Charlotte Bronte's early writings
By sally tarbox on 24 Jun. 2012
Format: Paperback
This slim volume (120 pages) contains items of Charlotte Bronte's juvenilia, written when she was 16 and set in the imaginary kingdom of Angria. Although this was supposed to be in Africa, the great city of Verdopolis with its sophisticated society (including the Duke of Wellington) bears far more resemblance to London or Paris.

'The Secret' makes up half the book and tells the story of an embittered ex-governess trying to wreak revenge on the marriage of her former pupil to the marquis she had hoped to ensnare herself... Although juvenile at times, and with a rather quick and facile ending, Bronte's later style is evident throughout.

The other two main tales are 'Lily Hart', where a poor girl captures her man and after some difficulty gains his family's recognition; and 'Albion and Marina'- a tragedy. There are three other fragments including 'The Rivals' a short attempt at an almost Shakespearean drama.

An interesting read for anyone who is familiar with Charlotte Bronte's adult work and wants to see how it evolved from her youthful fantasy world. ( )

Acerba opera di una Charlotte Bronte appena diciassettenne, il volumetto ha l'indiscutibile pregio di arricchire la conoscenza della celebre scrittrice inglese e racchiude in nuce temi e caratteri propri della Bronte nei romanzi maturi. Qui troviamo l'eroina, bella, innamorata e custode di un segreto, e accanto a lei la perfida nemica, un marito furioso, intrighi e misfatti in una atmosfera gotica in piena regola. La storia fa parte del ciclo di Angria, una serie di racconti fantastici che le sorelle Bronte e il fratello Branwell crearono da bambini. I quattro bambini diedero vita, ispirandosi ai giochi coi soldatini, ad un centinaio di storie trascrivendole su minuscoli libri da loro stessi fatti a mano. Si trattava di racconti ambientati in un regno immaginario, Angria appunto, popolati da cavalieri, fanciulle rapite, omicidi, figli illegittimi.
Per la prima volta pubblicato in Italia, "Il segreto" ha un solo difetto, l'infelice scelta grafica. ( )

Of all Charlotte Brontë's childhood writing I think the title story and a couple of others presented in "The Secret" are amongst her best. Of the six featured tales, only the last two failed to impress me.

But of course it's important to remember that these stories were never intended for publication, thus it would be unfair to criticise Charlotte.

I read early works such as this volume because I really like the three Brontë sisters' famous novels and am fascinated by their own history. Therefore, if you're a Brontë fan this is worth checking out, but if you're only half interested in one or two of their famous books and are not too bothered about the authors' lives then this most likely won't be appealing. ( )

Liked it, in spite of everything; the melodramatic gothically-tinged efforts of a teenager who would become a brilliant writer... ( )