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73rd out of 152 books
—
187 voters
A Pair of Blue Eyes
Elfride Swancourt is the daughter of the Rector of Endelstow, a remote sea-swept parish in Corwall based on St Juliot, where Hardy began A Pair of Blue Eyes during the beginning of his courtship of his first wife, Emma. Blue-eyed and high-spirited, Elfride has little experience of the world beyond, and becomes entangled with two men: the boyish architect, Stephen Smith, an...more
Paperback, 374 pages
Published
November 3rd 2005
by Oxford University Press
(first published 1873)
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From BBC radio 4 Extra:
Thomas Hardy's partly autobiographical story about the love triangle between a young woman, Elfride Swancourt, and her two suitors from very different backgrounds
Jeremy Irons is splendid!!!
Thomas Hardy's partly autobiographical story about the love triangle between a young woman, Elfride Swancourt, and her two suitors from very different backgrounds
Jeremy Irons is splendid!!!
This is a novel I would highly recommend to everybody, not only to Hardy's fans. The story is so nicely unfolded and detailed that you can almost feel the wind in that spellbinding cliff scene.
This is a simple story, don't expect great literary references or witty remarks. But it is told with so much gentleness and the characters are very well portrayed and developed.
Elfride, though, is not as the other Hardy's heroines, she is young, gullible and has grown up protected by her father. I though...more
This is a simple story, don't expect great literary references or witty remarks. But it is told with so much gentleness and the characters are very well portrayed and developed.
Elfride, though, is not as the other Hardy's heroines, she is young, gullible and has grown up protected by her father. I though...more
For whatever reason, my library did not have this book. I even tried to request it, to no avail. I ended up getting a free ebook to read on my iPod. Sometimes it seemed a little choppy in the narrative. It made me wonder if the free ebook wasn't a very good copy of it.
I must admit that Elfride annoyed me a little. For one thing, it annoyed me that she wouldn't tell Knight her whole history to begin with. I'm not a secretive person, especially not with my husband, or in her case fiancé. Not the...more
I must admit that Elfride annoyed me a little. For one thing, it annoyed me that she wouldn't tell Knight her whole history to begin with. I'm not a secretive person, especially not with my husband, or in her case fiancé. Not the...more
Read this as part of the Thomas Hardy reading challenge. The second time I have read this novel, and yet I found I had remembered nothing of the story at all. I was puzzled by this as I found it hugely readable, and really very gripping in parts, which I must surely have done the first time I read it. The prose is beautiful, the descriptions of landscape, and buildings are lovely. It is a wonderfully accessible Hardy novel, and one I would recommend to people who don't like some of the better kn...more
A Pair of Blue Eyes
I took reading this novel as a challenge because this is my first time to read such a long novel .Also, it consists of (344) pages, the English level of it is somehow difficult and the most important point I DON’T LIKE READING ROMANTIC STORIES AT ALL! >_<”
But I said to myself that I will read it and I will defeat my fears.
Surprisingly, It was an extremely enjoyable book and I don’t mind rereading it whenever I have free time.
I read it from cover to cover ^_^ and didn’t m...more
I took reading this novel as a challenge because this is my first time to read such a long novel .Also, it consists of (344) pages, the English level of it is somehow difficult and the most important point I DON’T LIKE READING ROMANTIC STORIES AT ALL! >_<”
But I said to myself that I will read it and I will defeat my fears.
Surprisingly, It was an extremely enjoyable book and I don’t mind rereading it whenever I have free time.
I read it from cover to cover ^_^ and didn’t m...more
A couple of introductory points:
believe it or not, this is the first ebook I completely read from A-Z . I use the Kindle app mostly to read excerpts of books, to decide if I’m really going to check them out at the library or not. Very convenient! I enjoyed this first ebook experience, it works very well in bed or even under the covers! By day, I still prefer hard copies and/or audiobooks
I had a hard time finding an exciting title for this Victorian Challenge, and suddenly I remembered Hardy fi...more
believe it or not, this is the first ebook I completely read from A-Z . I use the Kindle app mostly to read excerpts of books, to decide if I’m really going to check them out at the library or not. Very convenient! I enjoyed this first ebook experience, it works very well in bed or even under the covers! By day, I still prefer hard copies and/or audiobooks
I had a hard time finding an exciting title for this Victorian Challenge, and suddenly I remembered Hardy fi...more
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
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One of Hardy's earlier works and, if you're familiar with his style and themes, you'll see that it definitely reads like it. This was written before he'd really hit his stride in terms of writing tragic romances which later culminated in one of his most famous novels and also the least well-received, "Jude the Obscure." There are little touches of tragedy and disappointments here and there, and, if you know how Hardy novels tend to end, skillfully done pieces of foreshadowing that, far from comi...more
Thomas Hardy never disappoints! A Pair of Blue Eyes is his third novel, and it’s quite a lovely book. While the central scene shocked Victorian readers, that dramatic scene is very mild for today’s readers. That doesn’t mean this short book doesn’t have anything to offer. Hardy does a magnificent job twisting the plot and giving the reader a well-developed and unpredictable story. Some may call Elfride Swancourt a weak and watery girl, and she is! But she also has her moments of bravery, and she...more
This was a fast read, and I very much enjoyed it! If you are already a Hardy fan, I heartily recommend reading A Pair of Blue Eyes (1873); if you aren't, this just might make you one. A Pair of Blues Eyes was the third novel published by Hardy, and the first published under his own name. In his later years, Hardy created three categories in which he placed all of his fiction. The largest category, "Novels of Character and Environment," includes the well known core of his oeuvre also known as the...more
Jan 22, 2011
Elise
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
Fans of 19th century literature (but avoid if you have an aversion to unhappy endings).
