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Jan 13, 2012

Tatiana rated it:

Out of all Bronte books Agnes Grey is definitely the one that reads as if written by a pastor's daughter. There is just a very familiar quality to it, a mix of self-righteousness, martyrdom and judgment, characteristic of "Christian" romances (yes, I have read a couple back in the day).

Not even once during the course of the novel does Agnes make a mistake and therefore she doesn't evolve, change. She is just the most perfectest creature ever who is mistreated by everyone a More...

6 comments like (22 people liked it)

Feb 15, 2010

Wealhtheow rated it:

A wealthy and feted woman falls in love with a humble clergyman, and insists on marrying him, although it loses her her dowry. The vicar cannot stop tormenting himself over all his wife gave up, to the extent that he loses what little money he has in a too-bold investment. As gentleborn, well-educated, penniless women, there are few options left for his daughters; the older takes up selling delicate watercolors, while the younger, Agnes, hires herself out as a governess. The first family she More...

0 comments like (8 people liked it)

Mar 11, 2009

Salma rated it:

The story is simple- Agnes Grey is a clergyman's daughter who wishes to earn her living as a governess. The book reads as a diary without the dates of her experiences 'teaching' the offspring of the 'cream of the crop' in nineteenth-century British society. I use those words in quotes because the narrator makes it very clear to the reader that learning for the sake of learning is not foremost on her students' minds. And she also makes it clear that she finds the fact that these shallow, arrogant More...

12 comments like (10 people liked it)

May 17, 2008

Mandy rated it:

There are two categories of books I can always depend on to serve as pleasurable, easy relaxation reading, and those books are anything written by Jane Austen or the Bronte sisters. I have read Anne Bronte's other work, 'The Tenant of Wildfell Hall,' and therefore was familiar with her style of writing when I picked up this book. Her novels have never attained the same greatness of the works of her sisters (Charlotte's and Emily's characters tend to be much more developed and their plots much mo More...

0 comments like (5 people liked it)

Apr 22, 2008

Camie rated it:

A review I read of this book compared it to the beauty of a muslin dress, and I'd have to say that's the best analogy you could make. The construction of this novel is very plain, and the writing doesn't concern itself with dressing up situations, but there are subtle touches of characterization and grace that really impressed me. Anne Bronte has a lively tone that I think could be fairly compared with Jane Austen (this book reminded me a bit of Persuasion, which is one of my favorite Austen nov More...

0 comments like (6 people liked it)

Mar 26, 2010

Sylvia rated it:

This is the kind of romance that I enjoy. Agnes Grey must be one of my favorite literary females. She's the type of role model who's not unrealistically perfect, but has developed virtues that make her a very worthy character. The book is certainly far from exciting or "passionate," but it has plenty of solid themes and lessons for young girls to learn from. It shows how the temporary pleasures of flirting are entirely fleeting, but the constant modesty and dependence on God is rew More...

0 comments like (6 people liked it)

Mar 28, 2011

Christy rated it:

When venturing forth on Anne's work, I decided to start with Agnes Grey, rather than her more popular The Tenant of Wildfell Hall. Agnes Grey is more autobiographical.

One of the things I noticed that differentiated Anne from her sisters was she was more to the point, more realistic in her writing. There was no taking the long way around, she got you to the point good and fast, yet without missing the sights along the way.

Agnes Grey is the story of a young woman basically More...

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Aug 07, 2007

Atrebs rated it:

This was the one Bronte sister I hadn't read. I enjoyed it more for its commentary on dealing with students than anything else. here's my favorite quote from the young governess that I think is highly applicable in education today: "...a more arduous task than anyone can imagine, who has not felt something like the misery of being charged with the care and direction of a set of mischievous, turbulent rebels, whom his utmost exertions cannot bind to their duty; while, at the same time, he More...

0 comments like (3 people liked it)

Dec 16, 2009

Maria rated it:

Since I've read books by both of Anne Bronte's sisters, I figured it was time to read this one as well, so I could compare the writing abilities of all three of them. Unfortunately I have to say that Anne is the weakest of them. There's too much telling and not enough showing. Even the romantic aspect couldn't keep me interested for long, nor did I ever really fall in love with any of the characters. However, neither did any of the characters exasperate me (as in "Wuthering Heights" by More...

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Jul 15, 2007

Rebecca rated it:

Again, I am very impressed with the style and proficiency of writing the youngest Bronte sister has. I really blazed through this book, whereas it took me a lot longer to read Villette (despite its being a much longer book, the time spent reading was disproportionate). I was intrigued by the article by Charlotte Bronte at the end of the book, where she reviews the life and works of her two younger sister, Emily and Anne. She really didn't understand Anne or her writing much at all. She had very More...

