George Gissing (1857–1903)

I learned a lot about myself while reading this excellent book. I didn’t realize how completely conditioned I am to both expect and desire a conventional romantic “happy ending.”
Gissing’s story of several Victorian-era women who are “odd” in more than one sense is mesmerizing. The main character is Rhoda, a fiercely independent woman who eventually falls in love with a man. The working-out of their relationship forms the backbone of the book, but many other characters and plots show more are explored.
Although Rhoda and her friend Mary are on the upper side of middle class, Gissing includes several working-class women and their struggles; none are trivialized. He has a fascinating insight into women’s problems and ideas.
The weak spot of the book is a trite solution to a particular problem. But that solution is also realistic in its own way. All in all, this is a great exploration of the hopes, fears, and ideals of Victorian women. Be warned though, that it’s not in any sense a light read. show less

What a gem of a book this is!
I came across this book on a Guardian list of 100 greatest novels (https://www.theguardian.com/books/2015/aug/17/the-100-best-novels-written-in-english-the-full-list) and had not previously read this one.
While I am generally a fan of Victorian era novels and have read and enjoyed Trollope, Hardy, Dickens and many others, I have recently found re-reading some of the books more challenging - they are often, long, the plots contrived, and the characters tend to be show more stereotypical. Well, Gissing has broken the mould - this book is alive with authorial insight, with flawed but believable characters and a strong theme - of the tough life faced by the talented but poor sector of genteel society.
There is still some Victorian nonsense: "In his gait there was a singular dignity; only a man of cultivated mind and graceful character could move and stand as he did." But this drivel is far out-weighed by the author's astute insight into the actions and behaviours of his characters.
In researching Gissing, I found that George Orwell rated him "perhaps the best novelist England has produced". show less

This book is about a rabble-rousing, working-class socialist who suddenly comes into money and thus gets the opportunity to put his dream socialist utopia into effect. However, money and power corrupt and he begins a slow moral decline. Like a lot of Victorian novels, it starts slowly, but it all turns out to have been necessary-- having established his players, Gissing can then upset them to great effect. As the socialist's marriage disintegrates, it's a very perceptive depiction of the show more complications of marital discord. Though the husband is very definitely at fault, Gissing shows how each partner's action inform the others, and you remain strangely sympathetic with the main character. It's a potent look at how snobbery can undo all of us. Or rather it would be, if Gissing's classism didn't occasionally rear its head, telling you that the problem isn't money, but when uncultured folks get hold of money. Ugh. As if rich people aren't capable of being vain and cruel.

The riot at the ending is a brutal tour de force (the title gives you some sense of where it is all going, as demos is Greek for "people," but is meant to evoke "demon") and the climax is perfect. This is followed by an utterly implausible and awful marriage match being presented as natural and fitting because of course a good intra-class marriage will fix everything, but I guess not even great writers can escape convention as much as we might like them to. show less

I read this a few months ago but the characters remain vivid. This is a testament to Gissing's storytelling. He took time to build up the plot and the characters, allowing you to understand how they feel and think. As a result, it's very hard to choose sides. Jasper Milvain may be a villain to break off his engagement with Marian Yule but how do you fault a man who took care of his sisters and has drive and ambition? Amy Yule thinks her husband, Edwin Reardon, didn't try hard enough but we, show more as readers, know that he did, and how much it took him. A clash between ideals and money, and there's no right or wrong. show less