My first Hardy novel. . . my first venture into Wessex. I don't think it will be my last.
I've just this minute finished reading it, so excuse my rambling, fragmented "review".
-Beautifully written, and quite a fast, easy read for a 19th century novel, though there were a couple of slower points. However, in each instance the narrative quickly regained pace.
-Relatively brief yet very evocative descriptions of nature.
-VERY well-drawn characters, that truly come to life in the reader's imagination....more
I've just this minute finished reading it, so excuse my rambling, fragmented "review".
-Beautifully written, and quite a fast, easy read for a 19th century novel, though there were a couple of slower points. However, in each instance the narrative quickly regained pace.
-Relatively brief yet very evocative descriptions of nature.
-VERY well-drawn characters, that truly come to life in the reader's imagination....more
Curse you Thomas Hardy! Curse you for tearing my heart out and making me cry like a dummie over fictional characters. I thought I was so smart and knew what was going to happen and you ripped the rug out from under me. You left me without my happy ending. Curse you! And the saddest thing is that I am no newcomer to Hardy. I've read your work before. As I cracked this one open I thought of my teenage favorite, Return of the Native. I should have thought of Tess! Yeah, you heard me. Poor TEss and...more
Elfride is the heroine of this story, who at first appears a little dim-witted for me to indentify with. She seemed rather to be in love with love than the men who admire her. Expect the unexpected in this book. All of the twists and turns make you think you know the road to be traveled, but the surprises around every corner keep you coming back.
It's Thomas Hardy, so it's sad. If you're going to read a novel by Hardy, spoiler alert, it'll be sad. Okay, that being said, this is a wonderful book. It is full of gorgeous imagery (no surprises there, Hardy), and real emotion. Hardy really used his own life experiences to explain the complex feelings that come from being in love, the follies of youth, and the fear of previous mistakes dictating the rest of your life. That's a common theme in many of his novels, but I particularly liked this o...more
A Pair of Blue Eyes tells the story of Elfride Swancourt, relating her struggles in love as she juggles two very contrasting love interests. The first is Stephen Smith, an architect who visits the remote village where Elfride lives to develop plans for a church restoration. After he’s won her heart, he reveals that he has a burdensome secret. The essence of his secret uncovers that he is socially inferior to Elfride, a fact that Elfride is not concerned with but her father cannot be convinced th...more
Hardy uses a love triangle to say a lot of things about love, class, women, and life, but whether it's the culture and time differences between us or a flaw in the work itself, I feel like I missed a lot of what he was saying. I suspect I often took as sincere things meant to be ironic, and perhaps took as ironic things meant to be sincere, but the tone seemed to waver between comedic and tragic unpredictably. Evocative but frustrating. Probably worth the read, however, for a deservedly famous d...more
I'm loving Thomas Hardy more and more with every book of his that I read. A Pair of Blue Eyes was one of his earliest books, originally serialised in Tinsley's Magazine from September 1872 to July 1873. Although this is not generally noted as being one of his better novels and is certainly one of his least well known, there was something about it that appealed to me - and I would even say that of all the classics I've read so far this year, this might be my favourite.
A Pair of Blue Eyes is the s...more
A Pair of Blue Eyes is the s...more
Thomas Hardy has so many beautiful passages in his works. I am thoroughly happy that I have decided to read through all of his early and less well known works.
A Pair of Blue Eyes is no exception. The narrative begins very sweetly with the lush detail of country life that I have come to expect in his works.
I didn't realize that this book is thought to be the origin for the term "cliffhanger". It lives up to that assertion for sure.
There is the ironic sadness in this novel that characterizes so...more
A Pair of Blue Eyes is no exception. The narrative begins very sweetly with the lush detail of country life that I have come to expect in his works.
I didn't realize that this book is thought to be the origin for the term "cliffhanger". It lives up to that assertion for sure.
