Staff book reviews - Cindy Friday 4/24

Cindy Garland is our go-to part time staff person and all around great person to ask if you want to talk about books!  Today she is sharing a couple of her classic favorites as well as some beautiful illustrations from her copy of Jane Eyre.

Although there are many books that I love, I have to say that there are two classics that I have read over and over again.  They are Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte and Little Women by Louisa May Alcott.

Little women is a much loved story of four sisters based loosely on the life of it's author, Louisa May Alcott.  Father is a minister and as the story begins, is volunteering as a chaplain in the army  in Civil War era Washington, DC.  The sisters, their mother Marmie , and a housekeeper live simply in a home in Concord, Ma.  The father's rich aunt lives nearby and disapproves of the choices her nephew has made, leaving his family with little money. But their wealthy neighbor brings his nephew to live with him and as they all get to know each other, their intertwined stories make for a lovely, heartwarming tale.  There is love, heartache, humor, beauty and joy as the young girls grow into strong, loving women, each choosing a different path of their own choosing.

This copy of Jane Eyre is a 1943 edition gifted to my mother from her much older brother.  It's one of a set of two, the other being Wuthering Heights.  The books have gorgeous illustrations that I love.  Jane Eyre is the story of a young woman who moves from an orphanage to a job as a governess in a remote, stark and rather bleak country estate.  She is befriended by the housekeeper but sees little of the master of the estate.  There are many secrets in the house and as Jane starts to discover them, her life is turned upside down.  There are plot twists and turns, but in the end, Jane proves to be a strong, principled heroine.

Both of these books are available on Overdrive/Libby and hoopla as well as multiple free places online as they are both in the public domain.