Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte

What a brilliant read! I thoroughly enjoyed it from start to finish. Normally a book covering such a wide expanse of years struggles to keep the content so rich and flowing but this classic fulfils this task beautifully. From Jane's troubled and neglected childhood to her growing love and passion for Mr Rochester, the plain girl captures our hearts. Each time I picked up this book I was transported into her world forgetting all my worries and was able to totally absorb myself into the storyline. Not many books do that for me. I found her use of description incredible and could picture so clearly the landscapes, expressions, meals, clothes, colours, smells and rooms she described so articulately.
Even though it was published in 1847, the reader can so easliy relate to the charactor of Jane Eyre which is why I perceive it still to be so popular today. The different themes running through the book provoke much interest, morality, religion, social class, gender relations and even disability are so tenderly approached that they still feel as prominent now as when she wrote them. Jane Eyre tirelessly asserts her position in all the situations she finds herself in and in a male dominated world manages to become a strong and independant woman. Although she finally reunited with Mr Rochester the emphasis is more upon his need for her rather than the other way round and she is with him becasue she hopelessly loves him. In this I found a refreshing change to most love stories, whose main purpse is to demonstrate how the couple simply couldn't live without each other or like that of Heathcliff and Cathering in Wuthering Heights, self destruction commenced when they did not have each other. If I was a little more like the charactor of Jane Eyre I should be proud!

The next book I intend to review is A Study in Scarlet By Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. I am half way through so it should be finished in the next few days. Until next time............