Tuesday, January 11, 2011

Gaskell Reading Challenge

After much soul searching, I am finally ready to commit to the Gaskell Reading Challenge hosted by GaskellBlog.com. I have never quite developed a passion for Gaskell, probably due to the fact that my first exposure to her was The Life of Charlotte Bronte, which bored me to tears when I read it as a teenager. Nevertheless, being, at the time, determined to conquer the Victorian canon, I went on to read Wives and Daughters, Ruth, and Cranford, none of which captured my imagination the way the Brontes, Dickens, or (particularly) Elliott did, and, quite frankly, I pretty much forgot about these books until I began blogging and discovered the huge interest in Gaskell amongst Janeites. So perhaps I missed something as a teenager? Very likely. I am already partway through a reread of Cranford, which I have found very amusing, if a bit scattered, and as the commitment for this challenge is "a minimum of two works", I figured it behooved me to give Gaskell another go. I do not know if I will manage more than the minimum, as I'm already feeling overextended in this pre-baby half of the year, but if I become enthralled there is no saying what may happen. The big question is, after Cranford, what shall I read nest? Suggestions are not only welcome but encouraged. What is your favorite Gaskell novel?

6 comments:

  1. You HAVE to read North and South. It's one of my all time favorites!

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  2. Thanks Felicia! I have seen the film (at the urging of a certain Richard Armitage fan that I believe we both know), and so I know that it should certainly be a good one.

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  3. Thank you for joining, Alexa!

    The minimum is two, but only one has to be a novel so you could always sneak in a short story or even an essay if June comes along too fast. ;)

    I agree with Felicia, North and South is a great choice. It made my admiration for Mr. Thornton even greater and and I like that we really get to know Margaret's character more as well.

    I really enjoyed The Moorland Cottage-- the group read for it starts next month. It's a lovely romance with a moral undertone similar to that of Mansfield Park.reat drama in it too.

    May I ask, when is the baby due? :)

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  4. My pleasure, Katherine! I am very tempted towards the group reads, as long as I can keep up with them!

    Of course you may ask! My due date is June 10th, and I just learned this evening that I'm having a girl. I'm so excited!

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  5. A girl! Yay! No doubt she'll grow up to be a Janeite. :) Have you and your husband decided on a name?

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  6. I hope so Katherine! As both my husband and I were very rebellious, I have to imagine that at some point she'll probably reject Jane, just to irritate me, but I have confidence she'll find her way back home. As her name will be Eliza (for both Elizabeth Bennet and Eliza Doolittle), she's kind of saddled with the heritage.

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