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    Cranford
    Cranford
    Cranford
    Audiobook7 hours

    Cranford

    Written by Elizabeth Gaskell

    Narrated by Davina Porter

    4/5

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    About this audiobook

    This classic novel has been thrice adapted for the screen by the BBC. Mary Smith relates the story of her time with middle-aged spinster sisters Miss Matty and Miss Deborah. Witty, poignant, and often ironic, Cranford is the tale of what these two women will do to remain respectable, proper, and kind with only moderate means. "... an extremely clever piece of writing."-Guardian (UK)
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherRecorded Books, Inc.
    Release dateJan 23, 2009
    ISBN9781436185912
    Author

    Elizabeth Gaskell

    Elizabeth Gaskell (1810–1865) was a British novelist and short-story writer. Her works were Victorian social histories across many strata of society. Her most famous works include Mary Barton, Cranford, North and South, and Wives and Daughters.

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    Reviews for Cranford

    4/5

    63 ratings33 reviews

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    • 5/5
      Absolutely lovely book!!! I loved every second of it and I was sad to leave Cranford when it was over. The village of Cranford is a place that is oddly overpopulated with middle age women. The women here would not dare think of themselves as equal to men, they believe themselves superior to men!! The women for the most part are all "genteel poor", as in they all have a claim to some form of respectability. Their lack of funds is never spoken of and to broach such a subject would be considered vulgar. This book is a delight and I would highly recommend it especially to anyone who liked Gaskell's other work, North and South. This book is much "lighter" than North and South in its subject matter and deals peripherally with the coming industrial revolution.
    • 4/5
      I was inspired to read Cranford by Elizabeth Gaskell after watching the PBS/BBC miniseries last year. The town of Cranford is dominated by women. There are relatively few men, at least in the social circle of the characters in this book. The main characters are all single, either spinsters or widows, and they fiercely guard their way of life.The book, originally published serially in 1853 in Charles Dickens' magazine Household Words, is a series of vignettes of the daily life of Miss Mathilda Jenkyns. This book is definitely character driven and starts off slow. Nothing truly exciting ever happens in Cranford and you have to get to know the characters before you understand how small disruptions can make huge waves in their lives. Gaskell manages to convey how important small events are to these characters. You get the sense that if anything big ever happened they'd die from the shock. The narrator, Mary Smith, a frequent (and slightly more worldly) visitor to the town tries to keep molehills from turning into mountains and for the most part is successful. But, sometimes even she gets sucked into the daily drama.Fans of the miniseries might be disappointed with the book. Many of the funniest storylines from the series are added. But, the loyalty and friendship the characters display towards each other should endear this book to all but the most jaded reader.
    • 4/5
      A pleasant story that ends with a bank bust. Lots of quirky ladies involved, mostly with good hearts, and what's not to love about Miss Matty. It takes a while to find out the name of the narrator, and then it's done with little fanfare. A friendly counterpoint to all the Dickens I've been reading, and well written too. Did I mention the tea business? After I finished the book I watched the recent miniseries. It seems a few other Gaskell stories were incorporated into Cranford, and some of the plots were tweaked. Read the book first.
    • 4/5

      What a gorgeous book. After years of avoiding Victorian literature, in the past twelve months I've fallen in love with Gaskell's writing. This is a short work: more a series of episodes than a linear narrative. It centres on the lives of a group of women who dominate society in the small town of Cranford. They are united by being single - widows and spinsters - and by the fact that live in genteel poverty.

      Cranford is at times laugh-out-loud funny, at times deeply moving. Within five minutes of starting the novel I was laughing at the gentle satire on human foibles and life in a small town. Forty minutes later, I was crying about the death of one of the characters. The pattern of alternating laughter and tears continued until the very end. At least, the tears don't last quite till the end: it's a book which thankfully ends on a happy note. Cranford is sentimental, but not cloyingly so. The humour cuts through the sentiment, while making the sad moments even more poignant.

