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3.67k reviews for:
Middlemarch: (Barnes & Noble Collectible Editions) (Barnes & Noble Leatherbound Classics)
George Eliot
4.06 AVERAGE
3.67k reviews for:
Middlemarch: (Barnes & Noble Collectible Editions) (Barnes & Noble Leatherbound Classics)
George Eliot
4.06 AVERAGE
I read this as part of an English class on Victorian literature at my university. Granted, I think without this class, I never would have picked up this book or made the effort to get through it. It’s a long book that requires a good deal of historical context and patience, and the pace is quite slow, but it truly is one of the greatest pieces of writing of its period and genre. Middlemarch is a perfect example of realist fiction and an incredible social history, with many characters who reflect dynamics of class and gender both as they relate to our time and that can resonate with modern readers. Definitely would recommend!
challenging
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This book is a delight. It is long, and could be considered a "slow burn" -- the audiobook is 35.5 hours, but every minute was wonderful. Eliot is hilarious, compassionate, and incredibly wise. You can laugh at the foibles, follies of her characters *and* stop to say "Ah yes, I recognize that feeling. I, too, have acted on that impulse." and yet not feel judged or ridiculed.
This book is a commitment, but it is a commitment that will reward you tenfold. "Daniel Deronda" is the only other book by George Eliot I have read, but it has been a favorite of mine since I first read it 10 years ago. Why it took me ten years to read another book by Eliot I don't know, but then again... I probably would not have appreciated Middlemarch appropriately ten years ago. I will buy a copy of this book to reread, but the audiobook read by Juliet Stevenson is absolutely amazing.
This book is a commitment, but it is a commitment that will reward you tenfold. "Daniel Deronda" is the only other book by George Eliot I have read, but it has been a favorite of mine since I first read it 10 years ago. Why it took me ten years to read another book by Eliot I don't know, but then again... I probably would not have appreciated Middlemarch appropriately ten years ago. I will buy a copy of this book to reread, but the audiobook read by Juliet Stevenson is absolutely amazing.
Oh god, this book is awful. Why do you all love it so much? I will stick to Jane Austen, thanks.
“For pain must enter into its glorified life of memory before it can turn into compassion.” Middlemarch
Life is made up of the choices we make. Middlemarch, a small country town, is the background in which many different characters live and move and have their bring. All the families, whether common, gentry, or clergy, play a role in community. In our story, two primary characters rise to top. Both have great aspirations for good, but life however, doesn’t always play out the way we hoped. It’s in those times when faced with disappointments that our decisions can set the course for our life. In Middlemarch we see our characters rise and fall amidst joy and sorrow, guilt and innocence. It’s in seeing visible souls overcome that we have the courage to do likewise.
“For the growing good of the world is partly dependent on the unhistoric acts, and that things are not so ill with you and me as they might have been is half-owing to the number who lived faithfully a hidden life and rest in unvisited tombs.” Middlemarch
Life is made up of the choices we make. Middlemarch, a small country town, is the background in which many different characters live and move and have their bring. All the families, whether common, gentry, or clergy, play a role in community. In our story, two primary characters rise to top. Both have great aspirations for good, but life however, doesn’t always play out the way we hoped. It’s in those times when faced with disappointments that our decisions can set the course for our life. In Middlemarch we see our characters rise and fall amidst joy and sorrow, guilt and innocence. It’s in seeing visible souls overcome that we have the courage to do likewise.
“For the growing good of the world is partly dependent on the unhistoric acts, and that things are not so ill with you and me as they might have been is half-owing to the number who lived faithfully a hidden life and rest in unvisited tombs.” Middlemarch
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
lighthearted
reflective
slow-paced
i feel so lucky to have gotten the opportunity to read this book for a class. and that’s so corny but god i loved it, in a sincere genuine way i really love the (EMPHATIC) realism of the novel it touched me to the bone