Middlemarch
Complex
Layered
Long winded

Middlemarch

A deluxe Harper Perennial Legacy Edition, with an introduction from Francine Prose, award-winning and New York Times best-selling author of Reading Like a Writer George Eliot’s beloved classic novel—hailed by Virginia Woolf as “masterful”—follows the life, loves, foibles, and politics of the residents of a fictional English town set amid the social unrest during the Industrial Revolution. A sprawling work set in a provincial English town, Middlemarch boasts a large cast of characters whose stories interweave against a backdrop of political upheaval. Instead of choosing to wed a wealthy landowner and settle for a comfortable life, Dorothea Brooke decides to marry Edward Casaubon—a dull scholar who is her senior by a few decades. Dorothea hopes the union will afford her with the opportunity to share in her husband’s intellectual pursuits, but even her best efforts can’t save the disastrous marriage. Meanwhile, idealistic doctor Tertius Lydgate has progressive ideas about the medical field, and he believes the village of Middlemarch is the place that will embrace his beliefs. But when he weds Rosamond Vincy, the mayor’s beautiful daughter, his ideals come into stark contrast with his new bride’s materialism and vanity, dooming their marriage from the start. Lastly, Rosamond's brother, Fred, is reluctantly destined for the Church. But his childhood sweetheart Mary Garth refuses to accept him until he settles into a more suitable career and one that interests him. But when circumstances lead to Fred losing a sizeable fortune that sets off a calamitous turn of events, he must reevaluate the choices he has made. As The Guardian notes, Middlemarch “looms above the mid-Victorian literary landscape like a cathedral of words,” offering readers a pivotal shaping of literary realism. Middlemarch is a masterwork of fiction that is as timely today as when it was first published.
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Reviews

Photo of Gelaine Trinidad
Gelaine Trinidad@gelaine
5 stars
Jul 5, 2024
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Liz@lizetteratura
4 stars
May 23, 2024
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Sean Wilson@seantwilson
4 stars
Mar 25, 2024
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Emma Lechner@emmyofthevalley
4.5 stars
Mar 14, 2024
Layered
Eloquent
Fascinating
Thought provoking
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Sonia Grgas@sg911911
5 stars
Feb 23, 2024
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D.@travelling_bookworm
3 stars
Jan 29, 2024
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Patricia Nelson@tnelson577
5 stars
Aug 23, 2023
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Lou Smith@lavlatte
4 stars
Feb 12, 2023
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Vanya de Lang @vampibish
2 stars
Oct 17, 2022
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Celeste Richardson@cecereadsandsings
2 stars
Aug 11, 2022
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Christopher McCaffery@cmccafe
5 stars
Feb 8, 2022
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Brittney Wilson@brijeanson
4 stars
Jan 28, 2022
Photo of Elizabeth Hisserich
Elizabeth Hisserich@lizhiss
5 stars
Jan 3, 2022
Vivid
Layered
Extraordinary
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Jade Flynn@jadeflynn
5 stars
Nov 20, 2021
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sarah 🤠@sarahsperusals
4 stars
Nov 16, 2021
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Iween Suni@iweennn
4 stars
Nov 8, 2021
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Jeni Enjaian@jenienjaian
3 stars
Oct 30, 2021
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B. K.@bk
3 stars
Oct 29, 2021
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abby donaldson@abbydonaldson
4 stars
Oct 26, 2021
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Meniah@athoughtfulrecord
4 stars
Oct 1, 2021
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Sky@veloskyraptor
5 stars
Aug 28, 2021
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Monica@moni
4 stars
Aug 17, 2021
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Janet Doré@vistacanas
2 stars
Jul 28, 2021
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elle@elleyeah
5 stars
Apr 1, 2024

Highlights

Photo of Zeke Taylor
Zeke Taylor@zt1230
Page 427
Photo of Zeke Taylor
Zeke Taylor@zt1230
Page 387
Photo of Zeke Taylor
Zeke Taylor@zt1230
Page 256
Photo of Zeke Taylor
Zeke Taylor@zt1230
Page 88
Photo of Liv Gliese Johnsen
Liv Gliese Johnsen@livgliese
Page 125
Photo of Liv Gliese Johnsen
Liv Gliese Johnsen@livgliese
Page 104
Photo of Liv Gliese Johnsen
Liv Gliese Johnsen@livgliese
Page 50
Photo of Beatrix
Beatrix@yurtletheturtle
Page 99
Photo of Beatrix
Beatrix@yurtletheturtle
Page 12