0 comments like (3 people liked it)

Jun 08, 2011

Jennifer rated it:

This book is primarily about the difficulties of being a teacher. It should be completely outdated, as eduction has changed so drastically in the last 150 years. Strangely, it is not. If anything, the triangle between teachers, pupils, and parents has only become more estranged.

If modern teachers were asked about the three things which most hamper their teaching efforts, they would list Agnes' grievances in the same order:
1. A teacher cannot teach in a classroom without dis More...

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Apr 16, 2008

Eden rated it:

I love this book. Every time I reread it, I like it more. I love how gentle, how subdued, how circumspect the book is. I also love the themes it made me think about that I very rarely encounter in modern-day literature. Themes like: duty, community, love of God, repsonsibility to God, focusing on others needs before my own. These themes are thrilling to me because they feel so outside my present culture and it is amazing to me to see how much they guide Agnes' life.

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Nov 28, 2010

booklady rated it:

This is Anne Brontë's first novel and my first by her. The youngest of the four Brontë children—Charlotte, Branwell, Emily and Anne—she was only a year old when her mother died. Raised by a reputedly gloomy and difficult father, the children seemed to transcend their drab and overbearing lot through elaborately constructed fantasy worlds which were the juvenile precursors to their adult literary constructs.

In Agnes Grey, Anne Brontë fictionalizes her own real life experiences as an More...

3 comments like (2 people liked it)

Apr 13, 2009

Michelle rated it:

I had always meant to read this, but it took the easy availability of the kindle to get me to do so. It reminded me more of Jane Austen than of her sisters' work, maybe because it was so concerned with the economics of marriage, but also, I think, the un-Gothicness of the writing. Her observations on raising other people's children reminded me of my own experiences, and her description of a shy awkwardness in dealing with the opposite sex also felt really modern. It doesn't get the "loved i More...

2 comments like (2 people liked it)

Nov 05, 2008

Misfit rated it:

This was a simple, albeit enjoyable tale of Agnes Grey, a younger daughter who seeks her way in the world employed as a governess. I understand this tale is based upon Ms. Bronte's own experiences and brings to light the snobbery of the upper class along with the often degrading way that the servants are treated by the same.

The first family literally has the children from h***, the second family being not quite as abusive, but still treat the servants as second class people. The you More...

0 comments like (3 people liked it)

Dec 28, 2011

Amalie rated it:

I read this some time ago and till I started to hunt for Charlotte Bronte’s books, I didn’t even know there was a third sister. After going through the biographical details Agnes Grey seems clearly autobiographical and gives the reader the idea how Anne’s life might’ve been shadowed by the talents of the older sisters.

The story is about a younger sister seeking to leave home and earn a living as a governess. The novel in this sense has a similarity to Jane Eyre which is also “a gove More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jan 17, 2011

Linds rated it:

This book is so much more like a Jane Austen read than a Bronte one! No crazy wives in the attic or Heathcliffe hitting his head against a tree in the orchard. No melodrama really anywhere to be seen.

I've never read a book from the lesser known Bronte sister before and I was surprised how engaging and charming this simple story was.

The story starts out with Agnes, the daughter of a vicar. Unfortunately her father loses everything in a bad business deal so she becomes a go More...

2 comments like (2 people liked it)

Sep 18, 2011

Marialyce rated it:

I was truly surprised by how much I enjoyed this story about the ills of society. It was a simple tale told of a young woman who takes on the role of governess to what nicely could be called a bunch of brats. Agnes, our dignified protagonist, decides to become a governess to young children. Unfortunately, those entrusted to her care are spoiled, unmanageable little curs who delight in the most appalling behavior including torturing animals, as well as one another and poor Agnes. Poor Agnes is st More...

0 comments like (3 people liked it)

Jul 12, 2010

Sarah rated it:

I don't think I've ever been so conflicted about a rating. Though the story is evenly written, my opinion of it was in constant fluctuation. The first quarter of the book, I hated. I found the writing dull and the heroine insufferable. While it's true, there was none too little self-righteousness in The Tenant of Wildfell Hall, I could easily sympathize. Helen was up against a decadent, domineering husband. Agnes, as a governess, grapples with children. Small children, to begin with. And, she ju More...

1 comment like (1 person liked it)

Sep 26, 2008

Jaclyn rated it:

In character, Agnes Grey is most similar to Jane Eyre - both governesses, both strong individuals. Jane has a rather rougher time of it as a child, but Agnes finds being a governess more challenging than Jane. Anne Bronte's book is a celebration of the individual and her right to seek happiness for herself, regardless of gender or socioeconomic class, as well as an indictment of social mores and the treatment of educated working people in England in the 1800s. Agnes becomes a governess to ear More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jun 15, 2008

Justwinter rated it:

Of all the Brontes, I think Anne is my favorite writer. At least, I thought that as a teenager when I was ripping through all the Bronte stuff I could sink my teeth into.

