Wuthering Heights (1847)

This story is about two kids named, Catherine and Heathcliff. It is about how their friendship that grows into something so much more. It is known as one of the greatest love stories of all time. Even though fate seems to not be on their side, these two seem to find their way back to each other. Not even death can be in their way, their forbidden love is unlike any other. But honestly, my opinion on this story is it can be confusing and I find their love can be quite violent also, this makes me not so interested in the book but I still would recommend people to read it since it is one of the great classical stories of all time so different people might have different view on it. ( )

Once upon a time I called this my favorite book. I am not sure I can still say that twenty years later, but there is a special place for it on my shelf and in my heart. ( )

I decided to read this book because every other book I've been reading lately (Eclipse, Well of Lost Plots, The Thirteenth Tale) has been referencing it, and I want to know what's going on. With the exception of the horrible spelling used to depict Joseph's conversation and the fact that three generations of characters all had the same names, I found it to be a surprisingly easy read. The romance between Catherine and Heathcliff was not the main focus of the plot as I expected it would be, but rather seemed to be the backdrop for the entire tale, the way a war might be a backdrop. It has the same feel as a war, even: conflicted, unresolved, and full of tragedy. I was somewhat relieved that the story ends with young Catherine Linton about to, once again, become a Catherine Earnshaw. It is a nice circularity and finally a relationship that is going to (hopefully) not be the cause of the deaths of one or the other parties involved. ( )

Plot:
Mr. Lockwood recently rented a house from Heathcliff, a surly man who sparks Lockwoods curiosity. So he gets his servant Nelly Dean who used to work for Heathcliff to tell him the story of Heathcliff and his entanglement with the Earnshaw and the Linton family, a story full of jealousy and hatred.

Oh man, I hated Wuthering Heights. It was boring, there wasn’t a single character I actually liked (with the possible exception of Lockwood and sometimes I liked Hareton, but only maybe and sometimes) and I was only waiting for a redeeming feature that never came.

Read more on my blog: http://kalafudra.wordpress.com/2013/06/09/wuthering-heights-emily-bronte/ ( )

Though, in my opinion, not as great as Jane Eyre, I will say this is one book that people should read to explore the darkest of human nature. This tragic gothic romance really is piercing and haunting. Though this is not the love story that will gripe you and make you want more, it does show how dark love and passion can get. The characters do throw "tantrums" and make you want to go up to them and shake them or slap them into realization that they are acting stupid. However, this is their story, and the reader will learn how passions and emotions can control how a person acts.

The main character is not the loveable, dark and dreamy kind of hero that girls swoon over. He is very anti-heroic and very cruel. But there is something about him and the abusive relationships that he creates around him that makes you want to keep on reading, not out of pittance or because one might like cruelty or anti-feminism, but because you will have the hope that things will change and turn around for the better.

I would recommend this book, however with a warning that the reader will either hate or love it. I would recommend however that the reader look at the book critically instead of for a thrilling read. The story really illustrates and gives examples on how dangerous and pure love can be and especially how different love can be to different people. ( )