      The novel is a first person narrative in the form of a memoir. Relatively little is revealed about the narrator, although more becomes known about her as the novel progresses. The narrator is herself a lovely character, although the real star of the novel is the wonderful Miss Matty Jenkyns. I love Miss Matty and I loved spending time in Cranford. I'm particularly happy to have listened to the Naxos audiobook version, superbly narrated by Clare Wille. Now I have to watch the BBC television series and see how it measures up to the original. This is a 4-1/2 star read.
    • 2/5
      Oddly I half expected this book to be funny...it wasn't. Rather it was boring beyond measure. If it hadn't been a book club choice (and admittedly I chose it) I would never have finished it. Not a book I would recommend to others.
    • 3/5
      I swing between deciding Miss Matty's a doormat and loving her dearly. Gaskell's wit is delicious.
    • 4/5
      "In the first place, Cranford is in possession of the Amazons; all the holders of houses above a certain rent are women.I love the first line of this book. The reader knows from the beginning that this is going to be a fun book. Elizabeth Gaskell doesn't disappoint. There are some men in the story, but they remain on the sidelines. They are not essential to the story. In fact, that's quite the premise of the book -- men aren't necessary. Considering that Gaskell wrote this book in the early 1850s, this is quite shocking. During her day, women were expected to be dependent upon men for everything. So, Gaskell does something quite out of character within the Victorian period by fleshing out these eccentric women who are quite independent. The book was first written and published in installments in Charles Dickens' Household Words beginning in December 1851. The book is written as a series of vignettes as we follow the women throughout their lives. There really is not much of a plot, but rather brief glimpses into the lives of these women.The women all abide by a very strict code of propriety. For example, visiting hours are strictly kept to after twelve noon. It would be unheard of to come to a neighbor's home before this time. The women also practice what is called "elegant economy." They feel it vulgar to discuss money, and everyone pretends that they have more than they do. For instance, they pretend that they walk instead of getting a buggy because it's a beautiful night -- not because it's expensive. They want to keep at bay any appearance of impropriety, which also extends to their household help. The maids are forbidden to have "followers" or boyfriends. One exception to this is later in the book when Miss Matty is older and her sister has died. She allows her maid Martha to have a follower, although it still bothers her. It's as if these women are holding out against the changing times. But, eventually they begin to see that change comes to all of us no matter how hard we try to hold it at bay. This is a delightful little book. The women are eccentric, kind, funny, strong and yet vulnerable. I highly recommend this one.
    • 4/5
      A gentle book in which nothing much happens, but which happens in such minute detail that you end up fascinated by the social mores of who will condescend to speak to whom in a tiny English village.These are the upper class women who didn't find a rich husband, and are trapped by poverty and social convention into a genteel poverty that seeks desperately to convince itself that any sign of wealth would be ostentatious in any case.Yet, even in this stilted social setting, the people are still capable of quiet acts of kindness (and have the understanding to conceal their help so as not to burden their friend with the need for gratitude).This is a book that I'm sure I'll read again.
    • 4/5
      These little stories are about life and love in the mid-nineteenth century. This book was first printed as serials as so many books were at that time. By the time Mrs. Gaskell wrote Cranford, she was extremely popular with the English people. This book is essentially a comedy of manners. The people in Cranford live genteelly and they are very proud of that fact even if they don't have much money. The book is about four old ladies and the life they lead. Mrs. Gaskell's characterizations are wonderful. Their lives consist of tea, cards and gossip. This is a book about ladies. There are very few men in it, but we certainly get a good description of the male species from the ladies' observations. It's a wonderful world that Mrs. Gaskell has created for us. Come and meet the wonderful ladies of Cranford.
    • 4/5
      I read this as a teenager and found it dull. This time round I thought it witty and a delight! It is not a great Novel with a capital 'N', hardly surprising, as the first part was written as a one-off for Dicken's magazine, Fireside Friends, and she was persuaded to keep writing further episodes. This explains while so many good characters get killed off so early (cheerfully dispatched with painful and lingering illnesses).
    • 4/5
      I suppose you probably want to know what exactly Cranford is about, eh? Well, there isn't really an overarching plot, rather, this is a series of connected, gentle vignettes about spinster ladies. I am pretty sure Cranford is to the 19th Century what Golden Girls are to my generation. It's geriatric girl power. The only real difference is Cranford's Blanche is a whole lot more chaste, her name is Miss Matilda, Mattie for short. She doesn't actually hook up with anyone, but has a run-in with an old suitor, therefore she gets to be Blanche.The ladies of Cranford are all genteel, and super fab friends. They respect economy and look down on people who are flashy with their wealth. They socialize, deal with deaths, gossip, and write letters. Oh and hang out at tea. I thought the cast of characters I have met so far all seem to be interesting and well-developed. You get to know certain quirks, which makes them feel like people I may know in real life. For example, there is one scene where the lady feeds her dog, Carlos cream in his tea instead of milk, because he can tell the difference, yet she gives her guests milk in their tea instead of precious cream. I definitely know people who treat their dogs like that.And I guess, I will conclude my impressions of the first half of this book saying I enjoy reading about elderly, sassy ladies. Gaskell has a very easy going style in Cranford that makes it wonderful, before bed sort of read.
    • 3/5
      The first part of the book feels choppy and episodic; the latter half, after Miss Matty loses everything in the bank failure starts tying the different strands together with the end resolving everything. The recent Masterpiece Theater adaptation took GREAT liberties with the Capt. Brown and Miss Jenkyns story lines, and the novel actually covers a great period of time: I think 10-15 years is suggested by the statement that Flora Gordon (the daughter of Jessie Brown and Major Gordon) is nearly grown at the end of the book (when she hasn't even been born at the beginning). I really enjoy Gaskell's narrative voice for Mary Smith and like Austen she pays close attention to the social action. Miss Pole has to be the poster child for skeptics.

      On a personal note, I started this book with my mother in the hospital in January. I will forever regret not finishing reading it to her.
    • 4/5
      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).
    • 3/5
      This book reads as if the author were a little distracted writing it; there are definite threads and themes, but not a lot of structure, and it ends rather abruptly, otherwise I would rate it higher.

      This is one of those books that takes you into the private homes and lives of another time. If you love Jane Austen, this book could be viewed as a portrait of the widows and spinsters so many of her less fortunate characters would be in another 20 years or more. Men are secondary characters, when they appear at all. "Elegant" ladies of limited means, described to us by a visiting younger woman relation, concerned with household economies, reputation, and social status, sparring with each other, supporting each other, showing painful strength of character, as many of them they face all their social constraints, disappointments, poverty, and personal loss. Despite all that it's often a cheerful and funny book.
    • 5/5
      Cranford is one of the better-known novels of the 19th century English writer Elizabeth Gaskell. It was first published in 1851 as a serial in the magazine Household Words, which was edited by Charles Dickens. The fictional town of Cranford is closely modelled on Knutsford in Cheshire, which Mrs. Gaskell knew well. The book has little in the way of plot and is more a series of episodes in the lives of Mary Smith and her friends, Miss Matty and Miss Deborah, two spinster sisters. But what is it about Cranford and its deceptively simple tales of country life that makes the work so appealing? It has been aptly described as ‘a piece of exquisite social painting’ … ‘tender’ and ‘delicate.’ Narrated by Mary Smith, a friend of Miss Matty and frequent visitor to Cranford, the lives, loves, tragedies, and triumphs of the inhabitants of Cranford are woven together seamlessly to create a tapestry portraying timeless emotions and choices.The petty social bickering, cold shouldering and jockeying for importance in the village’s pecking order are outlined in a humorous yet pointed way—the author loves her characters, with all their faults, and is tolerant of their foibles while holding them up to gentle ridicule. In every community there is an arbiter of good taste, a setter of trends, a leader of public opinion, and all the other social whimsies that make up this colourful collection of characters. It is not easy to keep secrets in this closed environment, and as Mary Smith remarks, “It was impossible to live a month at Cranford, and not know the daily habits of each resident ….” Despite the squabbles and occasional ‘no speaks,’ the ladies of Cranford would rather die than see one of their own fall by the wayside. It is the community spirit that inspires Miss Matty’s friends to decide to donate a portion of their annual income to sustain their beloved friend when an investment goes sour. As a different kind of history book and one that very possibly the author did not set out to write as such, Cranford is actually an analysis of an early Victorian country town. The inhabitants are shaken and disturbed by inevitable changes such as industrialization, the advent of the railway and other events that force an inescapable transition into an increasingly modern world.The appeal of Cranford cannot be better described than in the popularity of the BBC drama series. The teleplay by Heidi Thomas was adapted from three novellas by Elizabeth Gaskell published between 1849 and 1858: Cranford, My Lady Ludlow, and Mr. Harrison's Confessions. (The Last Generation in England was also used as a source.)A gentle, charming read, Cranford has much more to offer the discerning reader than a unassuming look at country life.
    • 2/5
      A thin plot stretched over elaborate descriptions of social interaction.

