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littletaiko's review against another edition
3.0
Written by a contemporary of hers, this book offers a intimate look at Charlotte's life. It relies heavily on letters to put together the narrative. Learned quite a bit and will probably reference this book when reading Shirley next year.
pixie_d's review
3.0
The official Good Reads description is wrong - Bronte was NOT pregnant. Gaskell coyly insinuated that she was, but it was her illness that was causing the symptoms. Most of the rest of the "biography," I would have to take with the same grain of salt. The reason I said I liked it is that when I read it, I had just done an intensive class on the Brontes in grad school. So any information on Bronte was better than nothing. But modern readers expect more truth in their biographies and more rigor from biographers.
magratajostiernos's review against another edition
5.0
https://cronicasdemagrat.com/2016/11/05/vida-de-charlotte-bronte/
Este libro me ha impresionado mucho más de lo que parecía posible
readingoverbreathing's review against another edition
4.0
"Now there is something touching in the sight of that little creature entombed in such a place, and moving about herself like a spirit, especially when you think that the slight, still frame encloses a force of strong, fiery life, which nothing has been able to freeze or extinguish."
Upon the death of her dear friend, [a:Elizabeth Gaskell|1413437|Elizabeth Gaskell|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1223499865p2/1413437.jpg] was asked to write a biography on fellow novelist [a:Charlotte Brontë|1036615|Charlotte Brontë|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1335001351p2/1036615.jpg], the woman whose books had so widespread an impression on the public, that half the country of Britain spent half a decade trying to learn her identity.
What resulted was a biographical masterpiece, the very first of its kind to be written about a woman by a woman. One hundred fifty years later, Gaskell's outstanding work, written with such careful, thorough, researched detail, still stands as a classic on its own and as a testament to one of the most brilliant minds of the nineteenth century.
This is such a unique read because of the perspective Gaskell really provides, as someone who knew Charlotte quite well. And not only does she offer her own insights, but those of many Charlotte came into contact with, who were always left with a strong impression of "that little creature" as a quiet force of nature.
Though I do think some parts unnecessarily dragged on and on with little purpose, Elizabeth still did a marvelous job in attempting to capture the essence of her friend in a way that no other work ever could.
flamingo_and_owl_books's review against another edition
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
slow-paced
3.0
barbarasg's review against another edition
4.0
This was a very heartfelt and caring biography, which made it pleasant to read. Of course there are some problems because the book was published so shortly after Charlotte's death that most characters mentioned were still alive when it came out. So sometimes Gaskell didn't dare to write very frankly. However, the long intro in this version which explains and adds to those passages makes up for all that, so that the account still seems full and coherent. I really enjoyed this book. Even though Brote's life was quite sad, Gaskell depicts her as such an amiable character that you just have to love and admire her.