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jayrinehart's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
mysteriesofmar's review against another edition
5.0
one of the best books i've read in what feels like forever. unpredictable, dramatic, and thrilling!
mondovertigo's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Content Warnings
Moderate: Alcoholism, Death, Emotional abuse, Miscarriage, Misogyny, and Death of parent
Minor: Animal death and Child death
charlottemarston's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
4.0
Very of it's time, did enjoy the start
adelevarley's review against another edition
1.0
The Mayor of Casterbridge is the dullest book I have ever read, and you’re talking to the person who’s been reading [b:Les Misérables|24280|Les Misérables|Victor Hugo|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1411852091l/24280._SY75_.jpg|3208463] through 3 US presidencies. [I did start in 7th grade, which probably explains why I couldn’t finish it earlier]. However, at least Les Mis is written well. I like to think that I know what good literature sounds like, even though I am not a literary critic. It requires talent to create dialogue and an interesting world that draws readers in. I like to think that every “classic” author writes in this aforementioned talent, but not all classic authors are created equal.
Thomas Hardy’s The Mayor of Casterbridge is the worst book I have read in a long, long time. He should have written a paper about modernism instead of writing this horrible book that I snored through for the sake of my AP English class.
First of all, Hardy’s heavy handed symbolism fell short for me. The actual story is really just a subplot to all of these *themes* that I’m supposed to be getting out of the novel. All of the characters were flat because in the end their character development was secondary to the messages that Hardy wanted to convey. Thus, I felt like I couldn’t care about any of his characters because Hardy didn’t care about them himself. Despite this, I really tried to enjoy this story. I tried to enjoy the symbolism instead of the plot. But honestly? The way that Hardy wrote this I couldn’t care less about any facet of the novel. I hated Henchard, for a good reason (HE SOLD HIS WIFE???), but even Elizabeth-Jane, who I knew I was supposed to root for, was only the best character by default. Elizabeth Bennet is a far better Elizabeth! Hardy’s character development kept me uninterested, and essentially erased my reception of any symbolic messaging that he meant to impart to me.
As I sort of mentioned earlier, classic novels are pretty hit or miss for me. I gave [b:Jane Eyre|10210|Jane Eyre|Charlotte Brontë|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1557343311l/10210._SY75_.jpg|2977639] 2 stars because it was quite tedious, but even that had exciting twists and turns. [BERTHA MASON?!?!] In the first 140 pages, Hardy gave me virtually nothing to want me to keep reading. [At least Jane Eyre had Helen]. These horrible chapters passed by at a slow monotonous pace. The plot started to pick up halfway through the novel. These events, while different and somewhat exciting, made me annoyed and upset at almost all of the characters. (No spoilers though! Even though this book is like 7 times older than I am). This is probably what Hardy wanted, but that doesn’t mean I like it. Even with all of the drama going on in the book, I still found myself staring wistfully off in the distance while reading it, hoping that it would evaporate from my hands and I would have an excuse not to read any more.
All of that negativity being said, there were some parts of the book that I did enjoy. And by some parts, I mean that Hardy came up with some pretty good one-liners. My favorite part of the whole book was after the skimmity ride, when the townspeople hid a tambourine in an oven. This takes up about two sentences of the book, and while it was hilarious I simply cannot recommend this novel just because of some sentences at the end of Chapter 39.
Despite the funny bits, (which are few and far between), every night after I came back from school I dreaded reading this. I couldn’t read for more than two sentences before wanting to throw the book across the room. My mom told me that I needed to finish the book quickly, because she is tired of hearing me complain about how bored I am. Basically, all this goes to say that I do not like this book, and I don’t like Hardy’s style of writing. I will make a mental note to avoid reading anything else by him in the future.
Does this review sound like I didn’t give this book a fair chance? Sure. But Thomas Hardy most likely had the chance to write something better, and he didn’t. So whose fault is it really?
Bottom Line: I would have DNF’d this book if I didn’t have to read it for school. It’s kind of the worst, and I am very sorry if you are forced to read it. 1.5 miserable modernist stars!
Thomas Hardy’s The Mayor of Casterbridge is the worst book I have read in a long, long time. He should have written a paper about modernism instead of writing this horrible book that I snored through for the sake of my AP English class.
First of all, Hardy’s heavy handed symbolism fell short for me. The actual story is really just a subplot to all of these *themes* that I’m supposed to be getting out of the novel. All of the characters were flat because in the end their character development was secondary to the messages that Hardy wanted to convey. Thus, I felt like I couldn’t care about any of his characters because Hardy didn’t care about them himself. Despite this, I really tried to enjoy this story. I tried to enjoy the symbolism instead of the plot. But honestly? The way that Hardy wrote this I couldn’t care less about any facet of the novel. I hated Henchard, for a good reason (HE SOLD HIS WIFE???), but even Elizabeth-Jane, who I knew I was supposed to root for, was only the best character by default. Elizabeth Bennet is a far better Elizabeth! Hardy’s character development kept me uninterested, and essentially erased my reception of any symbolic messaging that he meant to impart to me.
As I sort of mentioned earlier, classic novels are pretty hit or miss for me. I gave [b:Jane Eyre|10210|Jane Eyre|Charlotte Brontë|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1557343311l/10210._SY75_.jpg|2977639] 2 stars because it was quite tedious, but even that had exciting twists and turns. [BERTHA MASON?!?!] In the first 140 pages, Hardy gave me virtually nothing to want me to keep reading. [At least Jane Eyre had Helen]. These horrible chapters passed by at a slow monotonous pace. The plot started to pick up halfway through the novel. These events, while different and somewhat exciting, made me annoyed and upset at almost all of the characters. (No spoilers though! Even though this book is like 7 times older than I am). This is probably what Hardy wanted, but that doesn’t mean I like it. Even with all of the drama going on in the book, I still found myself staring wistfully off in the distance while reading it, hoping that it would evaporate from my hands and I would have an excuse not to read any more.
All of that negativity being said, there were some parts of the book that I did enjoy. And by some parts, I mean that Hardy came up with some pretty good one-liners. My favorite part of the whole book was after the skimmity ride, when the townspeople hid a tambourine in an oven. This takes up about two sentences of the book, and while it was hilarious I simply cannot recommend this novel just because of some sentences at the end of Chapter 39.
Despite the funny bits, (which are few and far between), every night after I came back from school I dreaded reading this. I couldn’t read for more than two sentences before wanting to throw the book across the room. My mom told me that I needed to finish the book quickly, because she is tired of hearing me complain about how bored I am. Basically, all this goes to say that I do not like this book, and I don’t like Hardy’s style of writing. I will make a mental note to avoid reading anything else by him in the future.
Does this review sound like I didn’t give this book a fair chance? Sure. But Thomas Hardy most likely had the chance to write something better, and he didn’t. So whose fault is it really?
Bottom Line: I would have DNF’d this book if I didn’t have to read it for school. It’s kind of the worst, and I am very sorry if you are forced to read it. 1.5 miserable modernist stars!
rileyclark25's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
such an amazing classic with such good charcater development!
hjswinford's review against another edition
2.0
blah. maybe it's one of those that I need to give another read now that I am older. I just never could get into this one. I began it four or five times before I was even able to get past the first few pages.
iriswindmeijer's review against another edition
4.0
A really good book, my first book from that era that I've read and I loved it.
bellaruffell's review against another edition
challenging
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5