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3.66k reviews for:
Middlemarch: (Barnes & Noble Collectible Editions) (Barnes & Noble Leatherbound Classics)
George Eliot
4.06 AVERAGE
3.66k reviews for:
Middlemarch: (Barnes & Noble Collectible Editions) (Barnes & Noble Leatherbound Classics)
George Eliot
4.06 AVERAGE
You know . I actually liked this book much more than I was expecting to.
This classic has been on my "to read" bucket list for many years. I'm really glad I finally decided to tackle it. I will not forget its characters or the community of Middlemarch. It took me a while to relax into the writing and pace (I think that says more about the constant conversation in my head about what I should read next than anything else). Once I settled in, I was hooked and actually had my pencil out marking passages that resonated. George Eliot was a brilliant observer of human nature and life's passages. Now I want to read more about Eliot!
Love. Once I hit part 3, I had a hard time putting it down. This book has catapulted into my top ten. I will be going back to Middlemarch again and again and again. The final paragraph left me in tears. Just beautiful.
Reread, Oct-Nov 2018: I loved this book so much that I only left it alone for two months before starting over, this time via audio. It was even better on a reread, and the narration by Juliet Stevenson is excellent.
Reread, Oct-Nov 2018: I loved this book so much that I only left it alone for two months before starting over, this time via audio. It was even better on a reread, and the narration by Juliet Stevenson is excellent.
One of my all-time favorite reads. Loved the character development and the narrow focus. I did get confused about 1/4 into the book and needed to read a short synopsis to better understand what I was reading about but once I got the gist that it was really four stories in one, it made total sense and I never lost track again.
It gives a very honest picture of early 19th century life in the rural English countryside.
Its also a surprisingly feminist treatise. Unlike with Dickens, the women are the most dynamic and developed characters and even with the minor women in the book, their strength and opinions are valued and heard. Dorothy, our protagonist, is out to save the world and despite being an orphan raised by a bumbling uncle, she sees no limits to her capabilities based on her sex. She yearns for more knowledge and expertise and to be included in the conversations of learned men.
I could willingly just restart this book from the beginning tomorrow and re-read it again. I loved it that much. If you need spine-tingling action, you won't find it in Middlemarch. But if you love character development, empathy, feeling, and analyzing the everyday, its a riveting read. Beautiful strings of words.
It gives a very honest picture of early 19th century life in the rural English countryside.
Its also a surprisingly feminist treatise. Unlike with Dickens, the women are the most dynamic and developed characters and even with the minor women in the book, their strength and opinions are valued and heard. Dorothy, our protagonist, is out to save the world and despite being an orphan raised by a bumbling uncle, she sees no limits to her capabilities based on her sex. She yearns for more knowledge and expertise and to be included in the conversations of learned men.
I could willingly just restart this book from the beginning tomorrow and re-read it again. I loved it that much. If you need spine-tingling action, you won't find it in Middlemarch. But if you love character development, empathy, feeling, and analyzing the everyday, its a riveting read. Beautiful strings of words.
The only thing I didn't like about this book is that it ended. Why did I wait so long to read it? It's a wonderfully well-written soap opera that covers marriage disillusionment, deceit, politics, gender inequality, star-crossed love, social climbing, and provincial life in general. The story follows a fairly large community in and around the fictional community of Middlemarch in 1830s England. There are 4 or 5 delicious storylines with a little something for everyone. I need a sequel! Favorite quote: "Explain my preference? I never had a preference for her, any more than I have a preference for breathing. No other woman exists by the side of her."
I loved the last 20% of this book but the beginning is SLOW and feels like I’m watching a play that starts in development hell then turns into an actual work
I abandoned this book in college because I was more than 100 pages in and bored. I decided to pick it up recently and try again as part of a buddy-read. I am happy to say that I finally finished it, but only because I have a hard time leaving things unfinished.
I read many reviews saying that although it is long and dry, it is worth the read because the story telling is brilliant. Yes, the author created an incredibly detailed, well-developed world in her depiction of Middlemarch. Yes, most of the threads that seemed disjointed or loosely-connected throughout the first 7/8 of the book eventually came together. Yes, there were some characters that were definitely interesting to watch develop. Yes, the author explored timeless issues of morals, decision-making, and ethics.
I can appreciate the complexity of the book. There were even times when I was enjoying the prose. All in all though, I can't say I enjoyed it enough to warrant the time commitment.
I read many reviews saying that although it is long and dry, it is worth the read because the story telling is brilliant. Yes, the author created an incredibly detailed, well-developed world in her depiction of Middlemarch. Yes, most of the threads that seemed disjointed or loosely-connected throughout the first 7/8 of the book eventually came together. Yes, there were some characters that were definitely interesting to watch develop. Yes, the author explored timeless issues of morals, decision-making, and ethics.
I can appreciate the complexity of the book. There were even times when I was enjoying the prose. All in all though, I can't say I enjoyed it enough to warrant the time commitment.
I re-read this and really enjoyed it. The first time, I think I must have been reading for the wrong things. Like Jane Austen's stories, this is not eventful or especially dramatic. It's very much about ordinary life with its small trials and victories, and how people's characters and weaknesses and ambitions shape their lives and the way they interact and communicate and mis-communicate (and maybe eventually sort things out, and maybe not).
It's very much an ensemble cast, and all the main characters are interestingly complex. Some are more virtuous and some more flawed, but none are perfect and none are entirely unsympathetic (okay, maybe one).
Update: this time through, I read the Penguin Classics edition. Definitely nice to have the end notes to explain some of the cultural references and historical context.
It's very much an ensemble cast, and all the main characters are interestingly complex. Some are more virtuous and some more flawed, but none are perfect and none are entirely unsympathetic (okay, maybe one).
Update: this time through, I read the Penguin Classics edition. Definitely nice to have the end notes to explain some of the cultural references and historical context.
challenging
reflective
sad
slow-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
Boss babes, a range of slightly to very useless men and the reform Bill of 1832 🤪. George Eliot knows how to have a good time.