A review by theresidentbookworm
Becoming Jane Eyre by Sheila Kohler

4.0

I have always admired the Bronte sisters. They were talented, unbelievably strong, and reliant on each other. It's crazy to think no one wanted to publish their novels. Kohler did an excellent job of chronicling not only Charlotte Bronte's inner workings but her family's as well. The Brontes were a wonderfully complicated: an alcoholic son, a nearly blind father, a dead mother and two oldest daughters, and three sisters left with nothing but their writing. Kohler filled in the blank spaces of the Brontes skillfully, carefully treading the line between fact and fiction. I particularly enjoyed Charlotte's chapters as she is the only Bronte sister I've read. I thought she was a bit harsh on her sisters' novels and just a little too gloaty when her novel was praised while theirs weren't, but I guess that's just sibling and author rivalry at its worse. My only real compliant was the overly religious undertones. I hated reading the father's chapters for that reason.

I'd definitely recommend this to Bronte fans, particularly if you've already read a couple biographies about them.