Book Review: Mill on the Floss

Book: Mill on the Floss
Genre: Classic Literature, Victorian
Published: 1860
How I Got the Book: required for class

Synopsis (from b&n.com): Based closely on the author's own life, Maggie's story explores the conflicts of love and loyalty and the friction between desire and moral responsibility. An accurate, evocative depiction of English rural life, this compelling narrative features a vivid and realistic cast, headed by one of 19th-century literature's most appealing characters.

My Thoughts: It feels like a massive task trying to recount everything that happened in this book. It is a gauntlet of a story. We meet Maggie and Tom Tulliver when they are children. Maggie steals the spotlight and jumps off the pages right away. She is smarter and is more dynamic and unfortunately because of her sex she is overlooked and stereotyped. Also a theme that is presented, like many Victorian writers, is the fall from money. This book has also got me saying "just floating down the river..." you have to read to see what I mean. This book generated lots of critical thinking and great class discussions. I found a couple of my classmates saw different scenes in this book way different that I had seen. There are so many little details and nuances, its called "hyper-realism"...that genre may be a hit or miss with you.


Characters: Maggie Tulliver was a great lead character, she was conflicted and felt real. Her brother Tom was a jerk most of the time...but justified for the most part. I really liked Philip Wakem...Team Philip!

Cover Art: Subdued painting of a mill on the floss? haha Can it be anymore straight forward? I think not! I like it.


Overall: ★★★