Showing results by narrator "Margaret Melosh" in All Categories

The Odd Women is set in a smoggy London, with heroines ranging from the idealistic, financially independent Mary Barfoot; to the Madden sisters who struggle to get by in low paying jobs... Being a fascinating, trailblazing and early work of feminism and social realism, this novel reflects the important sexual and cultural issues of the late nineteenth century. Here women are portrayed as "odd" and marginal in relation to an ideal.

Stephen has to come up with a way to make more money in order to be able to marry his beloved. He has in his possession a pile of old love letters from a celebrated writer, deceased, at this time. She was called Margaret and was very much in love with Stephen. He finds out he can make lots of profits were he to have the letters published; but he hesitates because he had never really loved her and had not treated her very well. Since their relationship was never known by society at large; he resolves to sell them and publish them anonymously.

"Cousin Phillis" tells the story of Paul Manning, a seventeen-year-old who moves to the country and befriends his mother's family and his (second) cousin Phillis Holman, who is confused by her own situation at the edge of adolescence. The author reveals the deep psychological-behavioral impact produced by rural environment. Most critics agree that "Cousin Phillis" is Gaskell's greatest achievement.

The Fifth Queen is a historical novel. It tells the story of Katharine Howard's arrival at the Court of Henry VIII, her eventual marriage to the king, and her death. Katharine Howard is presented in the first book as a genuine Roman Catholic, penniless, young noblewoman escorted by her fiery cousin Thomas Culpeper. By accident, she comes to the attention of the king, in a minor way at first, is helped to a position as a lady in waiting for the then bastard Lady Mary, Henry's eldest daughter, by her old Latin tutor Nicholas Udal, a spy for Thomas Cromwell.

Molly Gibson is a young girl who has been raised by her widowed father. During a visit to the local aristocratic "great house" of Lord and Lady Cumnor, she loses her way in the estate and falls asleep under a tree. When she wakes up, she gets distressed at the thought of spending the night at the mansion, but to her relief, her father arrives to collect her. Seven years later, Molly is an attractive and rather unworldly young woman, which arouses the interest of one of her father's apprentices.

Helen Eskdale and the wealthy Lord Teviot seem to be a happiest couple to be married. However, after the wedding they find that misunderstandings and jealousies plague everything. Will their marriage and love endure the infernal manipulations of a rather large and peculiar entourage?

Charity Royal is bored with her life in the small town of North Dormer. She was born to poor parents from "up the Mountain" who gave her up to the town's learned person, Lawyer Royall, but she still dreams of an even better and more exciting life outside of the town. She secures a job at North Dormer's library, a job that she is neglectful of, in an attempt to save up money so she could eventually leave the town and Mr. Royall's care.

"News From Nowhere" centers around the encounter between a visitor from the nineteenth century, William Guest, and a decentralized and humane socialist future without class segregation and with direct democracy without governmental empowerment. Inspired by the work of John Ruskin and Karl Marx; this novel is not only a declaration of egalitarian principles but a great early contribution to the utopian genre. This work could be seen as a kind of utopian counterpart to George Orwell's renowned and deeply pessimistic, dystopian novel 1984.

Catherine Morland, a seventeen-year-old from a country parsonage, spends a few weeks in Bath with a family friend, and falls in love with Henry Tilney, who invites her to visit his family estate, Northanger Abbey. Once there, Catherine, a keen reader of Gothic thrillers, lets the shadowy atmosphere of the old manor fill her with doubt and anxiety... What lies behind the death of Henry's mother? Is there a dreadful family secret? Can she really rely on Henry? Or has our lovely heroine just read to many gothic stories? This early novel is often called Jane Austen's Gothic parody.

Two sisters, Elinor and Marianne Dashwood; the former sensible, the latter impulsive both fall in love with men whose affections are otherwise engaged or, as in one case, are simply unreliable. The great pleasure for the listener is rejoicing in the author's delightful prose and hearing all this twisted mess become untangled in both very amusing and deeply moving ways.

"What Maisie Knew" is an audiobook by Henry James. It tells the story of the sensitive daughter of divorced, irresponsible parents. The audiobook is also a masterly technical achievement by James, as it follows the title character from earliest childhood to precocious maturity. When Beale and Ida Farange are divorced, the court decrees that their only child, the very young Maisie, will shuttle back and forth between them, spending six months of the year with each. The parents are immoral and frivolous, and they use Maisie to intensify their hatred of each other.

Lady Audley's Secret is a Victorian novel which includes all decisive elements to keep you in suspense - murder, arson, blackmail, bigamy and a forbidden romance . The story is fast-paced and the main character, Lady Audley, is a refreshingly scheming and resourceful villainess filled with passion and needs that threatened the male dominated Victorian era.

On Christmas Eve, an unnamed narrator listens to Douglas, a friend, read a manuscript written by a former governess whom Douglas claims to have known and who is now dead. The manuscript tells the story of how the young governess is hired by a man who has become responsible for his young nephew and niece after the deaths of their parents. He lives mainly in London but also has a country house, Bly. He is uninterested in raising the children.

Jane Eyre follows the emotions and experiences of its eponymous heroine, including her growth to adulthood and her love for Mr. Rochester, the Byronic master of Thornfield Hall. Jane spent her childhood living with her uncle and aunt at Gateshead Hall, where she was emotionally and physically abused by her aunt and cousins.

Anne Elliot and Frederick Wentworth meet and fall in love; but Anne's entourage, particularly Lady Russell; persuades her not to act on her feelings, as she considers the young naval officer not suitable. Eight years later Anne meets Frederick again, now a Captain, intent on marrying Anne's neighbour Louisa Musgrove... Will the true love - still intact - between Anne and Frederick make itself known and correct everything in this mess? Persuasion is Jane Austen's last novel, published posthumously. A timeless masterpiece, rich in keen observation, characterizations and wonderful prose.

Fighting France is a collection of essays and articles by Edith Wharton on her time in France during the First World War, together with her visits to the French sectors of the Western Front. The distinct articles were originally published in Scribner's Magazine in 1915. Part of the The War on All Fronts series, the book was published in 1918.

This novel represents a wonderful mixture of comedic intrigue and ironic social satire. Lady Blanche Chester is a beautiful, temperamental, newly married, pregnant young woman installed in a suburban house while her husband is away on diplomatic responsibilities in Germany. She soon takes a strong interest in her neighbors; many of which annoy her to no end.

"A Little Princess" is a treasured classic of English children's literature. Captain Crewe, a wealthy young English widower, enrolls his seven-year-old daughter Sara, who has been living in India, at Miss Minchin's boarding school for girls in London, in order to prepare her for a future life in society. Crewe dotes on his daughter, ordering and paying for her special treatment at the school, such as her own room fitted with extra luxuries, her own maid, and her own carriage for rides.

"Pride and Prejudice" is a classic of English literature, written by Jane Austen. It tells the story of Mr. and Mrs. Bennet's five single daughters after the rich and eligible Mr. Bingley and his status-conscious friend, Mr. Darcy, have moved into their neighborhood. While Bingley takes an instant liking to the eldest Bennet daughter, Jane, Darcy is disdainful of local society and frequently clashes with the Bennets' lively second daughter, Elizabeth... The book has become one of the most popular romance novels of all time.

Kate is deeply in love with her fiancé. She is planning their wedding and future life together, however, she discovers a secret that he has that will forever change what she thinks of him. With this new insight, she is toils with her desire to be morally accountable; and for him to "do the right thing"... Much later in life; she finds herself in a comparable situation, only this time with her own son.