My Amazon and Goodreads review of Middlemarch by George Eliot (Rated 5) – Doing Due Diligence. Marking the sesquicentennial of its publication, I finally read Middlemarch by George Eliot. Duty requires that I rate this classic novel “5,” but words best register my full reaction. At times, I was engaged by the wisdom and wit of Eliot’s take on small-town country life two centuries ago, notably marriage and the role of women, politics and religion, wealth and status, philosophy and the arts. An end-of-life doula, I was particularly taken with how the wills of (rich) elderly insured the maintenance of society’s hierarchies. At other times, impatient with Eliot’s detours (e.g., into politics) and eager to get on with the intrigues among the characters, I was tempted to skip ahead. Then an astute observation would catch my eye and I feared I’d miss others by skimming. A “finisher” by nature, and also a novelist (see my Amazon author page OR Goodreads author page), I felt compelled to read every word. For those who merely want to fill a literary gap in their education, I suggest they peruse enough (say ⅓) to claim they read Middlemarch. But to appreciate the qualities which merit the book a place in the canon, one must push on to the finish. I’m glad I did. If I may be permitted an oxymoron, it’s a predictable cliffhanger.
Persevere with this classic; it’s worth the effort
Why writers read: “A classic is a book that has never finished saying what it has to say.” – Italo Calvino
