March - April Classic Group Read - Agnes Gray by Anne Bronte > Likes and Comments

Agnes Gray by Anne Brontë is our classic group read for March and April. This book had actually won the poll for January and February 2026, but since I was the one who nominated it, it did not seem fair to be absent for the read! That's why it has been postponed.

However we are about to embark on it now! Agnes Gray is quite a short novel as Victorian novels go, so hopefully you will be able to fit in in.

Agnes Grey: A Novel is the first novel by the English author Anne Brontë (writing under the pen name of "Acton Bell"). It was first published in December 1847.

The title character Agnes Grey is a governess, who works within families of the English gentry. It is an autobiographical novel in a sense, as there are strong parallels with Anne Brontë's own experience. She was a governess for five years.

Like her sister Charlotte's 1847 novel Jane Eyre, Agnes Grey: A Novel addresses what the precarious position of governess entailed and how it affected a young woman. As we read, we will be able to identify many important and contentious issues of the day.

Those who have read Anne Brontë's only other novel, The Tenant of Wildfell Hall, will be able to see just how and where her social concerns began to be uppermost in her mind. Here in Agnes Grey there are parts which were criticised for their supposed "coarseness" and "vulgarity", as Anne Brontë's refused to ignore what she (and we now) perceived to be important topics. Novelists - particularly lady novelists, as she was revealed to be - were not supposed to question the status quo and social mores. The Tenant of Wildfell Hall was a ground-breaking novel, going even further in its criticism, but it was suppressed (and then heavily edited) by her sister, partly because of this challenging attitude.

Well that's enough for now! Are you intrigued?

Who will be joining us?

I have my copy on Kindle so I will be joining after completing a few reads. I believe I can join in either mid or late March, but hopefully sooner. Looking forward to this one!

I also have a copy on my e-reader and will be joining in.

Great! I hope to join in later too, but we officially begin today!

I read (and reviewed --I'll link to my review later, when others have finished the book, and are linking to theirs) this book last summer; it was my first experience with the author's work. Since my read was so recent, I won't reread it now; but I'll be following this discussion with interest, and will contribute to it if I can.