'I shall do one thing in this life-one thing certain-that is, love you, and long for you, and keep wanting you till I die.'
Gabriel Oak is only one of three suitors for the hand of the beautiful and spirited Bathsheba Everdene. He must compete with the dashing young soldier Sergeant Troy and the respectable, middle-aged Farmer Boldwood. And while their fates depend upon the choice Bathsheba makes, she discovers the terrible consequences of an inconstant heart.
Far from the Madding Crowd was the first of Hardy's novels to give the name Wessex to the landscape of south-west England, and the first to gain him widespread popularity as a novelist. Set against the backdrop of the unchanging natural cycle of the year, the story both upholds and questions rural values with a startlingly modern sensibility. This new edition retains the critical text that restores previously deleted and revised passages.
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[WHEN Farmer Oak smiled, the corners of his mouth spread till they were within an unimportant distance of his ears, his eyes were reduced to chinks, and diverging wrinkles appeared round them, extending upon his countenance like the rays in a rudimentary sketch of the rising sun]***
(Oxford University Press, 14 August 2008, first published 1872, 433 pages, paperback, bought from @AmazonUK, set text for @OpenUniversity course)
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I don't tend to read what's considered classic literature. I've tried and tend to find the language quite difficult. I'm more comfortable with contemporary fiction. I had to read this for an Open University course and was dreading it. Despite my reservations I ended up loving the book. The last three or four chapters had me in floods of tears. Once I got past the more formal language I found just as much to enjoy as any contemporary novel. I thought this was going to be a purely romantic story but I was completely blown away. The book starts off with what you expect from a romantic novel with three different men falling in love for the alluring Bathsheba Everdene. However, as the book goes on it starts to change into something much darker and quite heart-breaking. I can honestly say I loved this book.
