Description

Book Synopsis
'Do you like the truth? It is well for you. Adhere to that preference - never swerve thence.' - Charlotte Brontë, 'Shirley' The Jenkins family knew the Brontës in Brussels and West Yorkshire. Eager to learn about them, their descendant read the Brontë biographies, and discovered that no one had researched this family, and, worse, that what was written was fabricated, with one biographer copying another, embroidering, even making up dialogue. Yet Mrs Gaskell had deliberately sought out Mrs Jenkins when researching her famous Life of Charlotte. If it had not been for Mrs Jenkins, Charlotte would never have gone to Brussels, never met M. Heger. There would be no 'Villette', no 'Jane Eyre'. This book purges the lies and identifies one of Charlotte's characters for the first time. It reveals a thrumming wire that connects Byron to Trollope to Henry James, and gives further evidence of the adultery of William Wordsworth's eldest son. Above all, it gives a radical new perspective on the inspiration for Charlotte's novels and those vital two years she spent in Brussels.

Lies and the Brontës: The Quest for the Jenkins

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    A Hardback by Monica Kendall

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      View other formats and editions of Lies and the Brontës: The Quest for the Jenkins by Monica Kendall

      Publisher: SilverWood Books Ltd
      Publication Date: 21/04/2021
      ISBN13: 9781800420052, 978-1800420052
      ISBN10: 1800420056

      Description

      Book Synopsis
      'Do you like the truth? It is well for you. Adhere to that preference - never swerve thence.' - Charlotte Brontë, 'Shirley' The Jenkins family knew the Brontës in Brussels and West Yorkshire. Eager to learn about them, their descendant read the Brontë biographies, and discovered that no one had researched this family, and, worse, that what was written was fabricated, with one biographer copying another, embroidering, even making up dialogue. Yet Mrs Gaskell had deliberately sought out Mrs Jenkins when researching her famous Life of Charlotte. If it had not been for Mrs Jenkins, Charlotte would never have gone to Brussels, never met M. Heger. There would be no 'Villette', no 'Jane Eyre'. This book purges the lies and identifies one of Charlotte's characters for the first time. It reveals a thrumming wire that connects Byron to Trollope to Henry James, and gives further evidence of the adultery of William Wordsworth's eldest son. Above all, it gives a radical new perspective on the inspiration for Charlotte's novels and those vital two years she spent in Brussels.

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