#51 Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte
Wuthering Heights is one of those books that I’m shocked I got to twenty-three without reading. After all, it’s popularly read in high 
school, and college English classes (and I was an English major!). I knew that it was past time for me to pick this up.
The novel opens with Mr. Lockwood, who is renting Thrushcross Grange, a house in Yorkshire, from the mysterious Mr. Heathcliff. He goes to visit his new landlord at Wuthering Heights, and is met with nothing but rudeness. When he is forced to spend the night due to poor weather, he finds himself woken by the ghostly appearance of a woman, begging to be let in his window. Terrified, Mr. Lockwood returns to Thrushcross Grange, where the housekeeper Nelly tells him the history of Heathcliff, from his first mysterious appearance at Wuthering Heights, to his childhood friendship with the young Catherine Earnshaw, and how that friendship grew to a dangerous, passionate love.
Wuthering Heights is a very interesting book. From the beginning, I was hooked on its creepy setting, with its ghostly occupants. I found, as a modern reader, that the writing style was still very readable. It rarely lagged and the storyline kept my interest easily from start to finish. One part I struggled with was the love storylines. As a book that’s often lauded as the grandfather of the modern romance, I found myself disappointed by the two initial romantic leads. Catherine is selfish and manipulative, and Heathcliff was downright cruel. Their interactions were certainly passionate, so passionate that it seemed over the top at times, but I found that I couldn’t connect with their self-pity filled relationship. The second romance, between Cathy, and Linton was not much better, as I was constantly rolling my eyes as the immature Linton, who did little more than mope. I found I enjoyed this book the most if I didn’t read it as a romance. Honestly, with all of the doom and gloom, it felt more like a cautionary tale against the kind of passion that Catherine and Heathcliff shared. That could be partially my fault, as I am reading this from a modern perspective, when the book was published in 1847.
I found the protagonist Nelly, to be a much more likeable character, even though she was more a storyteller than an active participant. The audiobook narrator, Juliet Stevenson, did an amazing job at creating distinct voices for the cast of characters, which enhanced my enjoyment even more. Her performance here is really passionate.
In the end, even though I didn’t enjoy this book as much as similar Pride and Prejudice or Jane Eyre, I found it to be a rather good read that I would recommend for fans of similar novels.
Rating: four stars
Length: amazon lists the print version at 400 pages
Source: theaudiolibrary
TBR Pile: 144 books
Similar Books: Pride and Prejudice, Jane Eyre, Villette
Other books I've read by this author: This is Emily Bronte’s only novel
For those interesting. I just started a new audiobook, Pride and Prejudice and Zombies!
xposted to bookish and temporaryworlds
school, and college English classes (and I was an English major!). I knew that it was past time for me to pick this up.
The novel opens with Mr. Lockwood, who is renting Thrushcross Grange, a house in Yorkshire, from the mysterious Mr. Heathcliff. He goes to visit his new landlord at Wuthering Heights, and is met with nothing but rudeness. When he is forced to spend the night due to poor weather, he finds himself woken by the ghostly appearance of a woman, begging to be let in his window. Terrified, Mr. Lockwood returns to Thrushcross Grange, where the housekeeper Nelly tells him the history of Heathcliff, from his first mysterious appearance at Wuthering Heights, to his childhood friendship with the young Catherine Earnshaw, and how that friendship grew to a dangerous, passionate love.
Wuthering Heights is a very interesting book. From the beginning, I was hooked on its creepy setting, with its ghostly occupants. I found, as a modern reader, that the writing style was still very readable. It rarely lagged and the storyline kept my interest easily from start to finish. One part I struggled with was the love storylines. As a book that’s often lauded as the grandfather of the modern romance, I found myself disappointed by the two initial romantic leads. Catherine is selfish and manipulative, and Heathcliff was downright cruel. Their interactions were certainly passionate, so passionate that it seemed over the top at times, but I found that I couldn’t connect with their self-pity filled relationship. The second romance, between Cathy, and Linton was not much better, as I was constantly rolling my eyes as the immature Linton, who did little more than mope. I found I enjoyed this book the most if I didn’t read it as a romance. Honestly, with all of the doom and gloom, it felt more like a cautionary tale against the kind of passion that Catherine and Heathcliff shared. That could be partially my fault, as I am reading this from a modern perspective, when the book was published in 1847.
I found the protagonist Nelly, to be a much more likeable character, even though she was more a storyteller than an active participant. The audiobook narrator, Juliet Stevenson, did an amazing job at creating distinct voices for the cast of characters, which enhanced my enjoyment even more. Her performance here is really passionate.
In the end, even though I didn’t enjoy this book as much as similar Pride and Prejudice or Jane Eyre, I found it to be a rather good read that I would recommend for fans of similar novels.
Rating: four stars
Length: amazon lists the print version at 400 pages
Source: theaudiolibrary
TBR Pile: 144 books
Similar Books: Pride and Prejudice, Jane Eyre, Villette
Other books I've read by this author: This is Emily Bronte’s only novel
For those interesting. I just started a new audiobook, Pride and Prejudice and Zombies!
xposted to bookish and temporaryworlds