mstabinski 's review for:

Villette by Charlotte Brontë

2.0

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At first, I sped through this. I experienced nostalgia as the narrator, Lucy, describes her experience starting life in a new country where she does not speak the language well. However, if you do not know French, this book is extremely difficult to comprehend without using Google translate or the footnotes at the end of the novel. Lucy has a self-deprecating, oddly plain view of the world where she tells the story of her life through describing other peoples’ lives. I did not feel particularly connected to her or her search for love and acceptance by her peers. There is a huge lull in the last third of the book, yet the ending seemed rushed to me. Maybe be an interesting read for someone who speaks French.