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MJ Nicholls's Reviews > Shirley
Shirley
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MJ Nicholls's review
bookshelves: novels, sassysassenachs, pre-1900s, oxford-classics, distaff
Jul 05, 2012
bookshelves: novels, sassysassenachs, pre-1900s, oxford-classics, distaff
Shirley is Charlotte’s sophomore slump. Her Kill Uncle. Her You Shall Know Our Velocity. Her Supposed Former Infatuation Junkie. And so on. I don’t care how cute Mr Rochester is, this novel is a deeply vexing mess. Firstly, there are several plotlines and not one has the urge to intersect. The rebelling miners plot launches the novel in tandem with the idle curates poor-versus-rich plot, then dribbles away with the introduction of the second plot: Caroline’s crush on Mr Moore. This plot is soon replaced by the late appearance of Shirley, the most interesting character in the novel, whose bland friendship with Caroline stems the flow of Shirley’s androgynous awesomeness. This too dribbles away with too many pastoral scenes, misplaced polemics, increasingly tedious extended dialogues and domestic trivialities. The novel feels aimless and incompetent without recourse to the tropes of a form (i.e. gothic romance tropes) like Charlotte used in Jane Eyre, so bumbles along at a grinding pace offering succour in all-too-infrequent scenes of tension or conflict between Shirley and others, which soon peter out into dreary ten-page dialogues or ruminations studded with biblical references. I managed up to 392pp, which is three-quarters—if any devotees of this book want to fill me in on the last quarter please do. Disappointing! Next one up: Vilette.
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Reading Progress
July 2, 2012
–
Started Reading
July 5, 2012
– Shelved
July 5, 2012
– Shelved as:
novels
July 5, 2012
– Shelved as:
sassysassenachs
July 5, 2012
– Shelved as:
pre-1900s
July 5, 2012
–
Finished Reading
July 9, 2012
– Shelved as:
oxford-classics
August 11, 2012
– Shelved as:
distaff
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Richard
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Jul 05, 2012 06:40AM
I wonder if they had the "Shirley you must be joking" gag back in the 19th century.
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I'm shure they had their equivalent of Airplane in those days. Cabriolet, starring Sir Lesmond of Neillson.
MJ wrote: "I'm shure they had their equivalent of Airplane in those days. Cabriolet, starring Sir Lesmond of Neillson."I just want to tell you good luck. We're all counting on you.
Shirley wasn't great, but I did manage to finish it. I never wrote a review (SURPRISE) but you can get some idea of what I thought from my status updates. http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/...
Oh, this is basically what I thought of it. http://www.goodreads.com/user_status/... There are parts that are fantastic and parts that are bewilderingly bad. I do admire her for not just writing Jane Eyre 2. The novel really doesn't stand on her own. It makes sense if you know it's basically her grief-work, her expression of extreme loss and bitter, bitter anger. It's much more of a sort of dry run for Villette than The Professor (which really resembles Villette only in its externals).
Oh wow, your status-update review was brilliant! I am so glad I didn't force myself to read the last quarter now, apparently it sank to worse depths. But yeah, there were some very captivating scenes in this, but it really didn't come together. Proof not all grief and sorrow can be turned into great art.
We are of the same opinion here; this book is about to drive me mad, although I plan to finish it, fool that I am. I didn't like Villette any better, so shall leave off The Professor. Just to say, I liked your review...
Thanks Roanne. If you want to keep your sanity I advise you stop now and read Moira's status update review at comment 6. I suspect this book will have many finishers due to the Jany Eyre cult, lucky book.
Excellent review but, I LOVE Supposed Former Infatuation Junkie! haha
Tedious - almost gave it up several times-kept slogging through, and it got more interesting when titleShirley appeared---but now wish i'd given up! Wasted too much time hoping for what it never became!
Your review nailed it! It's exactly what I thought. I did manage to read the whole thing but skimmed through the more tedious polemical bad-poetic discourse. None of it had anything to do with the plot line(s). Jane Eyre is a masterpiece; this is a mess.
Your sophomore-slump metaphor fails me, as Supposed Former Infatuation Junkie is my favorite Alanis album. But I get your meaning...
You mean you aren't saying hooouu-oooouw appropriate?
Well for mt part,M J Nicholls u left the book on a very interesting part. The book starts very pleasing to read from their the romantic part commences. And the book tell Louis, point of view on Shirley how he fall for her. I recommend u to read it fully.
Always happens! I abandon books one page before they get good. I should stagger on.
do read Villette, its nothing like Shirley
