What do you think?
Rate this book
The Brontë Sisters: Wuthering Heights, The Tenant of Wildfell Hall, Jane Eyre
Includes: Jane Eyre, Wuthering Heights and The Tenant of Wildfell Hall
Upon its publication in 1995, Juliet Barker's The Brontës was deemed a monumental achievement that set a new standard in literary biography; it garnered rave reviews and was cited as a New York Times Notable Book of 1995 and a Publisher's Weekly Best Book of 1995. In The Brontës: A Life in Letters, the much anticipated follow-up to that landmark biography, Barker uses newly discovered letters and manuscripts, some appearing in print for the first time, to reveal the authentic voices of the three novelist sisters. The letters detail the siblings' self-absorbed childhood, highlighted by wild, imaginative games; the years of struggling to earn a living in uncongenial occupations before they took the literary world by storm; the terrible marring of that success as Branwell, Emily, and Anne died tragically young; the final years as Charlotte, battling against grief, loneliness, and ill health, emerged from anonymity to take her place in literary society.
In The Brontës: A Life in Letters, Juliet Barker has produced a work of impeccable scholarship but also a story as dramatic, and undeniably readable as Jane Eyre and Wuthering Heights.
"Barker proves herself an impeccable editor of family papers we are all the richer for possessing." (New York Times Book Review)
"Provides a real sense of what those strange, brilliant people were like." (The Atlantic Monthly)
Upon its publication in 1995, Juliet Barker's The Brontës was deemed a monumental achievement that set a new standard in literary biography; it garnered rave reviews and was cited as a New York Times Notable Book of 1995 and a Publisher's Weekly Best Book of 1995. In The Brontës: A Life in Letters, the much anticipated follow-up to that landmark biography, Barker uses newly discovered letters and manuscripts, some appearing in print for the first time, to reveal the authentic voices of the three novelist sisters. The letters detail the siblings' self-absorbed childhood, highlighted by wild, imaginative games; the years of struggling to earn a living in uncongenial occupations before they took the literary world by storm; the terrible marring of that success as Branwell, Emily, and Anne died tragically young; the final years as Charlotte, battling against grief, loneliness, and ill health, emerged from anonymity to take her place in literary society.
In The Brontës: A Life in Letters, Juliet Barker has produced a work of impeccable scholarship but also a story as dramatic, and undeniably readable as Jane Eyre and Wuthering Heights.
"Barker proves herself an impeccable editor of family papers we are all the richer for possessing." (New York Times Book Review)
"Provides a real sense of what those strange, brilliant people were like." (The Atlantic Monthly)
815 pages, Hardcover
First published August 27, 1982
32 people are currently reading
639 people want to read
About the author
Emily Brontë
1,443 books13.6k followersEmily Brontë was an English novelist and poet whose singular contribution to literature, Wuthering Heights, is now celebrated as one of the most powerful and original novels in the English language. Born into the remarkable Brontë family on 30 July 1818 in Thornton, Yorkshire, she was the fifth of six children of Maria Branwell and Patrick Brontë, an Irish clergyman. Her early life was marked by both intellectual curiosity and profound loss. After the death of her mother in 1821 and the subsequent deaths of her two eldest sisters in 1825, Emily and her surviving siblings— Charlotte, Anne, and Branwell—were raised in relative seclusion in the moorland village of Haworth, where their imaginations flourished in a household shaped by books, storytelling, and emotional intensity.
The Brontë children created elaborate fictional worlds, notably Angria and later Gondal, which served as an outlet for their creative energies. Emily, in particular, gravitated toward Gondal, a mysterious, windswept imaginary land she developed with her sister Anne. Her early poetry, much of it steeped in the mythology and characters of Gondal, demonstrated a remarkable lyrical force and emotional depth. These poems remained private until discovered by Charlotte in 1845, after which Emily reluctantly agreed to publish them in the 1846 collection Poems by Currer, Ellis, and Acton Bell, using the pseudonym Ellis Bell to conceal her gender. Though the volume sold few copies, critics identified Emily’s poems as the strongest in the collection, lauding her for their music, power, and visionary quality.
