Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte

 

Title:  Jane Eyre

Author:  Charlotte Bronte

Narrated by:  Thandiwe Newton

Publisher: Audible Studios

Length: Approximately 19 hours and 10 minutes

Source: Purchased from Audible.com

What classic have you read more than once?

Jane Eyre is the story of a young woman in Victorian times; from her unloved childhood, time in a boarding school and first job outside the school as a governess at the mysterious Thornfield Hall.  Will she find herself and love?

My thoughts on this novel:

·       I read this book in October for the JASNA Northwoods Book Club.  We had a great discussion on this book.

·       I first read this as a teen and have read it multiple times since then.  It is a classic book.  I will continue to reread and love it throughout my life.

·       This was a great audiobook version.  Thandiwe Newton had good characterization for all the characters.

·       Poor Jane.  Her childhood and the complete lack at love make me so sad.  Her parents died when she was an infant.  Her uncle took her in and loved her, but he died when she was one.  His widow could not love Jane and treated her terribly.

·       I did not like the way Mr. Rochester treated Jane and played games with her.

·       I do like how independent Jane is and how by the time she returns to Mr. Rocester, she has her own independent means.

·       I’ll admit, I always forget how much of the book is set with the Rivers family.  I like that she split her inheritance fairly.

·       Why is St. John pronounced Sin-Gin?  I have wandered this through many adaptations and this audiobook.

·       I love Gothic romance and all the mysterious happenings at Thornfield Hall. 

·       Mr. Rochester for all his faults, does treat Jane like an equal and usually talks honestly to her.

·       It is horrible when St. John proposes to her with absolutely no love for Jane, but the want for a useful partner for his missionary trip.  I’m glad Jane said no!

·       What is your favorite adaptation? One of my favorites is the 2006 miniseries starring Toby Stephens.  Why is Rochester always hot in adaptations even though he is described as not good looking in the novel?

Favorite Quotes:

“I am no bird; and no net ensnares me: I am a free human being with an independent will.”

“Reader, I married him.”

“Do you think, because I am poor, obscure, plain and little, I am soulless and heartless? You think wrong! - I have as much soul as you, - and full as much heart! And if God had gifted me with some beauty and much wealth, I should have made it as hard for you to leave me, as it is now for me to leave you!”

Overall, Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte is a masterfully written classic with one of the best heroines in literature.

 

The Professor by Charlotte Bronte

 

Title:  The Professor

Author:  Charlotte Bronte

Narrated by:  Frederick Davidson

Publisher: Blackstone Publishing

Length: Approximately 9 hours and 24 minutes

Source: Checked out from the Kewaunee Public Library through Hoopla

What is your weirdest reading habit?  I used to love to read in trees when I was younger.

William Crimsworth is an orphan and becomes a clerk for a schoolmate’s brother.  He faces abuse at the job and decides to make a career change, moving to Brussels and becoming a professor.  Once a professor, he finds himself conflicted in love and caught in a bit of a love triangle.  Will he find love and a future in Brussels?

My thoughts on this novel:

·       The Professor was the May pick for the What the Dickens Book Club.  We have an interesting discussion on Facebook on it.

·       I hadn’t read this book since high school.  In high school, I did my senior research paper on Charlotte Bronte.  I read all her novels and watched all of the adaptations of her work that I could get my hands on.

·       The book is the person narrative of William Crimsworth.

·       Most of the book takes place in Brussels.  French is spoken and not translated at times in the book.

·       The main character is very anti-Catholic and seems to look down on the Belgian people that he is teaching.

·       It’s kind of creepy when he and another professor rate and talk about their female students looks. 

·       It’s crazy to think that in the 19^th century, one could beat your employee with a whip!

·       I would rank this as my fourth out of four of Charlotte Bronte’s novels.  It’s worth reading, but it lacks the polish and passion of Jane Eyre.  This was the first novel that Charlotte Bronte wrote in 1845-46 before Jane Eyre.    Bronte used a lot of her own experiences at a school in Brussels for inspiration for this novel.

·       The audiobook was a bit dry and boring to listen to, and strangely about halfway through it, I suddenly couldn’t listen to it anymore.  Hoopla said it was no longer available through my library.  I have never had this happen before, have you?  I had to purchase it on Audible to finish it up.

Overall, The Professor by Charlotte Bronte is worth reading, but it is a bit dry and lacks the passion of Jane Eyre.