Jane Eyre (Wordsworth Classics)

This is one of my favourite books, perhaps my absolute. Excluding children's books, I have read this one far more than any other, and that's got to be saying something because I couldn't name another pre-20th-century novel that excites me like this, or even another Brontë novel that I particularly like. I love Jane; although my personality doesn't run in complete tandem with hers, I feel like I 'get' her and therefore across time I am also 'got', in a way only introverts could understand. Jane is a voice for the voiceless, in more ways than one of course, since she also stands up for women and the poor and abused. Brontë has a sharp wit that she just throws in every now and then when I wouldn't even have thought to make a moment funny that really brings this seemingly quiet but actually fiery character to life. It is a thrill and joy every time Jane speaks her mind despite what convention states is proper for her sex and place in society; it is therefore also a joy that she meets a character who responds with that same thrill and joy to her words and actions as I do. When I start reading the book each time, I grow excited as I look forward to certain moments I know are coming. It's impossible not to sympathise with an unfairly treated child, and when little Jane finally snaps and stands up to her tormentors, the words seem to crackle. The same is true when she grows up and takes her job at Thornfield Hall. Every encounter with Mr Rochester can't come quick enough. Some of these, and of course the bedroom fire, are moments I'd happily seek out just to read off the cuff. They are thrilling, funny and always deliciously too brief. There are two chapters somewhere towards the end of the middle that dampen my spirits each time I reach them. (view spoiler) But then we are back on track - Jane's flight and near starvation bring tears to my eyes, and her encounters with St John Rivers hold an interesting appeal, although each time I read the novel I discover I despise him more and more thoroughly. I delight in the contrast between Rochester and St John, it perfectly fuels the desire to reach the climax of the story regardless of previous wrong-doing by certain people, handing out dramatically balanced comeuppance with love and compassion, making the ending so rewarding. Despite all this, I don't think the book is perfect. There are times when the narration seems to waffle on too much, oddly out of sorts with the sharper, wittier stuff that I love. The first two pages don't exactly zing. I have never understood why the ending focuses on St John (am I not supposed to revile him?). I could probably do without the direct addresses to the reader all the time. The untranslated French leaves me baffled. Diana and Mary are barely realised as characters while Brontë seems to describe St John's words far more than she actually shows them to us, telling us he has this mesmerising power that we never get to experience, which makes it all the more difficult to understand how anyone could possibly like him. Also as time goes on, I find it harder to grasp exactly why Mr Rochester feels the need to make Jane jealous by pretending to be interested in Blanche Ingram - it's a lot of fun for the reader, but it just feels like a silly scheme put in by the writer rather than a logical thing a real person would actually do, (view spoiler) One must also wonder what the hell delusion Mr Rochester is living in that he thinks he could ever get away with his other more serious deception (I don't know why I'm being coy, like anyone on the planet doesn't know what his secret is), how did he think Jane was going to react when she finally found out, since he did intend to tell her? But where it is good, which is most of it, it soars right off the page into my heart. The friendship between Jane and Rochester is one of my favourite relationships in literature. It is exactly the right blend of passion and chasteness that suits my tastes, and has probably influenced my tastes in other fiction. I just love reading about characters who see something in each other that other people are too blind to see.

Yet again I am blown away by a Brontë sister’s novel and left feeling in love with a true tale of triumph over adversity. Jane Eyre has an awful childhood. She is treated terribly by a woman who promised Jane’s Uncle on his deathbed that she would treat the young orphan child as one of her own. Jane is eventually cast out by her Aunt and sent to a school where the pupils are half starved and beaten regularly. Jane has an unbreakable spirit and enduring character which carries her through the hard times. She grows up and leaves the school to become a governess for a young French girl who is the ward of Mr Rochester. A romance grows between Jane and Mr Rochester but there is a dark secret in Thornfield Hall that is set to cause a whole heap of trouble for Jane and she must make difficult decisions. Charlotte Brontë was the sister of Emily Brontë who wrote Wuthering Heights another exceptional novel. Charlotte also wrote the novels Villette and The Professor (posthumously) and some poetry. I love that this book is written in the first person so it is like Jane is telling us an account of her life. She even refers to the reader as “reader" which is brilliant. It almost makes you feel like she wrote a long letter to you. Jane is a strong character and a good role model. She is constantly being referred to as plain but she never lets that upset her as she knows that beauty is unimportant in life. How right she was. Mr Rochester is a strange character. You can never tell if he is serious or not but Jane gives him as good as he gets. He calls her a witch but later in an affectionate way. This novel reminded me of how lucky we are these days not to have the hardships of back then. How people were treated terribly and according to their wealth and status. But the love that blossoms also reminded me that whether you are rich or poor true love will not discriminate. If like me you are a romantic you should love this charming story. Jane Eyre is a worthy heroine to aspire to and you will enjoy her spirit and tenacity. Once again I find myself thinking often of the characters in my everyday life with a smile on my face as I did for quite a while after reading Wuthering Heights.