There is the ironic sadness in this novel that characterizes so...more
Well, this is the last Thomas Hardy book I'm going to read. I've decided that he never will allow a character in his story to be happy, never find mercy or forgiveness for any perceived misdeed. And so it is in A Pair of Blue Eyes. In the cronological biography of Hardy I noted that he became an agnostic sometime in his twenties. Perhaps his dissatisfaction with God is the reason he can ill-afford any kindness to a sufferer. Of his books I've read Far from the Madding Crowd, A Pair of Blue Eyes,...more
this novel is a vast improvement from his prior work (under the greenwood tree), almost a shock. i'm thinking how did he become so much better in a year? but that's great, i shouldn't be a doubter. the plot is sound, the characters interesting, the setting not as dominate as in later works, and his insights into nature and humankind aren't as rich, as later works. this book is a romance, but not too heady or full of long narratives like Jane Austin can be at times. The ending is somewhat given a...more
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
Published in 1873, A Pair of Blue Eyes is Thomas Hardy's third novel, and the first to carry his real name. He is believed to have drawn from his own experiences during his courtship of his wife, as he formulated this novel of romance and social restrictions. Less dense and melancholy than his later work, this book is set in Cornwall, and, as always, the setting plays a definitive role in the story.
Budding young architect Steven Smith is hired to consult on the renovation of Endelstow Church, w...more
Budding young architect Steven Smith is hired to consult on the renovation of Endelstow Church, w...more
This is my 7th or 8th Thomas Hardy novel, and like the rest of them, it was impossible to put down!! I had to go hide myself in a closet practically just to finish this novel without any distractions. The term "cliff hanger" literally comes from this novel, but I don't want give too much away. This is one of those novels I wish I had read in college (in my Victorian lit class), as there is much to say about the role of women. Anyway, a must read for anyone who enjoys a good dramatic narrative wi...more
Ok. You know I love a good Thomas Hardy and this did not dissappoint exactly. He blew it on the ending. Hurried it along. Finalized it before we could finalize it. If you catch my drift. I wasnt in love with the vain and simple E but towards the ending I felt sorry for her. I was so looking forward to some serious dialog between the characters to wrap it all up but alas it was not meant to be. I mean we read these for the interaction and daily menutia of these peoples lives, right?! and just whe...more
Reading on my kindle app in a complete works editions as part of an online Hardy reading group. I have enjoyed this the most of the 3 we have read so far. I was thinking, towards the end 'vanity thy name is man'!
I hope this :
This novel is of special interest because of the strong autobiographical parallels between the characters and circumstances of Stephen Smith and Elfride Swancourt and those of Hardy and his first wife Emma Gifford.
is only because of a love mix up and not for other reasons.
E...more
I hope this :
This novel is of special interest because of the strong autobiographical parallels between the characters and circumstances of Stephen Smith and Elfride Swancourt and those of Hardy and his first wife Emma Gifford.
is only because of a love mix up and not for other reasons.
E...more
An engaging book, like Hardy's others, but more of a flawed romance. The dear heroine, Elfriede (that name!), is gentle to a fault, which serves er daly in Loveland in life. While I guessed much of the ending, there was one bit that I thought was gratuitous, which was a bit of a disappointment. It is also interesting watching the parallel rise of Elfriede and Steven while they are apart. While the rise makes the former's parents look a bit disgusting or vile, the latter learns the graces of a tr...more
To me, felt like reading the equivalent of a modern day romance fiction except with olden day twists and ending. How tragic! But it had all the awkwardness of realistic predicaments like the awkwardness of not knowing how to kiss, how to tell a lover about your previous lover, your previous engagements with your lover, losing interest in one and growing an even stronger love for another, having those two lovers meet, etc etc. I laughed in those parts- I can relate. It was an easy read despite th...more
I had high expectations for this book but the further I read, the less entranced I became and it's fair to say that this is a long way from being my favourite Hardy novel. When the story was about Elfie and Stephen, I found it charming but when Stephen left the plot to be replaced by Knight, I found that I had little care for what happened to either of them. Elfie's behaviour began to feel unnatural and try as I might, I couldn't like the character of Knight. I rarely give up on a book so when,...more
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| topics | posts | views | last activity | |
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| A Pair of Blue Eyes, | 1 | 1 | May 10, 2013 02:04am |
Thomas Hardy, OM, was an English author of the naturalist movement, although in several poems he displays elements of the previous romantic and enlightenment periods of literature, such as his facination with the supernatural. Though he regarded himself primarily as a poet and composed novels mainly for financial gain. The bulk of his work, set mainly in the semi-fictional land of Wessex, delineat...more
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“There are disappointments which wring us, and there are those which inflict a wound whose mark we bear to our graves. Such are so keen that no future gratification of the same desire can ever obliterate them: they become registered as a permanent loss of happiness.”
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37 people liked it
“You ride well, but you don't kiss nicely at all.”
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19 people liked it
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Jul 28, 2012 07:53pm