The Brontë Sisters
It is striking to contemplate that an awesome, singular, irreproducible wave of literature that would sweep the world for two centuries began in a parsonage in remote Yorkshire, England. The Brontë sisters and, to a lesser subsidiary extent, their older brother Branwell worked hard and professionally at making childhood dreams and fantasies become real in the fields of fiction and poetry.
Charlotte (1816-1855), Emily (1818-1848) , and Anne (1820-1849) are responsible for seven finished novels and a fair scattering of poetry. Each novel has grown in critical estimation with the passing years. Each novel is acknowledged by both fellow writers and generations of critics as strange, powerful, textured, dense, and simultaneously of their time and ahead of their time. Each sister has her distinctive voice, each her reader-partisans, and yet the feeling of a family of voices and thoughts and concerns is strong.
A legacy of influence is mysteriously vague in later literature — perhaps Thomas Hardy? But just say the phrase “the madwoman in the attic” or breathe one name, “Cathy . . .” — and you have the staying power of their creations.
I have included some associated fiction, including a mystery series with the sisters as the detectives and a notable Young Adult novel. I will be alert to adding other material as I discover it. Enjoy!
Jane Eyre [Word Cloud edition]
Jane Eyre [Word Cloud edition]
When Jane Eyre was first published in 1847, it became an instant bestseller, so popular that the publisher commissioned a second printing in just three months. The story of a young girl–plain, poor, and alone–who endures abuse, abandonment, and ridicule only to become a loving, compassionate young woman of great moral character remains Charlotte Brontë’s greatest achievement. Now available as part of the Word Cloud Classics series, Jane Eyre is a must-have addition to the libraries of all classic literature lovers.
All Word Cloud editions have a leatherette binding.