Agnes Grey was the debut novel of Anne Bronte, first published in 1847, and republished in a second edition in 1850. When her father falls into debt, Agnes takes up work as a governess for the English gentry, despite the misgivings of her family, and the story thus follows her experiences. The novel is inspired … Continue reading Reflections on a classic: Agnes Grey by Anne Bronte
English Literature
Sunday Splendour – Alice: Curiouser and Curiouser
Alice: Curiouser and Curiouser... About the Book: Lewis Carroll's Alice in Wonderland is a cultural phenomenon. First published in 1865, it has never been out of print and has been translated into 170 languages. But why does it have such enduring and universal appeal for both adults and children? This book explores the global impact … Continue reading Sunday Splendour – Alice: Curiouser and Curiouser
#TheClassicsEight: Revisiting Jane Austen’s Emma
‘Vanity working on a weak head, produces every sort of mischief.’ I first read Emma in my early 20s (I'm now in my early 40s) about the time that the Gwenyth Paltrow adaptation came out. That period in the late 1990s saw quite a few classic adaptations, in particular the novels of Austen, Dickens, and … Continue reading #TheClassicsEight: Revisiting Jane Austen’s Emma
The Classics Eight: Macbeth by William Shakespeare
My daughter recently had to study Macbeth for year 12 senior English, as I had done twenty-five years ago. The assessment itself was essentially unchanged: a monologue presentation followed by an exam. Macbeth is my favourite of all Shakespeare's works so I was more than happy to revisit the play as a means of helping … Continue reading The Classics Eight: Macbeth by William Shakespeare
New Release Book Review: Nine Lessons by Nicola Upson
Nine Lessons: The Seventh Josephine Tey Mystery... About: Josephine Tey is in Cambridge, a town gripped by fear and suspicion as a serial rapist stalks the streets, and in the shadow of King's College Chapel, Detective Chief Inspector Archie Penrose faces some of the most horrific and audacious murders of his career. The seventh novel … Continue reading New Release Book Review: Nine Lessons by Nicola Upson
Quick Shots Book Review: Bodies of Light and Signs for Lost Children by Sarah Moss
Bodies of Light and Signs for Lost Children... About: Bodies of Light Bodies of Light is a deeply poignant tale of a psychologically tumultuous nineteenth century upbringing set in the atmospheric world of Pre-Raphaelitism and the early suffrage movement. Ally is intelligent, studious and engaged in an eternal - and losing - battle to gain … Continue reading Quick Shots Book Review: Bodies of Light and Signs for Lost Children by Sarah Moss
My Reading Life: Tess of the D’Urbervilles by Thomas Hardy
As much as I like an uplifting story that makes you feel all warm inside, my greatest love is literature that moves me. Novels filled with beautiful prose and vivid imagery that lean towards the tragic more than the happy. In other words, novels that make me cry. Tess of the D'Urbervilles by Thomas … Continue reading My Reading Life: Tess of the D’Urbervilles by Thomas Hardy
My Reading Life: Great Expectations by Charles Dickens
It's back to the classics again this week for My Reading Life and I'm casting the spotlight onto my favourite English literature novel: Great Expectations (1860-1861) by Charles Dickens. I first came to Great Expectations in Year 12 at high school when I selected it as my classic text for my senior English … Continue reading My Reading Life: Great Expectations by Charles Dickens
Theresa Smith Writes 