This was good but I enjoyed [b:North and South|156538|North and South|Elizabeth Gaskell|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1349633381l/156538._SY75_.jpg|1016482] and [b:Wives and Daughters|383206|Wives and Daughters|Elizabeth Gaskell|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1348267609l/383206._SY75_.jpg|816009] much more. ( )

So delightfully humourous. I really, really enjoyed this story. The book includes, at the end, a brief biography of Mrs. Gaskell, a description of its setting and a set of questions for the use of English Teachers ( )

A classic book by Gaskill of a small town - almost a village - in rural England, dominated by women of a certain age. Whilst not rich, they are not necessarily poor and they have developed their own ways of presenting themselves to the local community.

The book is narrated by Mary Smith, not a native of Cranford, who makes occasional visits to Miss Mattie (and her older sister Miss Deborah, whilst she is alive), a spinster in her 50s. There is no plot, per se, rather each chapter describing an occurrence in the village and the resident's reaction to it, which can often be wildly out of proportion to what actually happened.

This is a light and amusing book, which disappointed me slightly when I realised I'd been daft enough to think this was a (Lark Rise to) Candleford book (whoops!), even though I could see a similarity in some of the characters. Looking at some other reviews of this book, it seems I am not mistaken for confusing the two (Cranford/Candleford; both set in the middle of the 19th Century; etc).

( )

A fun, easy read, though if I had to choose, I'd pick an Austen any day. ( )

A Book Based On Or Turned Into A TV Show

The introduction to my copy of Cranford says that Elizabeth Gaskell "did not intend [the book] as a novel—she had hoped to create a series of sketches to help Americans understand English country life." The first two chapters certainly read that way. But after brief introductions to "Our Society" and "The Captain, Gaskell launches into a full-blown narrative about Matilda Jenkyns—Matty to her friends— a middle-aged old maid living in the small town of Cranford.

Told by Matty's good friend and intermittent housemate, Mary Small, Cranford relates the interactions of Matty and her mostly spinster friends, Miss Pole, Mrs. Fitz-Adams, Mrs. Forrester and Mrs. Jamieson. These ladies consider themselves the elite of Cranford society, yet spend the better part of the novel showing their small-town provincialism. Spatting over a visiting Lady becoming engaged to the lowly town surgeon (the second straight book I've read from this era where doctors were held in low esteem). Frightening themselves and each other with rumors of marauding ruffians (who may be nothing more than passing strangers). Enjoying the magic act of a visiting Turkish conjuror (but only after they see the Rector in the audience, obviously conveying the church's approval of the evening's entertainment).

Cranford is a witty exploration of the way virtuous women can simultaneously be petty and pretentious, wrapped inside a satisfying tale of heartbreak, familial and financial loss, and—ultimately—the redemptive power of simple decency. ( )