Reviews

Ruth by Elizabeth Gaskell

_bydbach_'s review

challenging emotional reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

serrasa's review against another edition

dark emotional tense slow-paced

2.5

nkbullard's review

emotional reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

m0rb's review against another edition

sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

alixv's review

emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad 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? Yes

4.0

manorclassics's review

I got about a third of the way through but I was kind of bored. I couldn't engage with Ruth as a character even though she was sweet enough and I just lost interest. Maybe I'll try again another time.

mrsjdoc's review

challenging emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? N/A
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

Great book!  

anyluster's review

4.0

Me gustó pero se me hizo un poco largo. Sin embargo el tema que se trata es muy importante porque aunque ya no crucificamos a las mujeres de esa forma aun hay lugares dónde siguen haciendolo.

daniellehullreads's review against another edition

challenging emotional sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

missbryden's review

4.0

I knew the basic premise of Ruth before I started reading, but the beginning chapters with her as a young seamstress felt very different from the rest of the book, but maybe that goes with the story, as it depicts her own different feelings and experiences as it goes through her history. I also read beforehand how it doesn't excuse Ruth, doesn't call her innocent, but even that sounded like a condemnation - maybe because in the mid 19th century when it was published, as a book about an unwed mother, perhaps they wanted a clearer understanding of her as abused innocent or condemned. I don't think the book tries to be overly clear one way or the other: it doesn't say "no, she wasn't the sinner" but while it disagrees with those characters (the common view) that want to shun her and her child, it doesn't disagree with her being a sinner, because we are all sinners. Ruth finds a home in a dissenting minister's family, the Bensons, and her sin is a major topic of discussion but it does make clear, at least for that household, that all are sinners, so her sin shouldn't mark her as separate from those "church" people who think themselves good and supposedly without sin. Her lover and father of her child is, eventually, called her "seducer" and the narration does indicate that she didn't have all the knowledge on those matters, that she ought, and she's been without parents and without caring guardians from a young age. When the man she loved, who claimed he would take care of her and everything would be alright, she believed him and basically lived with him.
The subject of "dissenting" Christians versus regular "church" Christians was interesting, but unclear. I don't know what the context was at that time (aside from it coming up in another [a:Elizabeth Gaskell|1413437|Elizabeth Gaskell|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1223499865p2/1413437.jpg] book, [b:North and South|156538|North and South|Elizabeth Gaskell|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1349633381l/156538._SY75_.jpg|1016482]. As far as I can tell they were all Christian, or claimed to be, and Mr. Benson, as the dissenting minister, was more sympathetic and clear about the Gospel.

The audio by Eve Matheson probably made it easier to read, she has a pleasant voice and portrayed a variety of regional accents.