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A review by heyheybooks
The Brontës: Wild Genius on the Moors: The Story of a Literary Family by Juliet Barker
4.0
It took a full two months to finish this book. After watching the recent biopic about the Bronte siblings, I was excited to read this biography which had been sitting very large and intimidating on my shelves for a few years. However, when I started reading I found out just how incredibly detailed the book is, about every possible aspect of the Brontes' lives, including their father's life, education, and career before the siblings were even born, every plot of their childhood writings, every social outing in their lives, etc. I skimmed through some of these parts, but once it got into their actual lives as adults and writers, it was much more fascinating and enthralling. Some parts were very fast reads, others started to drag on again. Eventually, I realized the author must have never intended to "tell a good story" and rather, meant to supply every fact and possible fact about their lives, without much thought to pacing & story arc. Thankfully, the lives of the Brontes are interesting enough to be a good story, once you get through it.
Emily Bronte's Wuthering Heights is my favorite book of all time, and in high school and college, I read many of the Bronte books, wrote many essays about them, and read a few biographies or articles about their lives. I still did not know most of the information from this book, so I in no way regret the time I spent reading this book. I had the dual experience of both not knowing "what happened next" and also feeling like I already knew the events of their lives. I hadn't realized how autobiographical Charlotte's novels were, and I loved seeing how Charlotte became who she was as a person and as an author. I wish I could know as much about Emily and even Anne, since unfortunately there is not much left from their writings or letters. I do have a definite sense of accomplishment for having finished this huge book, and I'm also left with a very deep desire to re-read all of their works, and finally read the ones that I haven't. And, of course, to someday make my own pilgrimage to Haworth & the moors.
Emily Bronte's Wuthering Heights is my favorite book of all time, and in high school and college, I read many of the Bronte books, wrote many essays about them, and read a few biographies or articles about their lives. I still did not know most of the information from this book, so I in no way regret the time I spent reading this book. I had the dual experience of both not knowing "what happened next" and also feeling like I already knew the events of their lives. I hadn't realized how autobiographical Charlotte's novels were, and I loved seeing how Charlotte became who she was as a person and as an author. I wish I could know as much about Emily and even Anne, since unfortunately there is not much left from their writings or letters. I do have a definite sense of accomplishment for having finished this huge book, and I'm also left with a very deep desire to re-read all of their works, and finally read the ones that I haven't. And, of course, to someday make my own pilgrimage to Haworth & the moors.