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Read Cranford (2006)

Cranford (2006)

Online Book

Rating
3.84 of 5 Votes: 2
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ISBN
0141439882 (ISBN13: 9780141439884)
Language
English
Publisher
penguin classics

Cranford (2006) - Plot & Excerpts

To prime myself for Return to Cranford, the new Masterpiece Classic sequel to last year’s award-winning mini-series Cranford on PBS, I wanted to read Mrs. Gaskell’s original novel that it was adapted from. Since I am always short of reading time, I chose instead to listen to an audio recording, my favorite pastime during my commute to work. After a bit of research on Cranford audio book recordings, I settled on the Naxos edition. From my experience with their recording of Jane Austen’s novels I knew the quality would be superior. I was not disappointed. A witty and poignant portrait of small town life in an early Victorian-era English village, Cranford was first published in 1851 as a serial in the magazine Household Words edited by Charles Dickens. Inspired by author Elizabeth Gaskell’s (1810-1865) early life in Knutsford in Cheshire where she was raised by an aunt after her mother’s death and father’s subsequent re-marriage, the novel revolves around the narrator Miss Mary Smith and the Amazons of the community: the authoritative Miss Deborah Jenkyns and her kindhearted but timid younger sister Matty, the always well informed Miss Miss Pole and the self-important aristocratic Mrs. Jamieson. This gentle satire of village life does not supply much of a plot – but amazingly it does not matter. Gaskell has the incredible talent of making everyday occurrences and life events totally engrossing. Miss Matty’s conservative friends, the middle-aged spinsters and widows of Cranford, do not want their quaint life and traditions altered one bit. They like Cranford just as it has always been, therefore when the industrial revolution that swept through England in the 1840’s encroaches upon their Shangri-La, they lament and bustle about attempting to do everything in there power to stop the evil railroad’s arrival. Gaskell is a deft tactician at dry humor, not unlike her predecessor Jane Austen, and the comedy in Cranford balanced with a bit of tragedy is its most endearing quality. This unabridged audio book recording is aptly read by Claire Willie whose sensitive and lyrical interpretation of Gaskell’s narrative enhanced my enjoyment of the story by two fold. Her rendering of the different characters with change of timbre and intonation was charmingly effective. My favorite character was of course the kindhearted Miss Matty. Even though she is of a certain age she has a child-like naïveté refreshingly seeing her friends and her world in simple terms. In opposition to our present day lives of cell-phones, blackberries and information overload, a trip to Cranford was a welcome respite. I recommend it highly. 2010 marks the 200th anniversary of author Elizabeth Cleghorn Gaskell nee Stevenson’s birth on 29 September 1810 in Chelsea, which was then on the outskirts of London. In celebration of her bi-centenary, Naxos AudioBooks will be releasing three additional recordings of her novels: North and South in February again read by Claire Willis, Wives and Daughters in March read by Patience Tomlinson and Cousin Phillis in May read by Joe Marsh. Happily, I will be enjoying many hours of great Gaskell listening this year.Laurel Ann, Austenprose

After wading my way through a few duds, I was thrilled to read a true gem. I tried reading this once before. However, I was expecting a linear narrative and was therefore unprepared for this anecdotal novel. After watching the BBC miniseries (which, by the way, was excellent), I had a better idea of what to expect. Prior to 'Cranford' my only experience with Elizabeth Gaskell was 'North and South.' Although 'North and South' is undoubtedly one of my favorite books, as a novel littered by death it can be a bit heavy. Consequently, I was blown away by how well Gaskell wrote a humorous tale. At certain points, I was unable to stop my laughter. There are several characters who make you smile while simultaneously warming your heart. While 'Cranford' may, at first glance, seem to be about nothing, Gaskell has done something quite groundbreaking with this novel. As a town where its chief members are middle-class, single women who have little regard for the goings-on outside their insulated community, Cranford is almost matriarchal. And when compared with the world outside, Gaskell clearly suggests it is not Cranford that is to be found wanting. In fact, the way in which she highlights the lives of single women in the Victorian period is quite brilliant. Women who seem to be old-fashioned snobs prove to be strong, compassionate, caring, and self-sufficient. Witnessing the way in which these women cared for each other made me quite emotional.Overall, 'Cranford' is a delightful place to visit, and I was sad when forced to leave. Having been enchanted by both 'Cranford' and 'North and South', I am eager to further acquaint myself with this amazing author. (First reading: September 2009) I am thrilled to find Gaskell's novel just as charming the second time around. I will always treasure the time I have spent in Cranford -- and look forward to future visits. I feel confident they will be many. (Second reading: 20 February 2012)

What do You think about Cranford (2006)?

