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shinysarah28's review against another edition
challenging
slow-paced
- Strong character development? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
3.0
Content Warnings
Minor: Classism and Antisemitism
language_loving_amateur's review against another edition
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Diverse cast of characters? No
4.0
The omniscient 3rd person narrator gives many different perspectives, but most of them are short lived, not extended, so it doesn't feel like too much head hopping to me. Perhaps because it is always clear that the narrator is none of the characters. So the narrator tells us that Lady Clonbrony is trying really hard to make a good impression and immediately tells readers how her actions are being received by others (generally not well). One lesson from this book that is still applicable today is don't go into debt trying to impress people who are determined to not accept you. I think that the critiques The Absentee makes about British and Irish society in the early 18oos are valid, but I am skeptical of the solutions it puts forward. It can be rather heavy-handed at times repeating in the mouths of peasants "If only our landlord was present to take care of us and did not leave us at the mercy of thieving middlemen, If only our landlord was here to encourage us to be industrious and better ourselves with education (to be better peasants - not to social climb)." The book also 100% uses the ideology that people from different nations (like Britain or Ireland) all have similar 'national character' that is 'natural' to them because they are, for example, Irish. The Absentee has good Irish characters and villainous Irish characters. It also has an antisemitic caricature who is a main villain and shows up several times.
I read this for Book Riot's 2023 Read Harder Challenge #6 read a book I DNFed. I started it almost 2 years ago but I was having a rough time, so my DNFing doesn't really reflect on the book. The romance plot was kind of sweet, at 85% through, I thought things would be easy to tie up in like 3 pages, but I feel like Edgeworth had fun with sending the hero hither and thither to search for papers and a squirrelly old man.
Apparently Edgeworth was one of Jane Austen's favorite writers, so I am going to count this for Book Riot's Challenge #2: Read on of your favorite author's favorite books.
I read this for Book Riot's 2023 Read Harder Challenge #6 read a book I DNFed. I started it almost 2 years ago but I was having a rough time, so my DNFing doesn't really reflect on the book. The romance plot was kind of sweet, at 85% through, I thought things would be easy to tie up in like 3 pages, but I feel like Edgeworth had fun with sending the hero hither and thither to search for papers and a squirrelly old man.
Apparently Edgeworth was one of Jane Austen's favorite writers, so I am going to count this for Book Riot's Challenge #2: Read on of your favorite author's favorite books.
aminowrimo's review against another edition
4.0
I needed to find a book whose author shared either my first name or last name. Since it's highly unlikely I'll find a book on FreeBooks that shares my last name, I found this one, by Maria Edgeworth.
The interesting thing about this book is that it was published in the same year as [b:Sense and Sensibility|14935|Sense and Sensibility|Jane Austen|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1309203534s/14935.jpg|2809709]. And yet they're different. This book focuses on Lord Colambre, who is an absentee from Ireland. He's not yet of age, he's in love with his cousin, Grace Nugent, and he's hoping to marry her once he visits Ireland.
Let me say that in its time, this was definitely a very funny book. There are at least three highly comic scenes (one featuring a menagerie of animals and an eccentric count), there are funny sayings… really, the only reason I wasn't falling off my chair was because of the style— which you have to admit is a bit outdated.
That said, this was a highly enjoyable book. I'm not going to give away any spoilers (I can't help but click on VIEW SPOILER whenever I see it). Suffice it to say this is definitely worth a read. Definitely.
The interesting thing about this book is that it was published in the same year as [b:Sense and Sensibility|14935|Sense and Sensibility|Jane Austen|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1309203534s/14935.jpg|2809709]. And yet they're different. This book focuses on Lord Colambre, who is an absentee from Ireland. He's not yet of age, he's in love with his cousin, Grace Nugent, and he's hoping to marry her once he visits Ireland.
Let me say that in its time, this was definitely a very funny book. There are at least three highly comic scenes (one featuring a menagerie of animals and an eccentric count), there are funny sayings… really, the only reason I wasn't falling off my chair was because of the style— which you have to admit is a bit outdated.
That said, this was a highly enjoyable book. I'm not going to give away any spoilers (I can't help but click on VIEW SPOILER whenever I see it). Suffice it to say this is definitely worth a read. Definitely.
catayane's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
impla77's review against another edition
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
This is an interesting book, tackling the subject of the Irish gentry living in Great Britain. It’s something I’ve never considered before, and its nice to see the regency gentry from another angle to Austen, Burney etc. Plot is quite generic with cookie cutter characters apart from the mom as comic relief
daydreamsonpaper's review against another edition
reflective
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
mon_ique's review against another edition
4.0
What a sentimental little thing! I loved it.
Took me long enough to finish haha.
I've taken away so many great quotes, and I will (wo)manfully admit that I cried a little at the end. The justice of it all...
The language at times was trying and difficult to understand, but the main passages more or less came through...
I feel like I did when I read Pride and Prejudice for the first time, at like, age 11. One day I may try again, or to be sure, I will definitely read more Edgeworth. I appreciated the seriousness and the humor, entwined with emotion. There was one passage so very awkward to read, but it just adds to the historical charm of the characters portrayed.
Made it in the quote book:
“Think no more of love, but as much as you please of friendships.”
“Friend...though the length of our acquaintance might not justify the word, yet regard and intimacy are not always in proportion to the time people have known each other, but to their mutual perception of certain attaching qualities, a certain similarity and suitableness of character.”
“When anything’s upon my heart, good morning to my head, it’s not worth a lemon.”
Took me long enough to finish haha.
I've taken away so many great quotes, and I will (wo)manfully admit that I cried a little at the end. The justice of it all...
The language at times was trying and difficult to understand, but the main passages more or less came through...
I feel like I did when I read Pride and Prejudice for the first time, at like, age 11. One day I may try again, or to be sure, I will definitely read more Edgeworth. I appreciated the seriousness and the humor, entwined with emotion. There was one passage so very awkward to read, but it just adds to the historical charm of the characters portrayed.
Made it in the quote book:
“Think no more of love, but as much as you please of friendships.”
“Friend...though the length of our acquaintance might not justify the word, yet regard and intimacy are not always in proportion to the time people have known each other, but to their mutual perception of certain attaching qualities, a certain similarity and suitableness of character.”
“When anything’s upon my heart, good morning to my head, it’s not worth a lemon.”
elysareadsitall's review against another edition
5.0
This book follows Lord Colambre as he tries to find love and a home he can be proud of. It's a highly political story about Ireland and England and the upper class. Edgeworth's style is superb; it's learned without being pretentious. She also makes it easy to love the protagonist by calling him 'our hero,' giving the readers ownership and involvement in the novel. With novels from this time, it's usually pretty easy to figure out how they will end, so the thing for the author is to make the journey exciting; Edgeworth certainly does that.
benababy85's review against another edition
lighthearted
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Interesting story about absentee landlords in Ireland