Book Review | Rating – 3/5 | Genre – Classic romance
Once again I looked to the pile of unread books from my university days. I was looking to understand why I chose not to read this book so long ago.
So while stuck in lockdown and with the sun shining, I decided it was the best time to pick up this book. Having a day off work meant I could focus my full attention on this classic novel.
Austen’s moving depiction of wild emotions and bitterly suppressed feelings tells the story of two sisters. Through their parallel experience of love – and it’s threatened loss – the two sister learn that the path to happiness is not easy in a society where status and money govern the rules of love. (synopsis from Goodreads)
What did I think?
This is one of those rare moments when I can say that I enjoyed reading a classic book. It took me a while to get into the book; I’m so used to more modern writing styles that I wasn’t quite sure what was happening. I am ashamed to say I had to go to Google to understand the beginning, not helped by the introduction of so many characters so suddenly.
However, once I was into the story I found myself really engaged with the struggles of the characters. I always struggle with the very “old school” social and class system that governs there lives. Yet, I was still able to appreciate how progressive this novel would’ve been at the time it was first published.
Favourite moments…
- Simple yet interesting story: although it took a while to take, I eventually found myself interesting in how the story unfolded. I took particular interest in how things developed for Elinor.
- Elinor’s viewpoint: a lot of the story centres around Marianne, but with a focus on how Elinor views the situation as well. It was these insights that brought story closer to the modern day.
In conclusion…
I did enjoy reading this book, having found particular interest in how the story is told from a more modern perspective than expected. There were lots of characters that made it hard to understand who was who, but once I grasped this I found myself attached to certain ones.
If anything it made me feel more inclined to pick up more classic books in the future.
The Next Big Opinion 