I won't go into whys and wherefores as to how I ended up reading this book. Suffice to say that I am wary of when a book is touted as a classic for all kinds of reasons. I have to say, however, that this truly has turned out to be one of the best novels I have ever read. My God Charlotte Bronte could create characters of real depth! I found myself savouring this book as I read and realised, finally, why people are so in love with this book and the author herself. Charlotte Bronte is one of the few writers I actually wish I could meet and talk to in the flesh, an impossibility given she has long since died. Jane Eyre is a person who, actually were she to take on flesh and bone, I would genuinely like to talk to. You should read this book not simply because it is a classic but because it will actually teach you something about how life itself operated back then and, obviously to a lesser extent, give you an insight into the people around you today. What a great book!

What can I say... How fresh was the literature?? How descriptive was the text?? How exhilarating was the build up?? The hunger I experienced for more insight into this story always seemed to take over me. My boss constantly had to tell me to put down the book, which was hilarious as well as annoying at times. I personally adored the language. Her description of Janes love for Mr Rochester was brill, Bronte descriptiveness set the scene, really brought the characters alive, it made me feel as though I was present in there mist and I had personally knew them! The language at times caught me off guard, i found myself at times employing the use of a dictionary in aid of definition for old fashion words, and translation of the seldom used french. (one can urge the selfishness in Bronte's use of French! Universally not everyone has time to translate the language.. Bronte could have enlisted Jane for translation to the reader) On that note I love Bronte's personal reference to the reader throughout the novel I believe this was used in order to engage the reader repeatedly. I appreciated the grammar and language used as opposed to modern language. There is something much more captivating in old literature. It should be celebrated!! In regards to Jane being viewed as a strong women, I don't know how I feel about that. Yes her childhood was distorted and her story is quite harsh for the average female. However the majority of this story takes place in her adolescent years. Althouh I do praise her as an individual: she was strong minded, outspoken at times, truthful. She had a sense of pride in her which I though was beautiful and she respected herself, independent, and was not afraid of new circumstances and new challenges. She is not prepared to settle for less even though she was not always wealthy. I know it was her ruff lifestyle as a child that moulded her charateristics. It us fair to say she has role model features as a young lady. One can certainly learn and gain from the life if Miss Erye. Lol! At times I'd find myself eager to jump in the book to help Jane!! When you find ur whole being frustrated at characters: that is evidence of the writer's excellence. Well done Bronte!!! I will go and find the film which came out a while ago and compare and contrast!!

What can you say about a classic book...read it many times but this copy is for my granddaughter.

I read Jane Eyre quite by accident. Many years ago i watched a period drama on television, and 2 weeks ago i thought i would finally read the book, so imagine my surprise when the book didnt tally with what i had seen on screen. It later came to me that what i had actually watched was Emma, by Jane Austen, but by the time i discovered my faux pas, i was so into Jane Eyre that i did not care one iota. I was hooked from the first chapter, and enchanted by this poor creature who was enduring so much mental and physical torture, who was unloved, unwanted and alone. As the story progresses we see Jane mature from a young rebellious thing to a fine, upstanding, sweet natured woman, who is headstrong and determined, and completely selfless. Narrated in the first person, Bronte's writing instantly draws the reader into the story, compelling us to read another chapter, and another, without much respite. I found the book incredibly hard to put down. The way the story unfolds is mesmerising, and it is so intelligently written and absorbing; i often found myself musing over the previously read chapters when i did eventually put the book down for a rest. The last two chapters had me in tears, literally; i was reading the final chapters while sat in my garden, sunglasses on, though when the tears began to fall, i had to remove them because tears just fell onto the plastic lenses, and then they fell onto the very pages which bought those tears on. I rarely get this emotional when reading, and i am quite sure i have never shed so many tears over any book until now. Jane is such a likeable character and i am sure most readers identify with her, even today, some 180 years since its first publication, her situation and predicaments are something we all experience in our lives at some point. Ten years ago i would not even have attempted to read such a book, i would have dismissed it as some pretentious, Victorian Gothic drivel, as boring as watching paint dry, but let me tell you, it is so beautifully written, so enchanting, and so easy to read; do not think for one second that it is complicated because it is not; the poetic way Charlotte writes will mesmerise you. It is no wonder that this story has stood the test of time, and i am sure that in another 180 years time this fine example of english literature will have its fans as much as it does today. Read Jane Eyre, i urge you, you will not regret it!

I last read Jane Eyre many many years ago as a young teenager, having fallen in love with the film starring Orson Welles, so thought it time to read the book again from a much older perspective. Although I found it heavy going at times, the central love story between Jane and Mr. Rochester is as riveting as ever. Their gentle teasing of one another really made me smile. It's difficult at times to get to grips with the 19th century prose (he "unclosed" the door}? Also I came across many unfamiliar words which I assume have gone out of general use. Perhaps there were one or two convenient coincidences in the story, but none of this detracts from the powerful attraction the reader feels between Jane and Rochester and the longing for them to be reunited. This is a true classic that will forever stand the test of time, but is not light reading and needs the concentration it deserves.

Good buy. Good quality.