[MCQ]≫ [PDF] Nelly Dean Howard Hughes 9780008123383 Books

Nelly Dean Howard Hughes 9780008123383 Books

Download As PDF : Nelly Dean Howard Hughes 9780008123383 Books

Nelly Dean Howard Hughes 9780008123383 Books

Obviously, this author has a great love for the original novel and this shows in her heartfelt descriptions of the moors. That said, the novel mainly suffers from it's choice of narrator, Nelly Dean, who is neither an unbiased nor all that interesting narrator which made this book rather dull. Heathcliff and Catherine make only small appearance in this book and are kept at the periphery of the story so fans of their characters will be disappointed here. A better choice of narrator would have made this book much better.


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Nelly Dean Howard Hughes 9780008123383 Books Reviews

Over the years, there have been many re-imaginings, sequels or prequels, based on classic novels and some are more successful than others. I loved “Longbourn,” by Jo Baker, which looked at “Pride and Prejudice” from the point of view of a servant in the Bennet’s house and, likewise, this novel takes “Wuthering Heights” and re-tells the story from the pen of Nelly Dean. The book begins with Nelly Dean opening a letter to Mr Lockwood, in which she gradually uncovers the history of her life and of the inhabitants of the house and family that she was linked to from childhood.

“Wuthering Heights” is a favourite novel of mine and the author is careful to retain the feelings and characters as they were written by Emily Bronte. However, allowing her to take the perspective of a minor character gives her a good vantage point to tell the story from a different point of view. We hear of everything from Nelly’s viewpoint and, as her story unfolds, we are gradually introduced to the characters. Nelly’s mother was a nurse to Hindley and she was brought up almost as a sibling to Hindley and Cathy until the arrival of Heathcliff. Her change of status to that of a servant is something that we understand, but she struggles with. In fact, although Nelly is the main character here, there remains the undercurrents of emotional turmoil that readers will associate with “Wuthering Heights.”

I really enjoyed this novel, which retains much of the flavour of the original, but adds a new insight into the story and characters. A great debut novel, by an author who has previously written a non-fiction book; “Reading the Nineteenth Century Novel Austen to Eliot” which encompassed the Bronte sisters. She has used her research well to re-imagine a literary world beloved by many. However, if you have not read, “Wuthering Heights” before, then this novel will make perfect sense and may even inspire you to read the original.
It made me go back and re-read Wuthering Heights. Very interesting spin on he tale. Easy read.
Loved the between the lines story around Wuthering Heights. Bit of a twist at the end made it even more enjoyable
If you've never read Wuthering Heights before, you'll want to do it soon after you read Nelly Dean's story. This is a novel written by an author who truly understands Victorian literature and captures the flavor of the times in this, her first novel. Author Alison Case joined our book discussion group recently and she thoughtfully answered our questions. The book is a fast read and well-researched. Get a copy and enjoy!
Although the attention to period detail, tone of dialogue and spirited aspects of tackling a beloved classic were evident and should be applauded. I'm afraid to say, there may be a reason why Nelly Dean never had her own story. This sensitive psychological homage just wasn't that absorbing and to be completely honest, I couldn't wait to shut the cover on Nelly Dean. To be fair, I thought this between the pages narrative, creative and I see exactly what this novel was trying to achieve- answering lingering questions with imaginative flourishes and branching off of the mystery and allure of Wuthering Heights but something was amiss in this book and by the end I just had enough.

The various twists of misery, unexpected disclosures and windblown relationship trials although interesting at first became tangled with tedious unnecessary details that had me asking out loud several times "why is this important, what does this have to do with or add to the story?" particularly the sudden vast magical elements, extended wet nursing tangents and a very long chapter on collecting payment from tenants. There was also the portion of when this narrative stepped outside of a fictional setting and into a classroom situation breaking apart the symbolism of a falcon still all in the voice of Nelly Dean but still a very disappointing part for this reader. It may be only me but I want to decipher the hidden messages and symbols, please don't tell me; that is half of the beauty and dark mystique of Wuthering Heights.

Finally the characters, sadly they were only there in name and many times I wanted to push Nelly Dean aside to revisit those other characters that only walked off into the shadows. This was ultimately the psychological tale of Nelly Dean and Hindley Earnshaw but by the final page I had the oddest feeling that this story could have been called by another title, the names of the characters changed and if the name of the infamous ancestral great house omitted- I honestly wouldn't have known it was an accompaniment to Wuthering Heights. I may have recognized bits and pieces to compare and the tale had its moments that kept me reading but as I said in the beginning, something was amiss. I hate to sound harsh and I know my opinion or final thoughts differ from others who have loved this between the scenes narrative and as I said the period details and tone of dialogue were impressive and as a standalone story, it had the bones of something great but I'm very sorry to say this just didn't end as a keeper for this reader.
Obviously, this author has a great love for the original novel and this shows in her heartfelt descriptions of the moors. That said, the novel mainly suffers from it's choice of narrator, Nelly Dean, who is neither an unbiased nor all that interesting narrator which made this book rather dull. Heathcliff and Catherine make only small appearance in this book and are kept at the periphery of the story so fans of their characters will be disappointed here. A better choice of narrator would have made this book much better.