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Faves of 2019 #adventrecommends Dec 12

This was another Litsy buddy read, this time with the fabulous #shirlitesunite group. A book that started out slow but won me over with its female characters and their deep, complex conversations with each other, set against the politically-engaged backdrop of the Luddite uprisings in Yorkshire.

@emilyrose_x

So late to the #ShirlitesUnite party, but I‘m glad I finally finished! I'm not the biggest fan of Jane Eyre, so I went in with a bit of trepidation here. It started a bit slowly, and with a very Jane-ish character at the center, but once smart ass, progressive, Shirley comes to town, everything picks up. Shirley is described at one point as the kind of woman you fall in love with a year after meeting her. My kind of girl all the way then.

Thanks to:
💜the #shirlitesunite buddy readers for a great readalong!
💜#TOB for making me read books I might otherwise skip. (And sometime still wish I had - I'm looking at you Overstory. 😬)
💜@thebookhippie for giving me incentive to read a children's lit classic.
💜honest, brave, prose stylists like Ephron, Athill & Wang
💜and Virginia Woolf for being Virginia Woolf

It was a great month of reading!!

I was nervous to tackle this one, but once Shirley and Caroline came into the picture I was completely absorbed. I was drawn into the love stories but also into how the heroines viewed their role in society and how they made their place, overcoming stereotypes of the time. Some of Shirley‘s speeches made me want to stand up and applaud. Not much to add to the other wonderful reviews by fellow buddy readers. #shirlitesunite

I enjoyed this immensely, especially the latter part..the last few hundred pages flew by. In Shirley, Charlotte Bronte gave us an insight into her opinions about varying topics that she was most ardent about. I love the remarkably drawn characters, especially the two heroines; the beautiful language; interesting archaic words and declarations of love; her satirical sense of humour, and even the historical parts..it‘s worth taking the time. ⬇️

Shirley is often referred to as Charlotte Brontë's social novel, & is set in Yorkshire with the Napoleonic Wars & the Luddite uprisings taking place. Initially I found the novel hard to get into because of the 3rd-person narrative; both Jane Eyre & Villette, which are 1st-person narratives, are books that I love quite intensely! But as soon as it delved into the main characters, Shirley & Caroline, I couldn't put this down. 👇🏽 #shirlitesunite

#shirlitesunite A celebratory ☕ of my fave brew having finished another glorious Bronte. I loved the historical context of the battle against creeping industrialisation whilst the napolenic wars rage + port blockades stop trade. Beautifully drawn characters and plot with a sense of place + season that had me totally absorbed.
@Blaire @erzascarletbookgasm @LeahBergen @merelybookish @batsy @mklong @Weaponxgirl @saresmoore @rubyslippersreads

Just finished this chapter where the true identity of a certain person is revealed. I‘m truly invested in the story now, since a few chapters back, compared to the earlier part of the book. #shirlitesunite

Came across this while reading the play and I wonder if Charlotte Brontë's famous "to walk invisible" was inspired by a Shakespearean highway robber. #ShakespeareReadAlong #shirlitesunite

@merelybookish @andrew61 @Blaire @erzascarletbookgasm @LeahBergen @mklong @saresmoore @rubyslippersreads @Weaponxgirl

This turned out to be my favorite of Charlotte Brontë‘s books. She toyed with convention, perspective, and probably what her readers expected. The historical bits weren‘t compelling, but I‘m glad they were there. I think this framework facilitated a greater freedom in her construction and design of the rest of the book. About halfway through, when she really settled into that psychological character study that I know and love, is when I knew... ?