You've never read Great Expectations? That was required reading for us in high school -- I remember liking it a lot (much more than A Tale of Two Cities, though that's probably blasphemy)
That or North and South would be my vote (Margaret was kind of insufferable to me in the miniseries -- not a fan of characters whose flaws aren't really flaws by today's standards -- so I can't imagine how she is in the book, but I know it's supposed to be good. :)
We didn't ever actually have any Dickens on our required reading lists which in hindsight is quite odd. I think I did start reading GE but gave up for some reason. I've seen the old film with the guy who played Obi-Wan Kenobi in the original SW trilogy whose name I'm tired to bother remembering.
Well, I quite liked Margaret in the mini-series! That is, I wouldn't rave about her (definitely not my favourite period drama heroine) but I didn't find her particularly annoying. But I absolutely despised her in the novel. It is rare that I hate a main character so much I stop reading. I don't have a problem with characters who are obnoxious but develop and grow through a novel - far from it - but there was something about her that I just couldn't like at all!
Alec Guinness? [/random moment of forgotten Star Wars knowledge] ;p Ha, really? That's awesome. :) I've never seen the movie -- GE was the only book where I ever sought out the Cliff Notes, because my friends and I heard it had an alternate ending, and we wanted to make sure we understood them both. ;p
Heh, I wasn't a big fan of Margaret -- she had that period drama heroine thing where "her flaws aren't flaws at all by modern standards!" which made her practically perfect in every way, and that's so boring. I mean, at least Elizabeth Bennet (IIRC) was sort of rude every so often. Margaret just wanted people to better themselves and became friends with the lower class and supported unions...and all of these are supposed to be flaws?! Eh... :/
Of the novels you listed, I've only read "Great Expectations". It's a great book, I enjoyed it quite a lot, but it didn't come close to usurping "David Copperfield" and "A Tale of Two Cities" from their spots as my favourite novels by Dickens. However, I see you've already read Copperfield, and "A Tale of Two Cities" is very much not for everyone;) And as I recall it, one of the two central female characters made me go *headdesk* a couple of times.
I have to admit that I have only read "A Tale of Two Cities" in picture book version for children - I loved that! But for some reason it's never appealed to me to read in the original. I just feel I'd like GE more somehow.
I recommend Our Mutual Friend by Dickens, though tis a fair bit longer than GE. I also love North and South, though the film version annoys me despite its many excellencies. What about some nice gothic twaddle? I like Radcliffe's The Romance of the Forest.
Branch out into what, exactly? Not sure what would be a helpful rec at the moment.
North and South the series does a fantastic job at conveying the passion and character depth of the two main characters, but I feel it's really at the expense of the subtlety and complexity of the supporting cast. Bessie devolves from an interesting portrait of the pious sickly girl to a fairly generic spunky best friend (though some might think she just passes from one stereotype to the next), Margaret's parents are both annoying instead of being flawed but deeply sympathetic, Dixon the servant is a real pain in the neck instead of a die-hard loyal, if stubborn and uneducated pillar of strength. I feel like they really failed to include the positive, unique aspects of these characters. Only Higgins and Mr. Bell escape this kind of flattening, and remain the complex, admirable, but not perfect creations Gaskell managed to convey.
Hmm, difficult choice, you've got many great novels on your to-be-read list.
I would recommend North and South as I absolutely loooved that one, but if you're annoyed by Margaret, maybe you should not. After all, what is reading for if not for enjoyment and relaxation?
So, Great Expectations would be my next choice, I think Dickens really did a great job there in characterization. It really is a wonderful and thought provoking novel, but not too sad, if you know what I mean. Not like The Mill on the Floss, which is really very sad....
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That or North and South would be my vote (Margaret was kind of insufferable to me in the miniseries -- not a fan of characters whose flaws aren't really flaws by today's standards -- so I can't imagine how she is in the book, but I know it's supposed to be good. :)
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Well, I quite liked Margaret in the mini-series! That is, I wouldn't rave about her (definitely not my favourite period drama heroine) but I didn't find her particularly annoying. But I absolutely despised her in the novel. It is rare that I hate a main character so much I stop reading. I don't have a problem with characters who are obnoxious but develop and grow through a novel - far from it - but there was something about her that I just couldn't like at all!
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Heh, I wasn't a big fan of Margaret -- she had that period drama heroine thing where "her flaws aren't flaws at all by modern standards!" which made her practically perfect in every way, and that's so boring. I mean, at least Elizabeth Bennet (IIRC) was sort of rude every so often. Margaret just wanted people to better themselves and became friends with the lower class and supported unions...and all of these are supposed to be flaws?! Eh... :/
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What don't you like about the mini-series of North and South? I enjoyed it, but it's not my favourite.
And Gothic twaddle is wonderful - I like Romance of the Forest, but I've read quite a lot of it and I'm trying to branch out at the moment.
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North and South the series does a fantastic job at conveying the passion and character depth of the two main characters, but I feel it's really at the expense of the subtlety and complexity of the supporting cast. Bessie devolves from an interesting portrait of the pious sickly girl to a fairly generic spunky best friend (though some might think she just passes from one stereotype to the next), Margaret's parents are both annoying instead of being flawed but deeply sympathetic, Dixon the servant is a real pain in the neck instead of a die-hard loyal, if stubborn and uneducated pillar of strength. I feel like they really failed to include the positive, unique aspects of these characters. Only Higgins and Mr. Bell escape this kind of flattening, and remain the complex, admirable, but not perfect creations Gaskell managed to convey.
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I would recommend North and South as I absolutely loooved that one, but if you're annoyed by Margaret, maybe you should not. After all, what is reading for if not for enjoyment and relaxation?
So, Great Expectations would be my next choice, I think Dickens really did a great job there in characterization. It really is a wonderful and thought provoking novel, but not too sad, if you know what I mean. Not like The Mill on the Floss, which is really very sad....
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