Emily was intensely private and reclusive by nature. She briefly attended schools in Cowan Bridge and Roe Head but was plagued by homesickness and preferred the solitude of the Yorkshire moors, which inspired much of her work. She worked briefly as a teacher but found the demands of the profession exhausting. She also studied in Brussels with Charlotte in 1842, but again found herself alienated and yearning for home. Throughout her life, Emily remained closely bonded with her siblings, particularly Anne, and with the landscape of Haworth, where she drew on the raw, untamed beauty of the moors for both her poetry and her fiction.
Her only novel, Wuthering Heights, was published in 1847, a year after the poetry collection, under her pseudonym Ellis Bell. Initially met with a mixture of admiration and shock, the novel’s structure, emotional intensity, and portrayal of violent passion and moral ambiguity stood in stark contrast to the conventions of Victorian fiction. Many readers, unable to reconcile its power with the expected gentility of a woman writer, assumed it had been written by a man. The novel tells the story of Heathcliff and Catherine Earnshaw—two characters driven by obsessive love, cruelty, and vengeance—and explores themes of nature, the supernatural, and the destructive power of unresolved emotion. Though controversial at the time, Wuthering Heights is now considered a landmark in English literature, acclaimed for its originality, psychological insight, and poetic vision.
Emily's personality has been the subject of much speculation, shaped in part by her sister Charlotte’s later writings and by Victorian biographies that often sought to romanticize or domesticate her character. While some accounts depict her as intensely shy and austere, others highlight her fierce independence, deep empathy with animals, and profound inner life. She is remembered as a solitary figure, closely attuned to the rhythms of the natural world, with a quiet but formidable intellect and a passion for truth and freedom. Her dog, Keeper, was a constant companion and, according to many, a window into her capacity for fierce, loyal love.
Emily Brontë died of tuberculosis on 19 December 1848 at the age of thirty, just a year after the publication of her novel. Her early death, following those of her brother Branwell and soon to
The Brontë children created elaborate fictional worlds, notably Angria and later Gondal, which served as an outlet for their creative energies. Emily, in particular, gravitated toward Gondal, a mysterious, windswept imaginary land she developed with her sister Anne. Her early poetry, much of it steeped in the mythology and characters of Gondal, demonstrated a remarkable lyrical force and emotional depth. These poems remained private until discovered by Charlotte in 1845, after which Emily reluctantly agreed to publish them in the 1846 collection Poems by Currer, Ellis, and Acton Bell, using the pseudonym Ellis Bell to conceal her gender. Though the volume sold few copies, critics identified Emily’s poems as the strongest in the collection, lauding her for their music, power, and visionary quality.
Emily was intensely private and reclusive by nature. She briefly attended schools in Cowan Bridge and Roe Head but was plagued by homesickness and preferred the solitude of the Yorkshire moors, which inspired much of her work. She worked briefly as a teacher but found the demands of the profession exhausting. She also studied in Brussels with Charlotte in 1842, but again found herself alienated and yearning for home. Throughout her life, Emily remained closely bonded with her siblings, particularly Anne, and with the landscape of Haworth, where she drew on the raw, untamed beauty of the moors for both her poetry and her fiction.
Her only novel, Wuthering Heights, was published in 1847, a year after the poetry collection, under her pseudonym Ellis Bell. Initially met with a mixture of admiration and shock, the novel’s structure, emotional intensity, and portrayal of violent passion and moral ambiguity stood in stark contrast to the conventions of Victorian fiction. Many readers, unable to reconcile its power with the expected gentility of a woman writer, assumed it had been written by a man. The novel tells the story of Heathcliff and Catherine Earnshaw—two characters driven by obsessive love, cruelty, and vengeance—and explores themes of nature, the supernatural, and the destructive power of unresolved emotion. Though controversial at the time, Wuthering Heights is now considered a landmark in English literature, acclaimed for its originality, psychological insight, and poetic vision.
