Can I just say that the first 600 pages were tedious? I mean it wasn't awful, but definitely not compelling. In fact I had to watch the movie first to get into the story at all (great movie by the way - love that Rufus Sewell). But the last 200 pages were SO WORTH IT! I can't believe I hung in there that long, but I am so glad I did. I loved this book.
Middlemarch reminds me a lot of The Way We Live Now, by Anthony Trollope. It starts out with lots of characters' individual stories and you don't really see what they have to do with each other except that they all live in the same town (Middlemarch). But at the end, all of their stories twist together and you see how they are all connected. The plot was way too complicated to summarize but the gist is: two of the main characters (Dorothea and Dr. Lydgate) make imprudent marriages and they either overcome or give in to this challenge.
My sister recommended Middlemarch to me and told me that Dorothea reminded her of me. What a compliment!!! I love Dorothea and wish I could be more like her. At the beginning of the book I was annoyed with her for choosing to marry such an icky man, but I think it served her well, in spite of the hardship. She became even more charitable and selfless as a result. I have to say that I feel genuinely inspired by her. She was always looking for ways to help others, even when everyone else told her it would be unwise. In the end, she was the only person to stand up and help Dr. Lydgate, even though doing so would help the person (Lydgate's wife - the self-centered Rosamond) who had hurt her most.
My favorite characters were Dorothea (because I want to be just like her), Will Ladislaw (because he continually placed his good character above an easy life), Caleb Garth (because he had more sense than the entire town of Middlemarch), and Fred Vincy (because he changed the most to deserve the woman he loved).
My least favorite characters were Mr. Brooke (because he was annoying, you know), and Mr. Bulstrode (because he was the biggest hypocrite ever written).
In all I give this book two big thumbs up! If you choose to read this, watch the movie first, skip the long political statements, and hang in there! The last is SO worth it!!!
The Lesson I came away with:
"...the growing good of the world is partly dependent on unhistoric acts; and that things are not so ill with you and me as they might have been, is half owing to the number who lived faithfully a hidden life, and rest in unvisited tombs." (what a great ending line.)
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