[.ca] Wives and Daughters (ISBN 1404340068)

Thoroughly engaging but not quite a masterpiece:
I stayed up many late nights because this book is so engrossing. The storytelling, the pace, the characters, the intrigue all kept me up late, even when I had early morning meetings. Gaskell has a simple and eloquent writing style as well as a wonderful story to tell. She does a sublime job of populating a village with memorable and distinct characters. The story centers around the Gibson family, first Molly and her father, gifted surgeon Dr. Gibson. Eventually Mr. Gibson realizes that Molly needs a mother to guide through her "young womanhood," and so he marries the superficial, exceedingly self-centered, but ultimately harmless Hyacinth Kirkpatrick. The new Mrs. Gibson brings with her her breathtaking beautiful but troubled daughter Cynthia (anagram). Along with this family, we follow the Hamleys with their rich past and future which is inextricably linked with the Gibson's -- Molly's especially. While the author patiently delineates all her characters, I agree with an earlier post that said she could have benefitted from a great editor. Some of her observations ARE redundant. How many descriptions do we really need about Molly's goodness, Mrs. Gibson's selfishness, Cynthia's beauty, etc.? Moreover, contrary to what Gaskell intends, I think the true heroine in the story is Cynthia. Cynthia is both selfish and kind, witty and naive, winning and annoying, pitiful and enviable -- in essence, she's a fully characterized, complex human being. Molly, who is so wondefully patient and good and sweet and caring and loving, is a shell of a girl compared to Cynthia. There are no shades to Molly. Why the intended heroine of the story lacks dimension is beyond me. Nearly every other character is allowed contrarian thoughts and feelings, whereas Molly occasionally borders on peevishness or impatience only to retreat back to docility. Having said that much, I did enjoy the book immensely and was more than a little disappointed that Gaskell's untimely death forever suspends Molly and Roger in a state of unfulfilled love. Yes, my imagination can provide the ending easily but I would have loved to have read Gaskell's exquisite conclusion. I would not put Elizabeth Gaskell in the same league with Jane Austen or George Eliot. Although, I think Gaskell's story has more immediate social relevance than Austen, her writing is simply not as good. For one, Austen's dialogue is incomparable. Austen's social commentary is so intertwined with her characters that you hardly perceive the narrator. She speaks through her creations. Gaskell's personal beliefs leaks through. George Eliot is in a class of her own; her writing is so subtle yet powerful you don't realize how great she is until the end when you put down Middlemarch and are in awe. Her characters, the village, the story is so richly textured that few novels even approach Middlemarch to be considered a masterpiece.

A tale well told...:
Enchanting books, full of romance, intrigues, and gossip. A wonderful example of an old English society and the partitions and biases built into each social class. I would suggest this as a great book to read, and a resource on social structure and etiquette for historians.

Wives and Daughters:
I loved this book. I didn't know until the end that it was unfinished by the author. But that made it that much more special. If you like period pieces, you'll love this book!

One of the best books I've read...:
I am a huge Jane Austen fan, and this book is the closest and best book to her writing that I have found- and believe me I have read a lot from this genre. I have to admit, I saw the television mini-series before I read the book, but once I started the book I finished in a matter of two or three days, and it is a long book! Especially when you know there is no ending! I really cannot praise this book enough, it is a sweet, simple story about the girl whose worth is overlooked, and of course discovered in time.

Editor's neglect leaves a bit of a mess for reader:
If "Wives and Daughters" was made into a college drinking game, the young men and women playing the game would soon be drunk if they took shots every time the phrase "tete-a-tete" appeared or every time Molly Gibson's eyes brimmed with tears. Those are the more annoying redundancies, but there are others. In addition, there are frequent inconsistancies of dates, facts and figures which led me to believe that this book was truly a first draft left untouched by any editor out of some sort of respect for the deceased author. My final complaint is that the story rambles in so many spots that I had to skim in order to get to the meat of the story. Enough of my complaints. Now praise: I think I have not found another book that leaves so full an impression of the personalities for each main character. Namely, Cynthia and her mother, Mrs. Gibson, are so well done - they are unlikable, selfish women with so many faults and annoying tendancies. Yet, they do not grate against the reader. In fact, I found events that revolved around either women very fascinating and Ms. Gaskell's skill in demonstrating their manipulative, coy ways was very adept. The book was not finished, due to Ms. Gaskell's untimely death, but we are satisfied with how we assume the story will end. One must truly have patience to read through this, sorting out the gems. I think with a good editing job, this novel could have been fantastic.