novelideea's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
4.75
pandora_22's review against another edition
3.0
I LOVE HOW ARNOLD BENNETT HAS DEVELOPED THE CHARACTERS.
Especially the way he shows the father-daughter relationship... IT WOULD BE MORE BETTER TO SAY THAT I LOVED THE CHARACTERS MORE THAN THE STORY ITSELF.
PERHAPS I DIDN'T LIKE THE DRAMATIC END
Especially the way he shows the father-daughter relationship... IT WOULD BE MORE BETTER TO SAY THAT I LOVED THE CHARACTERS MORE THAN THE STORY ITSELF.
PERHAPS I DIDN'T LIKE THE DRAMATIC END
bobsamson's review against another edition
emotional
informative
reflective
relaxing
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
beautyistruth's review against another edition
4.0
What an austerely beautiful novel. It took me back to reading D.H. Lawrence and Virginia Woolf as a teen (same era and same country). It moved me and made me cry and it horrified me emotionally a little. I wouldn't say it's a masterpiece by any means - it is ordinary - but, gentle and easy to read, it worked for me for obscure reasons. Probably because it is subtle, and real, and sad.
Set in a small town of the Staffordshire Potteries at the turn of the nineteenth century, Anna, the main character is the daughter of a rich miser. She keeps house for him along with her little sister Agnes and is courted by a popular local businessman, Mr Mynors. There is even a trip to the Isle of Man with the more socially sophisticated Suttons. This is the story of Anna's coming of age and finding her place in the world - from religious belief to the clothes she needs for society - or more gravely, to the money she inherits and of how her father's hard-headed business practices negatively affect a tenant businessman and his son, and of Anna's relations with them since it is actually her money that has been invested in them.
Set in a small town of the Staffordshire Potteries at the turn of the nineteenth century, Anna, the main character is the daughter of a rich miser. She keeps house for him along with her little sister Agnes and is courted by a popular local businessman, Mr Mynors. There is even a trip to the Isle of Man with the more socially sophisticated Suttons. This is the story of Anna's coming of age and finding her place in the world - from religious belief to the clothes she needs for society - or more gravely, to the money she inherits and of how her father's hard-headed business practices negatively affect a tenant businessman and his son, and of Anna's relations with them since it is actually her money that has been invested in them.
anonblueberry's review against another edition
4.0
I wasn't expecting to enjoy this as much as I did, given it had been consigned to the shelf of "university texts that I will get around to reading one of these days" (it's an ongoing project).
But yeah, it was an enjoyable read with believable characters. I did want to slap Anna occasionally though.
But yeah, it was an enjoyable read with believable characters. I did want to slap Anna occasionally though.
polyhy_14's review against another edition
4.0
Ephraim Tellwright is the landlord from hell. Rich but miserly, he keeps his tenants in squalor while extorting rent which they can't pay. He is equally tyrannical with his two motherless daughters. When his older daughter Anna turns 21, she comes into money of her own and her father insists on her taking over some of his business while still keeping a tight rein on how she conducts it. One day, she commits an act of defiance.
Like most authors of the classics, Arnold Bennett is equally at home in the sensate and intuitive worlds. He paints a vivid picture of the grime and squalor of industrial England in the late 19th century, contrasting it with rare flashes of beauty as seen in a night sky, glimpsed through a factory window or in the natural beauty and freshness of the Isle of Man. His characters engaged me from the opening page. Against the backdrop of Wesleyan Revivalism, his narrative creates a powerful sense of impending doom. However, at only 174 pages, I felt that he didn't allow enough time to develop the relationship between Anna and her two suitors, and after the preceding tensions, the ending was so abrupt that it lost much of its emotional impact. I would still recommend it for the beauty of its writing.
Like most authors of the classics, Arnold Bennett is equally at home in the sensate and intuitive worlds. He paints a vivid picture of the grime and squalor of industrial England in the late 19th century, contrasting it with rare flashes of beauty as seen in a night sky, glimpsed through a factory window or in the natural beauty and freshness of the Isle of Man. His characters engaged me from the opening page. Against the backdrop of Wesleyan Revivalism, his narrative creates a powerful sense of impending doom. However, at only 174 pages, I felt that he didn't allow enough time to develop the relationship between Anna and her two suitors, and after the preceding tensions, the ending was so abrupt that it lost much of its emotional impact. I would still recommend it for the beauty of its writing.
threeheadedinternet's review against another edition
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
4.0
sadiezm's review against another edition
relaxing
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
bucherca49's review against another edition
4.0
A realist novelist of the early 20th century, Bennett tells the story of a young woman struggling to know herself and to act on what she thinks is the right thing to do, despite the views of her miserly father, who seems to care only for storing up money. The "Five Towns" are located in the Staffordshire area of the West Midlands.
austen_to_zafon's review against another edition
4.0
This is probably not everyone's cup of tea, but I thoroughly enjoyed it. Like the English sensibility of the turn of the century, the characters of this story are repressed and understated, religious and mindful of duty, prone to needless suffering. But it's such a detailed picture of the time and the place (The Potteries in Staffordshire, which were all about making mid-priced dishes for the average English household), I found it fascinating and read it in one day. I look forward to his other, more popular and lighter-hearted stories.