
I genuinely believe this was fantastic, not even in the way that it was written before women's legal rights etc, but even when Ibson wrote 'A Dolls House' he definitely had Helen in his mind.
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
My rating of this otherwise fine book will forever be tainted by my possibly irrational loathing of Helen. Props to you, Anne Brontë, for creating a heroine vivid enough to outweigh all other considerations.
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Anne Bronte has an optimism about the human condition that her sisters do not share. Even so, there's a lot of her own trauma processing here, which I find valuable. As a divorced person whose spouse changed dramatically over the course of the relationship, I felt really close to a lot of the situations presented. Fans of Ann Radcliffe will see the renewal of Gothic tropes, but with women having more agency and power.
Ok this was good but more on the Austen level then her sister Emily’s level.
I'm spending 2018 reading the Brontes and decided to start with Anne's novel because I've never read her work and wanted to right that wrong. Tenant is touted as being one of the best Bronte novels, albeit not as well known as Jane Eyre and Wuthering Heights. It was apparently ridiculously popular when it was first printed, but Charlotte refused a reprinting after Anne's death as she had issues with the themes that Anne chose to write about. Side eye ...sibling rivalry?
I enjoyed Tenant a lot. I did think it was way too long and there were definite style problems (the plot within a plot didn't really work so well here). The most jarring problems for me were, of course, Helen's decisions that kept her in an abusive situation, and the religious moral nonsense, but that's a sign of the time it was written in, and not everyone could be as fearlessly agnostic as George Eliot.
I still found the book masterful. Most authors during that period wouldn't touch themes of marital abuse, alcoholism, or trauma so props to Anne. She was a courageous one.
I enjoyed Tenant a lot. I did think it was way too long and there were definite style problems (the plot within a plot didn't really work so well here). The most jarring problems for me were, of course, Helen's decisions that kept her in an abusive situation, and the religious moral nonsense, but that's a sign of the time it was written in, and not everyone could be as fearlessly agnostic as George Eliot.
I still found the book masterful. Most authors during that period wouldn't touch themes of marital abuse, alcoholism, or trauma so props to Anne. She was a courageous one.
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes