A review by delz
The Blithedale Romance by Nathaniel Hawthorne

Normally I absolutely love Nathaniel Hawthorne, but this story is told by a very unreliable narrator. Miles Coverdale knows what the reader knows and the reader doesn’t get information until he gets it, so that we spend a great deal of time in Mr Coverdale’s head. Mr Coverdale has left “society” to join a “socialist” group, what we might call a commune. Immediately Mr Coverdale is sick and weary from the travel then the work, it’s humorous actually. The group consists mainly of Coverdale, Zenobia, Priscilla, Silas and Hollingsworth. There are unfortunate turns and twists in the relationships that only come to light after Coverdale has spied on the group. The story has more to do with human interactions, between the sexes, same and opposite. The dynamic between the friends becomes strained and the reader isn’t always privy to the cause. Hawthorne was very insightful and he brought that vision to this story. The characters speak of women’s rights and struggles, of nature, and even the thought of living in a commune seems a more modern way of thinking. It’s a good book