At first, Cranford may seem superficially quaint in it's manner, as it relates the story of a small country town made up of mostly middle-aged women. But to read it only for it's quaintness is to do yourself a disservice, for there is more strength to this novel than just that. The first thing I noticed while reading was the surprisingly modern humor to be picked up on. From forcing laxatives on a fine lace eating cat, to dolling over a cow loved as a daughter (my examples may all be animal related, but there's much more), Cranford's society is absolutely hilarious. But the integrity isn't lacking either. Each woman's individualism is admired and loved, and their quirks accepted. And so I loved each character, but Miss Matty was certainly the star. As a whole, Cranford is a loving community, and I only wish there was more to read.I can understand how some feel uneasy about it's disjointedness, but if you read each chapter like a short story with the same characters it makes sense (though it is chronological). Cranford is a novel I will cherish and certainly read again.
—Katherine

Mrs Gaskell is making a comeback. And not just with my online Trollope group, which has been reading Cranford recently and comparing – or rather, contrasting – it with Trollope’s novels. Libraries are acquiring her novels, many are on the shelves of bookstores, and all are easily available through amazon.com. The BBC has produced excellent, and very popular, made-for-TV series of Cranford, North and South, and Wives and Daughters. My alerts with Google and the NY Times pop up with Gaskell as often as with Trollope. Two hundred years after her birth she is more popular than she has ever been.She made her name with Cranford, published in Dickens’ Household Words from 1851 to 1853 and the book remains her most beloved. Based on the town of Knutsford where Gaskell lived with an aunt when she was a child, Cranford is near a big city, Drumble, a stand-in for Manchester, where Gaskell lived for most of her adult life with her husband, a Unitarian minister.The latest BBC series – there are actually two series – are a combination of Cranford, My Lady Ludlow, and Mr Harrison’s Confessions. The TV version of the story very different from that in the book, which is a cozy episodic collection of stories with a thin plot and much humor. For lovers of Victorian fiction Elizabeth Gaskell is a must-read author. And if you fall for her as I have done, Jenny Uglow has written a fine biography.The house in which she lived with her husband still stands. http://www.elizabethgaskellhouse.org/ Unfortunately, after years of fund-raising and restoration thieves recently stole the roof for the lead and costs for a new roof and repair of water damage are significant.2011 No 86
—Mary Ronan Drew

Ah, so delightful! I loved this. It's really a series of vignettes, and, if there is a plot at all, it doesn't show up until halfway through. But it's so funny! And sad! And it's all about women! I laughed aloud a few times, and almost cried a few other times. Sigh. I'm such a sucker for this stuff. But I loved it. Despite its disjunctive narrative, I read the whole book in less than three days. But I'm strange that way.For Happy (I would alert readers to spoilers, but there actually isn't much to spoil):Yeah, the makers of the Masterpiece adaptation took some serious liberties with the plot (or lack thereof). The series is fun and I'm really enjoying it, but it contains several plot lines that are not in the book. In fact, arguably the most important plot lines in the series are completely made up (as opposed to completely made up by Gaskell, I guess). For example, the young doctor and his girl, and all the associated story-lines, simply do not exist in the book. The carpenter with the broken bones - it's all made up. (That disappointed me, because, ever since Middlemarch, I've had a soft spot for young, ambitious doctors in 19th Century English villages. Alas, it was not to be found.) The cute kid who wants to rise above his station? Not only isn't he in the book, but I think the entire idea of him is alien to this novella, which (unlike Gaskell's other work) is centered entirely around the middle and aristocratic classes (and shifts therein), and barely touches on the working class at all.More mildly, all of the timing is wrong (understandable, since following the vignettes too closely would result in a almost cliff-hanger free show, not good TV). And they skip a couple of deaths. There are a surprising number of deaths in this short novella, and I can see that if the series were more faithful to the book, it might be just too depressing. The book is never depressing, although it has sad moments, because of the quality of the narration, but this is difficult to reproduce on film.Overall, there are probably more inconsistencies than similarities between the two. But it's hard to blame the screen-writer - the book doesn't offer much in the way of actual action to work with, and is noticeably missing any love affairs between attractive young people, which, let's face it, is the bread and butter of Masterpiece. The droll, sarcastic, disjunctive narration of commonplace events, makes for a particularly difficult adaptation.But I love it - a new favorite narrator for me.
—Inder

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