I did not get on with this novel. It purports to be a series of accounts of the lives and fortunes of a number of heirs to an estate in late 18th century Ireland, narrated unreliably by an estate steward. Essentially this is a novella prefaced by an introduction and other surrounding material by a narrator who is describing the real life estate of Edgeworth's own father. While it's an interesting experiment and must have been well researched, I could not get into it. ( )

Not really a book (short story) that I would have given a place on the list. I think it'll probably is there because of the historical component. ( )

I read this brief novel by Irish author Maria Edgeworth because it was on the 1001 books to read before you die list and I'm always interested in female authors on the list. This book was published in 1800 and seems to have been written about a "typical" Irish gentry family for the English public. She certainly didn't give Ireland the best representation! This book is narrated by Thady, a servant for the Rackrent family, who witnesses three generations squander away their money and land through poor management, gambling, drink, and unwise marriages. Their land ends up in the hands of Thady's son.

This book is important historically because the English ate it up and took it as a real insight into the rise of the middle class in Ireland and the bad habits of the Irish landed gentry. But the writing, plot development, and character development are basically non-existent. Thady's voice gives some character and there are a few funny moments, but this is basically a long run-on sentence in 90 pages. Any book published in the early 1800s will be compared by me to Jane Austen and there is zero comparison here. I'm always impressed with Austen's tight plot and character development and coherence when compared to her contemporaries.

This was interesting from a historical perspective, but not really a pleasurable reading experience. ( )

I was glad I read this because it has such a prominent place in literary history, but I did not find it as amusing as it is meant to be. ( )

This was a novella of 89 pages about the Rackrents as told by Sir Condy's loyal servant, Thad or "Old Thady." This is hailed as the first British novel. I found the narrator to be unreliable and babbling. I found the the story boring and plotless. ( )