kcw98's review against another edition
4.0
I also read this one for my George Eliot class. I liked it enough but it was SO long and slow and it took me hundreds of pages to actually get into it! But that’s okay because once I did get into it then I really did enjoy it. I loved analyzing Rosamond’s character alongside Hetty’s character (from Adam Bede) for my final essay. And I also loved talking about this book with my Papa Ken since he read it, too!
zcsforbes's review against another edition
got 200 pages through wrote an essay on it and called it a day
i couldn't do a bleak house again
i couldn't do a bleak house again
canadajanes's review against another edition
4.0
Pretty good for something written in the 1870s! I was surprised at how much I enjoyed it.
teachingkids1982's review against another edition
5.0
What a great read!!! I’m so glad I finally read this classic!!!
hesskenn's review against another edition
4.0
I love this story, following the lives of the inhabitants of Middlemarch. Now maybe it is because I typically read before going to bed, but even at high points of the story I had a hard time keeping my eyes open.
jenniferkey's review against another edition
emotional
inspiring
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
An utterly wonderful novel. Heartbreaking, beautiful, redemptive, devastating, romantic. The characters are so incredibly real, the narration is filled with profound observations. I was deeply, deeply moved.
mrears0_0's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
adult
glamdemon2004's review against another edition
3.5
Enjoyed but gets .5 taken off because of my bad presentation
burksandcaicos's review against another edition
4.0
Firstly, the pros:
-Kate Reading is a great narrator. She's my second favorite narrator after Moira Quirk, and she really added a Certain Something to this book.
-Rosamond Vincy, who never did a single thing wrong and was also Extremely Right at all times.
-Dorothea doing a bit of Emotional Cheating and also marrying Will after Casaubon wrote in his will that she would lose his fortune.
-COMEDY:
"'Ay, to be sure, there should be a little devil in a woman,' said Mr. Chichely, whose study of the fair sex seemed to have been detrimental to his theology.” (Chapter 10)
"I can't wear my solemnity too often, else it will go to rags." (Chapter 34)
The scene where Mr. Brooke is bullied during his speech. (Chapter 51)
The whole auction scene (Chapter 60)
“Fred had simply snatched up this pretext for speaking, because he could not say, 'You are losing confoundedly, and are making everybody stare at you; you had better come away.'” (Chapter 66)
-ROMANCE:
“The last sentence was spoken with an almost solemn cadence, and Will did not know what to say, since it would not be useful for him to embrace her slippers, and tell her that he would die for her...” (Chapter 22)
The scene where Lydgate kisses Rosamond's tears and they get engaged (Chapter 31)
“Dorothea, he said to himself, was forever enthroned in his soul” (Chapter 47)
“'I have never done you injustice. Please remember me,' said Dorothea, repressing a rising sob.
'Why should you say that?' said Will, with irritation. 'As if I were not in danger of forgetting everything else.'" (Chapter 62)
The scene where Farebrother tells Fred to shape up and be worthy of Mary and it goes: “'I will try to be worthy,' [Fred] said, breaking off before he could say 'of you as well as of her.'" (Chapter 66)
-ROMANTIC COMEDY:
“Will paused, imagining that it would be impossible for Dorothea to misunderstand this; indeed he felt that he was contradicting himself and offending against his self-approval in speaking to her so plainly; but still—it could not be fairly called wooing a woman to tell her that he would never woo her. It must be admitted to be a ghostly kind of wooing.” (Chapter 62)
-MISC
"where is the blameless woman?" (Chapter 24)
"In such a crisis as this, some women begin to hate." (Chapter 42)
“'Do you wish to be settled in any business? What is your calling now?'
'Thank you, my calling is to enjoy myself as much as I can.'" (Chapter 53)
CONS:
-I know it goes without saying in a book from the nineteenth century but the -isms, Jesus Christ.
-MARY SHOULD HAVE MARRIED MR. FAREBROTHER!!! Listen, I liked Mary and Fred from their first scene, I'll admit it. But when we found out that he got Mary's father to cosign on that bill he KNEW he couldn't pay was when it died for me.
-Rosamond Vincy! She never did a single thing wrong and she was also RIGHT they should leave Middlemarch! If they would have, Lydgate would never been caught up in the Bulstrode's foolishness.
-The ending was very abrupt.
I can't remember the other things but I'm sure I will so stay tuned for edits to this review.
Rating... 4.5 maybe.
-Kate Reading is a great narrator. She's my second favorite narrator after Moira Quirk, and she really added a Certain Something to this book.
-Rosamond Vincy, who never did a single thing wrong and was also Extremely Right at all times.
-Dorothea doing a bit of Emotional Cheating and also marrying Will after Casaubon wrote in his will that she would lose his fortune.
-COMEDY:
"'Ay, to be sure, there should be a little devil in a woman,' said Mr. Chichely, whose study of the fair sex seemed to have been detrimental to his theology.” (Chapter 10)
"I can't wear my solemnity too often, else it will go to rags." (Chapter 34)
The scene where Mr. Brooke is bullied during his speech. (Chapter 51)
The whole auction scene (Chapter 60)
“Fred had simply snatched up this pretext for speaking, because he could not say, 'You are losing confoundedly, and are making everybody stare at you; you had better come away.'” (Chapter 66)
-ROMANCE:
“The last sentence was spoken with an almost solemn cadence, and Will did not know what to say, since it would not be useful for him to embrace her slippers, and tell her that he would die for her...” (Chapter 22)
The scene where Lydgate kisses Rosamond's tears and they get engaged (Chapter 31)
“Dorothea, he said to himself, was forever enthroned in his soul” (Chapter 47)
“'I have never done you injustice. Please remember me,' said Dorothea, repressing a rising sob.
'Why should you say that?' said Will, with irritation. 'As if I were not in danger of forgetting everything else.'" (Chapter 62)
The scene where Farebrother tells Fred to shape up and be worthy of Mary and it goes: “'I will try to be worthy,' [Fred] said, breaking off before he could say 'of you as well as of her.'" (Chapter 66)
-ROMANTIC COMEDY:
“Will paused, imagining that it would be impossible for Dorothea to misunderstand this; indeed he felt that he was contradicting himself and offending against his self-approval in speaking to her so plainly; but still—it could not be fairly called wooing a woman to tell her that he would never woo her. It must be admitted to be a ghostly kind of wooing.” (Chapter 62)
-MISC
"where is the blameless woman?" (Chapter 24)
"In such a crisis as this, some women begin to hate." (Chapter 42)
“'Do you wish to be settled in any business? What is your calling now?'
'Thank you, my calling is to enjoy myself as much as I can.'" (Chapter 53)
CONS:
-I know it goes without saying in a book from the nineteenth century but the -isms, Jesus Christ.
-MARY SHOULD HAVE MARRIED MR. FAREBROTHER!!! Listen, I liked Mary and Fred from their first scene, I'll admit it. But when we found out that he got Mary's father to cosign on that bill he KNEW he couldn't pay was when it died for me.
-Rosamond Vincy! She never did a single thing wrong and she was also RIGHT they should leave Middlemarch! If they would have, Lydgate would never been caught up in the Bulstrode's foolishness.
-The ending was very abrupt.
I can't remember the other things but I'm sure I will so stay tuned for edits to this review.
Rating... 4.5 maybe.