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‘The Mayor of Casterbridge’ (1886) by Thomas Hardy Arguably Hardy’s greatest work, The Mayor of Casterbridge is the tragic story of Michael Henchard, a man who rises to civic...
Wolf Hall’ (2009) by Hilary Mantel Recently recommended as a lockdown read by the Independent, Wolf Hall is historical fiction set in the time of Henry VIII. It follows the king’s...
‘Brighton Rock’ (1938) by Graham Greene ‘Heaven was a word: hell was something he could trust.’ This fast-paced thriller is one of Greene’s most famous novels. It tells the tale...
It seems that so many aspects of our lives have taken a bit of a hiatus since we all started working from home, and creative writing club has been no exception. Obviously, our...
Encouraging your child to write is an important way to support their development both academically and as a person. As research indicates writing enables young people to express...
Most of us have been having a fair few of those since the lockdown began, both literal and metaphorical. Like many idioms, the origin is uncertain, although it seems to be one of...
This week: ‘The Secret History’ (1992) by Donna Tartt The story follows a group of smart, attractive Classics students at an elite university, and an outsider who finds himself...
This week: A Short History of Nearly Everything (2003) by Bill Bryson A nonfiction offering: In his quest to provide what the title suggests, Bryson is funny, clear and...
‘To Kill a Mockingbird’ (1960) by Harper Lee This Pulitzer Prize winning novel concerns the essential nature of right and wrong and how good and evil can coexist. Through...
‘The Mayor of Casterbridge’ (1886) by Thomas Hardy
Arguably Hardy’s greatest work, The Mayor of Casterbridge is the tragic story of Michael Henchard, a man who rises to civic prominence but is haunted by his past. The first chapter features one of the most shocking events in Victorian literature, while the psychological mind games and dramatic plot twists in this story about the protagonist’s rise and fall, will keep your attention throughout.
I first came across this story as a child, when I walked into the living room to find it empty (very unusual in my home) and the television showing a man trying to sell his wife at a fair. I was fascinated and shocked in equal measure, having no idea what was happening or why. Fast forward to my GCSE years and my English teacher placed ‘The Mayor of Casterbridge’ on my desk. We began reading and I was hit with the sudden recognition that this was the scene that I’d witnessed on the television some years before. Finally, I got to find out what happened next and so began my love of Thomas Hardy!
