Tales of Mystery and the Macabre by Elizabeth Gaskell

Title: Tales of Mystery and the Macabre

Author: Elizabeth Gaskell

Publisher: Wordsworth 2008

Genre: Classics - horror

Pages: 305

Rating: 3/5 stars

Reading Challenges: UnRead Shelf; Women Authors; Horror

In the great mirror opposite I saw myself, and right behind, another wicked fearful self, so like me my soul seemed to quiver within me, as though not knowing to which similitude of body it belonged... Elizabeth Gaskell is better known today for her pioneering social novels such as Mary Barton (1848) but she also wrote some fascinating tales of the supernatural and the macabre, which are collected here in this volume. The real charm of this dark anthology is its variety. Unlike so many writers of this kind of material, Gaskell allows the story to fit the style rather than the other way around and as result there is a charming freshness to each tale. This remarkable author uses different voices, tones and topics to engage her readers and as you turn from one story to the next you cannot be quite sure what to expect.

I’ve read Gaskell’s North and South and Cranford, but didn’t realize that she had also wrote gothic horror stories. Overall, this volume was a mixed bag for me. I enjoyed some of the stories especially those that focused on a specific character. I wasn’t as much of a fan of some stories that just seemed to meander instead of heading to a point. I also couldn’t get behind many of the rambling sentences and asides.

Next up on the TBR pile:

Cranford by Elizabeth Gaskell

Title: Cranford

Author: Elizabeth Gaskell

Publisher: 1853

Genre: Classics

Pages: 257

Rating: 4/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Mount TBR; Popsugar - Movie I've Already Seen; A to Z - C

Cranford is an affectionate and often moving portrait of genteel poverty and intertwined lives in a nineteenth-century village. One of Elizabeth Gaskell's most beloved works, it centres on a community dominated by women and governed by old-fashioned ways. The formidable Miss Deborah Jenkyns and the kindly Miss Matty's days revolve around card games, tea, thriftiness and an endless appetite for scandal, until change comes into their world - whether it is the modern ideas of Captain Brown, a bank collapse, rumours of burglars or an unexpected reappearance from the past.

Classic that has been sitting on my shelf for too long. I enjoyed this one, but it's definitely not for everyone. I love how Gaskell has structured the book as more of vignettes than cohesive consecutive chapters. The reader gets little slices of life in Cranford filled with colorful characters and insights into relationships. I see this as a mix between Charles Dickens and Jane Austen. I'm not a huge fan of Dickens, but I adore Austen. This was a good mixture of the genres. While the book is very good, I loved the BBC miniseries starring Dame Judi Dench as Miss Matty. She is a treasure! 

Next up on the TBR pile:

North and South by Elizabeth Gaskell

Title: North and South

Author: Elizabeth Gaskell

Publisher: Penguin Books 1854

Genre: Classics

Pages: 449

Rating:   Book 4/5 stars    Movie 5/5

Reading Challenges: 2011 - Way Back When; Page to Screen

Hmmm... I have some mixed feelings about this one.  It's no Jane Austen.  I think I've been reading too much Jane Austen style 19th century literature that it's hard to get back into other fiction forms.  Reading the introduction, I learned some interesting things about Gaskell and the book.  Did you know that Gaskell made a pretty decent living writing?  North and South was originally published as a serial in a magazine, but she felt that the story was limited in that form and so expanded it for the novelization.  And her editor was Charles Dickens.  Yes that Charles Dickens!  Taking all this into consideration, the novel was enjoyable.

The novel spent much more time on Margaret's thoughts on her father's change of situation.  And we leaned much more about his change of heart.  I think part of the problem was that the novel was very slow.  We spent the first 50 pages still in Helstone.  Milton didn't enter into the picture until extensive musing about the church, life in Helstone, and the upcoming move.  Once we got into Milton, I liked the story better.  We met the other players.  Margaret was introduced to factory life.  The story progressed, but definitely slowly compared to modern novels.

Movie

The miniseries I absolutely adored.  It cut the longer introduction.  It cut some of the discussions.  But it kept the main storyline about Margaret and the change in life to the North.  The casting was beautiful.  Richard Armitage is just perfect as Mr. Thornton.  (Although I kept seeing him as Guy from Robin Hood.  Definitely not the same character.)  Daniela Denby-Ashe was beautifully understated as Margaret Hale.  She brought the quiet strength to the character.  The book has that quality, but seeing her reactions on-screen made a much more interesting character.  But by far, my favorite was Sinead Cusack as Mrs. Thornton.  She's hard to like, but somehow I understand her motivations.  That is the mark of a talented artist.  The visual difference between Milton and Helstone is gorgeous.  We instantly see the different atmospheres with color, architecture, and costumes.  And that final scene... brings out the hopeless romantic lurking inside of me.