Emily's personality has been the subject of much speculation, shaped in part by her sister Charlotte’s later writings and by Victorian biographies that often sought to romanticize or domesticate her character. While some accounts depict her as intensely shy and austere, others highlight her fierce independence, deep empathy with animals, and profound inner life. She is remembered as a solitary figure, closely attuned to the rhythms of the natural world, with a quiet but formidable intellect and a passion for truth and freedom. Her dog, Keeper, was a constant companion and, according to many, a window into her capacity for fierce, loyal love.
Emily Brontë died of tuberculosis on 19 December 1848 at the age of thirty, just a year after the publication of her novel. Her early death, following those of her brother Branwell and soon to
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews
April 30, 2008
I only read Jane Eyre and Wuthering Heights. They were written very well and I give Jane Eyre five stars. However, Wuthering Heights was too grim and morbid a story although written beautifully so I give it four stars.
September 27, 2008
Jane Eyre-Bronte's development of such a moral and courageous woman is to be applauded. We need more of these heroines in our day and time!
Working on reading the others
Working on reading the others
August 25, 2008
I love Jane Eyre! Fell in love with it in High School and still love it.
January 4, 2019
Love love love
October 15, 2025
Interesting reading these back to back. Aspects come out such as how much they were presumably writing to entertain each other with their own insider story hooks. It took on the feel of fanfic a bit once I started noticing revisions I assumed were for an immediate audience, for overly long stories published serially. They became more approachable viewed that way.
May 2, 2008
Jane Eyre:
I had a hard time getting into this book at first. At the time I was very busy. It was a sweet and sad story. It has a surprising twist and is still very romantic.
I couldn't just find "Jane Eyre" by Charlotte Bronte. I haven't read the other two books listed with this but I do want to read Wuthering Heights.
I had a hard time getting into this book at first. At the time I was very busy. It was a sweet and sad story. It has a surprising twist and is still very romantic.
I couldn't just find "Jane Eyre" by Charlotte Bronte. I haven't read the other two books listed with this but I do want to read Wuthering Heights.
June 2, 2015
Pretty much what I expected: Victorian gothic melodrama spewed all over the place. Not really what I'd call an excellent book; I had no special love for any of the characters, and the story was of course slightly silly. And yet, I had the irresistible urge to finish it.
April 30, 2008
I only read Jane Eyre, and I loved it. I surprised myself and my lack of morals, when I found myself wishing Jane would just forget about Mr. Whatever_his_name_is crazy, phyco wife and run away with him- Are you shocked with me :)!!!!
May 3, 2008
Jane Eyre is one of my favorite books. It is a little wordy, but so, so amazing. I have read Wuthering Heights. I don't like it as well, but it is a good dark, crazy people story.
I ave not read "The Tenant of Wildfell Hall." Is it good?
I ave not read "The Tenant of Wildfell Hall." Is it good?
May 3, 2008
I've only read Jane Eyre from this book. I read it in college for a lit class so that might be why I was so into it. But I really did like it!
May 10, 2008
liked them all, but i'm a sucker for the classics
May 10, 2008
I tried to find "Jane Eyre" alone, but couldn't. It's a classic love story and I adored it :)
Read
September 27, 2009currently reading jane eyre, read w. heights and the tenant, loved both. these books have restored my faith in female writers.
June 21, 2010
Simply amazing. The Bronte sisters really don't need any explanation.
January 14, 2011
I love all the classics, especially the Bronte' sisters.
May 22, 2011
I love having these three classics together in one volume with an interesting cover.
July 8, 2012
I have read them all, but it is really only Jane Eyre that I love and have read repeatedly.
July 30, 2014
Thumbs up to Wuthering Heights which is the least romantic story ever, and to Jane Eyre, but I can't get into Wildfell at all.
March 14, 2015
I liked all three stories. Many reoccurring themes in all three stories. Abandonment by the father, alcoholism and abuse, working as governesses. Makes me wonder how much was from their real life.
February 2, 2008
These are definitely the three best of the Brontes.
July 9, 2009
tenant is suprising
theme governess, victorian woman , legal
theme governess, victorian woman , legal
August 24, 2011
Loved all three stories but I think The Tenant of Wildfell Hall was my favorite.
Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews