Last month we read and reviewed William Boyd’s book, The Romantic which the Guardian calls his “a rambunctious, swashbuckling tale, told with panache by a master storyteller.” I must say that the feedback from most people was that they thoroughly enjoyed it and it went along at quite a pace.
Well, this month we have chosen George Eliot’s classic book, Silas Marner, which, though set in the same period (the start of the 19th century) as The Romantic, was written about 16o years before.
If you’re not familiar with the book, here is some blurb for you:
Wrongly accused of theft and exiled from a religious community many years before, the embittered weaver Silas Marner lives alone in Raveloe, living only for work and his precious hoard of money. But when his money is stolen and an orphaned child finds her way into his house, Silas is given the chance to transform his life. His fate, and that of the little girl he adopts, is entwined with Godfrey Cass, son of the village Squire, who, like Silas, is trapped by his past. Silas Marner, George Eliot’s favourite of her novels, combines humour, rich symbolism and pointed social criticism to create an unsentimental but affectionate portrait of rural life.
The book is quite short (under 250) and can be bought relatively cheaper as a paperbook, even free on Kindle (because it is out of copyright) or borrowed from the library.
We will be reviewing this book and selecting our next book on June 13th at 7pm. Anyone is welcome to join our group and we may even make you a cup of tea or coffee!
