| Cranford |  | Author: Elizabeth Cleghorn Gaskell
Publisher: Blue Unicorn Editions
Category: Book
This item is no longer available
Avg. Customer Rating:  24 reviews
Sales Rank: 6307849
Media: Paperback
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 192
ISBN: 1583965696
EAN: 9781583965696
ASIN: 1583965696
Publication Date: July 2002
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Product Description
In this witty and poignant comedy of early-Victorian life in a country town, Elizabeth Gaskell describes the uneventful lives of the lady-like inhabitants so as to offer an ironic commentary on the diverse experiences of men and women. This edition has detailed notes and a new introduction which discusses the originality and subtlety of the book's angle on women's experience. Also included in this edition is the sequel to Cranford, The Cage at Cranford, and a unique appendix of related writing.
Download Description
In this classic portrait of life in a quiet English village of the early nineteenth century, Elizabeth Gaskell writes with wit and affection of the foibles, follies and endearing eccentricities of its occupants as they struggle to maintain standards in their genteel poverty. This witty and poignant comedy, with its ironic observations on the pretensions of class is told through the eyes of a young woman who befriends the elderly ladies of Cranford.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 19 more reviews...
Come to Cranford... July 26, 2008
Elizabeth Gaskell's 1853 novel "Cranford" is a subtle and often sly portrait of life in a fictional mid-19th century rural English village. At the center of the novel is a circle of spinster and widowed females who wrestle mightily with the challenges of lives of genteel poverty. On its surface, "Cranford" is a comedy of manners, but its episodes have surprising and often moving depth.
"Cranford" was originally published as a series of short stories, all narrated by Miss Mary Smith, a frequent visitor to the village and the young friend of its leading spinster ladies Miss Deborah and Miss Matty Jenkyns. The chapters are therefore not quite chronological in the telling; characters overlap but plot lines appear, disappear, and sometimes reappear.
The narrative works through the relationships of the circle of women, as they deal with births and deaths, marriages, questions of fashion and manners, and such mundane events as a traveling magic show and a bank failure. Men are suffered to live in Cranford, but it seems that it is the women who actually arrange everything important in the village. The reader cannot help but be drawn into their lives through Gaskell's authentic dialogue and superb sense of place.
"Cranford" was the basis for a Masterpiece Theater mini-series in the Spring of 2008, and is well worth reading on its own for its sympathetic portrait of a lifestyle now a distant memory. This Penguin addition includes an informative introduction by Patricia Ingram, extensive notes on 19th century customs, and a final chapter on Cranford written by Gaskell years after the original series.
 A gentle look at Victorian life in a small village July 7, 2008
4 out of 4 found this review helpful
In the last few years or so, I've been noting a resurgence of a writer who was very popular in nineteenth century England. Not quite as famous as Charles Dickens or Anthony Trollope, Elizabeth Gaskell did find a niche writing about everyday people in the small towns and villages that dotted England's landscape.
Cranford is a slim collection of vignettes. Each little story explores a person, a gathering, or an incident in the past or present. Some are humourous, others are very poignant, and some just look at the life and manners of the time. In specific, to one particular group in the village.
For Cranford, as we are told in the opening sentence, is a place that is governed by Amazons. The Amazons are a group of elderly spinsters or widows who have fallen into genteel poverty, supported by meager savings left from legacies and inheritances. As a group, they inhabit nearly all of the homes of Cranford, deciding on questions of taste and morality, the correct behavior of servants, managing gardens, discretion in clothing and so forth. And where are the men, you might ask? Nearly all of them have fled, it seems -- to the military, to the navy, to the nearby city of Dumble (a stand-in for Manchester), frightened off, no doubt, by the formidable array of feminity before them.
As the 'leaders,' there are the two daughters of the former vicar of the town. Miss Jenkyns and her younger sister Miss Matty, have risen to a level of respectability in the community, leading their little bevy of companion in acts of charity, mourning, welcoming (and shunning) strangers, and even to such details as what is to be considered suitable literature. When we first meet them, the town has been sent into turmoil by the arrival of a retired military man with two daughters -- and he has the temerity to actually suggest books to Miss Jenkyns. Horrors!
But there is more to the story, and as the nameless narrator leads us through the various members of the village, there are stories that are humourous, such as when a string of burglaries occurs, or when a traveling magician arrives. Other stories are very poignant, such as Miss Matty and a collection of old letters, or when a bank in Dumble defaults and one person's savings are wiped out.
What makes this collection stand out is the level of compassion between the various women as their little world is shaken up by the encroaching Industrial Age, and their somewhat stubborn intent on keeping their village just the way it is. And underneath some of the bristly exteriors, there are acts of selflessness and care that they extend to each other. This and the humour that the author brought to each story, was what made the book for me.
I really don't want to reveal much more of the book as not to spoil it for anyone. The collection itself is rather slim, just sixteen stories of about twenty pages long. Along with the stories, there are extensive notes that have been added by Patricia Ingham, which really do help to understand the terms and usage of the language, and help to clear up some very unfamiliar terms.
All in all, a very enjoyable read that is much lighter in tone than most Victorian fiction. Great fun to read, and to sigh over as well.
Four stars. Recommended.
Cranford (Penguin Classics) June 25, 2008
Cranford (Penguin Classics)I bought this book after having seen the Masterpiece production of it. The book is unique in that it is a novel set in the mid 1800s and comes complete with appendices explaining the words and references to people and events used throughout the book. It was very historically educational in addition to being a very interesting and well written novel. I very much recommend the book and I will be reading more by Patricia Gaskell
Cranford -- merely one of many June 16, 2008
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
It's true that the novel "Cranford" doesn't mirror the recent Masterpiece dramatization, however this is because the adaptation was based on a series of Mrs. Gaskell's works, of which "Cranford" is only one. The others are "Mr. Harrison's Confessions", "My Lady Ludlow" and "The Last Generation in England". Taken together, all four give a complete -and more familiar- portrait of the delightful village we saw televised. I recommend each of them highly.
 Cranford - Different than the PBS Mini-series June 16, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
For those expecting the book and PBS Mini-series of the same name to mirror each other, your expectations will probably fall short. Although the book is very well written, it is definitely not light reading, and requires a great degree of concentration to understand the ins and outs of the plot - the characters are intertwined, but it is sometimes hard to remember how they relate to one another.
Overall, this book is a good, classical tale, but not recommended for bedtime reading! Strong coffee and concentration is needed!
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