CAMELOT FANTASIES

As most of us are of a literary mind I thought it might be interesting to discuss with each other what our favourite books & authors are & the reasons why. I'll start. No offense intended to anyone but my favourite author Charlotte Bronte wrote in Victorian times under the pseudonym of Currer Bell because she was female & at the time women were seen as not only the weaker but altogether inferior gender. Men supposedly had a much greater intellectual capacity. If women stimulated their brains too much they were rendered useless for what people saw as their true role which was to do housework & look after the children. She was born in Thornton to Patrick & Maria Bronte who originally came from Ireland. Maria Bronte died soon after Charlotte was born. Originally Charlotte had 4 sisters & 1 brother but 2 of her sisters died when she was young. They moved to Haworth where Patrick became a parson. That is where Charlotte, Emily & Anne wrote their books. Some of them were inspired by Haworth moor. Charlotte wrote 4 books which were Jane Eyre which was published by Smith, Elder & co. in 1847, Shirley, The Professor & my favourite which is Villette because it has a good story behind it & really gives you something to chew on. I mean, I thought I had a decent vocabulary until I read Villette the 1st time. Many people prefer Jane Eyre though & it was seen by William Makepeace Thackeray who was a leading author at the time as the masterpiece of a literary genius. Charlotte Bronte went to the School for Clergymen's daughters in Cowan Bridge. This was what she based Lowood in Jane Eyre on. I do like Jane Austen but not as much as Charlotte Bronte but as Jane Austen was almost self-taught you cannot knock her. She was brilliant. Emily wrote Wuthering Heights & poems. I don't really care for Wuthering Heights as it is rather too dark for me. She got Wuthering Heights published by Smith, Elder & co. in 1847. Her pseudonym was Ellis Bell. I love Emily's poems though. Anne Bronte wrote Agnes Grey & The Tenant of Wildfell Hall under the pseudonym of Acton Bell. She also got her first book published by Smith, Elder & co. in 1847. Haworth was a slum area at the time & they had a harsh life so you have to give them even more credit. Branwell Bronte was an artist. It must have been very hard for Patrick Bronte as he lost all his children. Charlotte Bronte married Rev. A.B. Nicholls & died at the age of 32 in childbirth. That was very common at the time.

That's great, Olivia. I agree with you there. I think books like the Bronte's wrote were very true for their time. Thank you very much for sharing.

It's o.k. Lady Victoria. Everyone likes something different. There is no need to apologise to me. :0) Poetry is very good. I like historical works too. I haven't read her works to tell you the truth.

I like your list Olga. My favourite Russian book is Dr. Zhivago though.

It's o.k. Olga. Her books are indeed sad but reflect that time & her life.