“Trollope did not write for posterity; he wrote for the day, the moment; but these are just the writers whom posterity is apt to put into its pocket.” Henry James
Anthony Trollope once said, "A novel should give a picture of common life enlivened by humor and sweetened by pathos." Trollope admirably fulfills his own criteria in this charming third novel in the Chronicles of Barsetshire.
When Doctor Thomas Thorne adopts his niece, Mary, he chooses to keep secret her illegitimate birth as he introduces her to the best local social circles. There she meets and falls in love with Frank Gresham, heir to a vastly mortgaged estate. With such a deeply depleted fortune, Frank is obliged to find a wealthy wife. And so, at the behest of his mother, Mary is banished and Frank proposes to woman deemed financially appropriate, despite his unfailing love for Mary.
Only Doctor Thorne knows that Mary is to inherit a large legacy that will make her acceptable to the otherwise disapproving middle-class society to which Frank belongs. The question is, will he reveal the secret before it's too late?
Where fiery passion fails, understated English virtues of patience, persistence, and good humor prevail in this most appealing of Trollope's novels.
“Trollope did not write for posterity; he wrote for the day, the moment; but these are just the writers whom posterity is apt to put into its pocket.” Henry James
“Trollope’s 1875 tale of a great financier’s fraudulent machinations in the railway business, and his daughter’s ill-use at the hands of a grasping lover…is a classic in the literature of money and a ripping good read as well.” Amazon.com
“We are heartily disposed to place the author of Doctor Thorne among the extremely select few who shine out like a constellation among the unnumbered lesser luminaries of the ‘circulating’ firmament. Indeed, we are prepared to name him among the illustrious living writers of fiction whom we are able to count off upon our fingers…Mr. Anthony Trollope’s style is decidedly improved; it was always masculine, vigorous, and free from any mincing affectations and foreign fripperies…in Doctor Thorne it has lost none of its vigour and clearness.” Leader, 1858
“There is genuine humour in Doctor Thorne…arising from the natural play of the characters. The characters are real creatures of human nature, flesh and blood, vigorously and broadly drawn, but not caricatured.” Athenaeum, 1858
Language | English |
---|---|
Release Day | Dec 31, 2005 |
Release Date | January 1, 2006 |
Number in Series | 3 |
Series Display String | The Chronicles of Barsetshire |
Release Date Machine | 1136073600 |
Imprint | Blackstone Publishing |
Provider | Craig Black |
Categories | Literature & Fiction, Classics, Classics, Evergreen Classics, Evergreen Classics, Classics, Fiction - All, Fiction - Adult |
Overview
Anthony Trollope once said, "A novel should give a picture of common life enlivened by humor and sweetened by pathos." Trollope admirably fulfills his own criteria in this charming third novel in the Chronicles of Barsetshire.
When Doctor Thomas Thorne adopts his niece, Mary, he chooses to keep secret her illegitimate birth as he introduces her to the best local social circles. There she meets and falls in love with Frank Gresham, heir to a vastly mortgaged estate. With such a deeply depleted fortune, Frank is obliged to find a wealthy wife. And so, at the behest of his mother, Mary is banished and Frank proposes to woman deemed financially appropriate, despite his unfailing love for Mary.
Only Doctor Thorne knows that Mary is to inherit a large legacy that will make her acceptable to the otherwise disapproving middle-class society to which Frank belongs. The question is, will he reveal the secret before it's too late?
Where fiery passion fails, understated English virtues of patience, persistence, and good humor prevail in this most appealing of Trollope's novels.