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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
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
So this book...this freaking book. On paper, in theory, I should really have loved this. Lots of characters, emotional personal stakes, people with inner turmoil, quirks, and relationships. I was very much into it, during the first 3 or 4 chapters when it focused on Dorthea, her sister and their relationship, after their mother died etc... I was here for it. A nice tight story of growth between them..a relationship or two... Totally on board. The story then explodes outward in a ever increasing net of characters that just gets far to convoluted. Dorthea's portion doesn't come back into play for many many parts later, and the focus was just lost.
I found myself dropping in and out of actually caring about what was going on. The book is just too long. I don't often say that if the story is good. When you don't feel the length, because each action the characters make is just gripping and compelling. With this...I just really wanted it to be over. What started with me caring about the relationship of Dorthea to Casaubon turned more into "okay okay I get it.. he's not for her". There were sections I had to go to sparknotes to read the summary of what I had just read.
When I started the book, I had been wondering why this book isn't up there with the classics, the great ones always mentioned in pop culture...I think I know why.
I found myself dropping in and out of actually caring about what was going on. The book is just too long. I don't often say that if the story is good. When you don't feel the length, because each action the characters make is just gripping and compelling. With this...I just really wanted it to be over. What started with me caring about the relationship of Dorthea to Casaubon turned more into "okay okay I get it.. he's not for her". There were sections I had to go to sparknotes to read the summary of what I had just read.
When I started the book, I had been wondering why this book isn't up there with the classics, the great ones always mentioned in pop culture...I think I know why.
There’s a compelling story in there but she was obviously paid by the word.
I forget how most classics about women revolve around their standing in society and how they will afford to live if the man/men in their life dies or leaves. As that goes, this book was definitely on the interesting side.
I love this book! It's a big one so a bit daunting but once you've opened up this world... It's enthralling. I will miss it.
I will admit that some characters I found considerably less appealing than others, but even their lack of appeal felt rooted and real; significant. Eliot's characters are deeply developed human beings - full of nonsense and idiosyncrasy; at once unique characters and clearly products of their circumstances, shaped by external forces despite the apparently unbending force of their own will. Altogether if not lovable, then, well at least worth reading about.
But Dorothea was lovable to me! Her trajectory will leave me thinking and feeling for some time - and her trajectory makes me feel that I must return to this 800-page book someday after all. I felt as though I were reading my own nature embedded in this wealthy woman from an estate in early 19th century England. Perhaps I flatter myself, I am certainly not as beautiful and queenly as Dorothea. Yet what really resonated with me was internal - the forces that moved Dorothea to action - her deep sense of principle. She practically invented these principles for herself, for no one else in her life seemed to have many - yet she stood fast by them, for bad and good ... A lot of bad, I'd say, and hardship, but I think perhaps hardship was inevitable for her given the way she saw - and felt - the world. Her nature does not tend towards joy. And her perspective is deeply limited by her upbringing, her status as a woman, etc. Yet she has such strong visions of what is right and wrong; what is good and bad! I am not sure that these principles of hers are right - honestly, sometimes they fail her - but nor are they wrong. I think they are just part of her - what makes her lovable and insufferable to both others and herself. And I think she slowly figures out, as she gains perspective on life, how better to live with them - how better to live with herself.
I will admit that some characters I found considerably less appealing than others, but even their lack of appeal felt rooted and real; significant. Eliot's characters are deeply developed human beings - full of nonsense and idiosyncrasy; at once unique characters and clearly products of their circumstances, shaped by external forces despite the apparently unbending force of their own will. Altogether if not lovable, then, well at least worth reading about.
But Dorothea was lovable to me! Her trajectory will leave me thinking and feeling for some time - and her trajectory makes me feel that I must return to this 800-page book someday after all. I felt as though I were reading my own nature embedded in this wealthy woman from an estate in early 19th century England. Perhaps I flatter myself, I am certainly not as beautiful and queenly as Dorothea. Yet what really resonated with me was internal - the forces that moved Dorothea to action - her deep sense of principle. She practically invented these principles for herself, for no one else in her life seemed to have many - yet she stood fast by them, for bad and good ... A lot of bad, I'd say, and hardship, but I think perhaps hardship was inevitable for her given the way she saw - and felt - the world. Her nature does not tend towards joy. And her perspective is deeply limited by her upbringing, her status as a woman, etc. Yet she has such strong visions of what is right and wrong; what is good and bad! I am not sure that these principles of hers are right - honestly, sometimes they fail her - but nor are they wrong. I think they are just part of her - what makes her lovable and insufferable to both others and herself. And I think she slowly figures out, as she gains perspective on life, how better to live with them - how better to live with herself.
I can hardly believe I've finished! Have to mull this mammoth over before a better review:-)
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Find more reviews and bookish fun at http://www.princessandpen.com
I didn’t love this, though I did enjoy this massive book a lot. George Eliot’s prose occasionally left me puzzled, and I strongly think I’ll have to revisit this classic. I found myself eagerly following the interactions of the people of Middlemarch. I was particularly interested in the actions of Dorothea and Lydgate, and frequently found myself either shaking my head at these two, or feeling frustrated with those immediately around them. Eliot’s characterization was wonderful, and her detailed portraits of the main and several of the supporting characters frequently had me impressed. Much of Eliot’s commentary on the politics of the day went over my head as I know nothing of the Reform act, though her portrayal of the doctors in Middlemarch had me annoyed with them for their conservatism and their actions towards their patients. I liked her portrayal of different marriages and the roles of each of the married women in these relationships, and how they navigated their lack of legal and personal power.
These is no doubt a lot more I could say about this book, and a second reading would give me a better perspective on this many layered work.
These is no doubt a lot more I could say about this book, and a second reading would give me a better perspective on this many layered work.
Years ago, I bought a secondhand copy of this for $1, fondly thinking of Nikki Wade reading it in series one of Bad Girls. While I'd read The Mill on the Floss, I doubted I would ever actually tackle Middlemarch. But! This year my sister and I decided (with wary glee) to read it for our annual classics book club (feat. our mother).
Once I started reading, my wariness dissipated. I was not expecting George Eliot's writing to be so humorous and her observations to be so incisive and relatable. While I did struggle to get through some of the political scenes, the emotional heart of the story kept it immensely readable and interesting. (Dorothea! <3)
Perhaps 4.5 stars, but I'm rounding up because I'm so pleased I actually read this.
Once I started reading, my wariness dissipated. I was not expecting George Eliot's writing to be so humorous and her observations to be so incisive and relatable. While I did struggle to get through some of the political scenes, the emotional heart of the story kept it immensely readable and interesting. (Dorothea! <3)
Perhaps 4.5 stars, but I'm rounding up because I'm so pleased I actually read this.
Elegant and enlightening sentences abound in this complicated drama. I thought the scenes at times stilted with essential characters disappearing for long stretches with no updates. You can sense the stitching of the two novels. Characters can be annoyingly overwrought and I don’t understand inexplicable decision making…especially from the guys. Too long.