5 must-read books by George Elliot
What's the story
Mary Ann Evans, under the pen name of George Elliot, became a leading writer in the Victorian era. Evans didn't want to be typecast as a female writer whose works are not taken seriously. She also wanted her fiction to stand out separately from her work as an editor. Her novels are known for realism and a thorough depiction of England's countryside.
Book 1
Adam Bede
Adam Bede, published in 1859, was her first novel. The plot is based on a story her aunt Elizabeth Evans, a Methodist preacher, told her. Adam is a young carpenter who falls in love with Hetty, a beautiful woman who is secretly having an affair with a soldier named Arthur Donnithorne. This love triangle ends badly leading to a crime.
Book 2
Silas Marner: The Weaver of Raveloe
Published in 1861, Silas Marner: The Weaver of Raveloe is a simple tale of a linen weaver and Elliot's third novel. The novel is well known for its strong realism and treatment of a variety of complex issues like religion, industrialization, and society. Although the story is quite melancholic it has a happy ending which gives one hope and strengthens faith in the almighty.
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Book 3
Middlemarch
The great novelist Virginia Woolf describes Middlemarch as "one of the few English novels written for grown-up people." The story is unique and has many characters. It focuses on issues including women's role in society, marriage, religion, idealism, hypocrisy, political reform, and education. The realism in the novel includes historical events like the 1832 Reform Act and the accession of King William IV.
Book 4
The Mill on the Floss
The Mill on the Floss is a coming-of-age story including first love and sibling rivalry, drawing inspiration from the author's childhood. The novel explores gender discrimination and family relationships. The story is about the deteriorating relationship between Maggie Tulliver and her brother Tom Tulliver who is completely different from her. They go through a series of crises that form cracks in their relationship.
Book 5
Ramola
Ramola is one of Eliot's most ambitious novels, set in Renaissance Florence. The daughter of a blind scholar, Romola is married to Tito whose two-facedness in love and politics threatens everything she values. As she wants to break away, the story upholds her intellectual and spiritual awakening. Eliot described this book as "written with my best blood." Check out more such book recommendations.