Charlotte and Emily Brontë

The novels of Charlotte and Emily Bronté were among the first romantic novels and are still considered to be among the greatest. The most popular, Jane Eyre, written by Charlotte, and Wuthering Heights, written by her sister, are stories of great passion. Charlotte Bronte's other novels, Shirley, Villette, and The Professor, are equally fine, although less well known. These five marvellous books are collected in this volume.

Wuthering Heights, set on the Yorkshire moors, is the classic story of persistent and ruinous passion, the unforgettable story of Heathcliffs obsession with Catherine and her family. Jane Eyre tells of the penniless orphan who became a governess and her love for Mr. Rochester, the master of Thornfield Hall. Shirley, a novel of love and ambition and industrial unrest, set against the background of the Luddite riots that took place in the Yorkshire textile industry in the early nineteenth century, is noteworthy for its sharp acrid humour and great perception. Villette, which many consider Charlotte's masterpiece, is the story of Lucy Snowe, a young woman consumed by hopeless love. Also included in this volume is The Professor, Charlotte's first novel. Unpublished in her lifetime, it deals with love themes similar to Villette's, but from a man's point of view.

The publication of Jane Eyre and Wuthering Heights rocketed the Brontes to fame, although only Charlotte lived long enough to enjoy it, and then only for a few years. Passionate naturalism, clear intuition, and careful observation in addition to imagination and originality are evident in the Bronté sisters' five novels. Yet some critics of the day claimed that the books were immoral and unladylike as well. Indeed, the Brontés' heroines are often in revolt against convention and the sisters obviously had strong feelings about the plight of women which were far in advance of their time. --jacket