Perhaps suprising for a book about a young girl, readers of both genders and all ages have posted reviews about how wonderful Anne’s story is, “without violence, sexual situations, or earthy language.” We marvel that we still have the capability of being taken in by such a simple story. Somehow these novels help us tap into a primal instinct for nature and simplicity that reminds us of what life’s really about, and they do it most absorbingly.

Far from beautiful heiresses or men on panting steeds, the main characters of these stories are mostly old spinsters and sometimes a plain niece or two. The plot rarely goes beyond a long held grudge or–at the extreme–a woman left at the alter. But the stories pull you in from the start, as if you had known the characters all you life and are unavoidably invested in their fates.

Here we meet a slightly younger, much poorer Jim Qwilleran who has managed to work his way down the social ladder thanks to a few poor lifestyle choices. He is worlds away from Pickax’s celebrated “Mister Q”. This Qwilleran owns no pets. He has no job. He has no home. All his worldly goods can be packed into two suitcases. And his wife is now his ex-wife.

First published as a serial from August 1864 to January 1866 in the Cornhill Magazine, the story revolves around Molly Gibson, the only daughter of a widowed doctor living in a provincial English town in the 1830s. When Gaskell died suddenly in 1865, it was not quite complete, and the last section was written by Frederick Greenwood.

After a deal with publisher Simon & Schuster Inc, Amazon is adding 5,000 more books to their Kindle ebook store bringing the total amount of ebooks available to 125,000. Read an article about it here. Now if only they’d put up Wide Sargasso Sea and some Georgette Heyer ebooks, I mght plunk down some money [...]