Anne Bronte's characters are a little more...I don't know if jaded is the right word, but a little more sharp and edgy than Charlotte's and way more down to earth than Emily's. Her writing is far less romantic/Gothic than either of her sisters. It has a more critical tone, more modern in character. I think she was p More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jun 24, 2008

Tina rated it:

None of the Bronte sisters disappoint so I did enjoy it, but it doesn't have the same pull as Wuthering Heights or Jane Eyre. It details what life was like if you were a governess, which was a very awkward situation to be in. It meant that you were of high enough birth that you shouldn't work (socially inappropriate), but that your family was in a situation where you needed the income so you went to live with those in a higher station than you. Since you're hired help, the family doesn't really More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jan 11, 2008

Cecile rated it:

I read Agnes Grey because I am currently on a Bronte jag. However, I don't really feel like comparing Anne's work to those of her sisters because, well, sibling rivalry is mean.

Some reviews of this book commented on an apparent lack of passion in the text; though that may be an accurate observation, it is not a bad one. Simple is not necessarily better than florid, you know. I did spend almost the entire novel thinking, "This Agnes is a self-righteous bitch" until it occurr More...

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Aug 08, 2007

Ann rated it:

Different picture on the dust jacket.

Anne Brontë's novel of a governess is a very interesting contrast to her sister Charlotte's more famous governess novel. As Agnes' family suffers financial hardship, Agnes volunteers to seek work as a governess. In spite of the families misgiving because of Agnes' youth, tenderness and inexperience, they finally agree. At first she gains employment with the Bloomfield family, whose children are probably the most horrible little hellions I've eve More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Nov 02, 2007

Eva rated it:

I had heard of Charlotte & Emily Bronte, and I knew there was a third sister who also wrote, but I remained woefully ignorant of Anne's literary contribution until I happened to pick this up while searching for Jane Eyre & Wuthering Heights on the library shelf. A slim volume, it is like Jane Austen "lite", if you will, with many of the same characteristics that her books satisfy. On the other hand, Bronte is not at all shy about attaching a very direct, Bible and God interwined morali More...

4 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jan 28, 2012

Martha rated it:

I've been without an ebook since I finished Lorna Doone. Thought I could do it, but I was wrong!! Had to start another one ... this one started off great!

This is a wonderful book. I'm left wondering why I haven't read more of the Bronte sisters' books. To date, the only one I'd read was Charlotte's Jane Eyre which is definitely in my top 5 all-time favorites. This book is not as good, but pretty darn close! I loved it for many reasons ... great character descriptions (I can just see that hateful More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Nov 26, 2008

Michael rated it:

I abandoned this one just short of 100 pages. Watching Agnes try to feel her way around as a novice governess was interesting for a while, but I soon grew tired of her ineffectiveness with her charges and her entirely blaming her failures on other people. It's not that she's unlikable, it's just that she's not nearly as heroic as she seems to think she is.

It's also telling when the most exciting part I read was a quickly-resolved question about whether or not Agnes gets to go home f More...

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Aug 16, 2007

Rebecca rated it:

While hardly the passionate novel of Jane Eyre or Wuthering Heights written by her sisters, Anne Bronte still writes a great tale. Based completely on her own experience, she was more interested in writing from a social activist point of view, than a fiction one. She was an original feminist. She is often overlooked by the dramas of her sister Charlotte, but is worth reading if you like Victorian literature. It is not as colorful, but provides an honest insight as to the lifestyle of many young More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Oct 25, 2008

Diana rated it:

Continuing my Bronte trend, I read Anne's first novel. I thoroughly enjoyed the experience, although I must say I prefer 'The Tenant of Wildfell Hall.' This novel, which relates the experiences of a Victorian governess, contains a much simpler narrative. Bronte highlights the isolated liminality to which women in this position were exposed - they are socially beneath the family but intellectually superior to the other servants. Agnes is seemingly invisible to many characters in the book, and More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

May 09, 2009

rinabeana rated it:

Though I enjoyed The Tenant of Wildfell Hall, I was not a fan of this book, arguably Anne's more famous work. It's based on Anne's own experiences as a governess, and it would seem that she hated being a governess and just wrote this novel as a tirade against the people for whom she worked. I have to say that I didn't particularly enjoy it and I only finished it because I'm not one to quit a book in the middle.

One small redeeming quality was that Agnes seemed to be quite snarky at t More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)