My rating: 5 of 5 stars
What a timeless classic! This was my first time reading Jane Eyre and I can see myself revisiting it again in a few years. Initially, I thought the beginning was slow and I couldn’t understand what the fuss around this book was about, but now I realize that it serves as a perfect explanation of Jane’s character and her actions in her adult life.
Bronte’s writing is so good at conveying emotions and moods. Her characters’ introspections are illuminating and touching. This is navel-gazing done right.
At its heart, Jane Eyre is a romance novel, but not a kind of lusty, throbbing organs romance. The emotions in this novel left me breathless sometimes. When things were good, I felt elated along with the characters. When things turn sour, as I dreaded they would, I was just as tormented as the unfortunate parties involved.
Even though I couldn’t empathize with some of Jane’s decisions concerning Mr. Rochester, I still respected her for her strength of character for doing such difficult tasks.
This novel is just lovely. I’m curious how the new film will interpret it.
Several people including my lovely co-workers here at Goodreads have commented about how *weird* the book is. Yes, the whole romance is a bit creepy and Jane’s affections for Mr. Rochester seem rather servile. But I just attribute it to the time the book was written. That and I’m often touched by strange creepy things. What I thought was more creepy was that Jane actually considered marrying her first cousin! Times sure do change.