      If you really are interested in the minutiae of the lives and social calculations and every day mundanities of idle British women of “family” but not nobility in the early 1800s, you might find this book interesting. I actually really enjoy that kind of setting when it supports a strong and interesting story, but this book didn’t do that for me.
    • 5/5
      Cranford is a story that is hard to describe. The little town of Cranford is populated mainly by older women, mostly single or widowed. There are a few men about, but they are largely of a lower class, whereas many of the women consider themselves of gentle birth and do their best to act accordingly, especially Mrs. Jamieson, the town’s matriarch. The book revolves around Mary Smith, a frequent visitor to Cranford who often stays with the Jenkyns sisters, two unmarried older women who enjoy some status as children of the late rector. Most of the chapters, however, center in on Miss Matty, the younger of the sisters, whose gentle heart endears her to the entire town.This was not at all what I’d expected from it, and not in a bad way at all. My previous experiences with Gaskell consisted of North and South and Mary Barton, which are both very concerned with the rise of industrialism in the north. Cranford is much more a picture of genteel life as it might have been during Gaskell’s lifetime, in a small town where women rule all. Each of the women is made distinct by her own actions as they socialize, like Mrs. Jamieson who is a complete snob, the elder Miss Jenkyns whose sternness overrides any other aspects of her personality, and Miss Matty, a sweet woman who is too easily led by everyone around her.There is no real plot here. The chapters can almost be seen as a series of little stories regarding the inhabitants of Cranford, tied together by Miss Matty’s presence. There is a general movement towards what happens at the end but it isn’t compelling reading; this is a book to live in, to get to know the characters, to begin to care about what happens to them. It’s short, but it accomplishes these goals with ease and opens a window into life as it was. I was reminded mainly of a more sedate Jane Austen, less concerned with irony and overall plot but still depicting a genuine picture of an upper class society and its ills. She does still use humor to depict the ridiculousness of their situations; my favorite is when one of characters is complimented on her lace and launches into a story of how it had a little trip through her cat’s digestive system! I liked the book and I was completely charmed by it, but this isn’t a book for the impatient among us.Cranford reminded me of how much I adore nineteenth century literature. There is something so inherently appealing in Gaskell’s style, in the modest but earnest ways of her characters, and in the quiet community life that they all share. I can’t say this is a world I’d ever want to live in, but I definitely loved visiting.
    • 4/5
      Last winter, I rented Cranford, the BBC miniseries (starring Judi Dench), from Netflix—and that got me interested in the book on which that’s based. The book is a series of vignettes about the ladies of the town of Cranford, many of whom are elderly spinsters like Miss Matty Jenkyns and her sister Deborah, or Miss Pole (much as I tried not to, I kept seeing Judi Dench and Imelda Staunton in the roles of Miss Matty and Miss Pole).This short story differs significantly from the miniseries; the miniseries focuses a lot on the encroachment of the railways on the town of Cranford, and there’s a romantic subplot going on there. The book is much more centered on the middle-aged and elderly ladies of the town, as seen through a semi-outsider, Miss Mary Smith, the daughter of a family friend of the Jenkynses.As another reviewer said on Librarything, reading about the ladies of Cranford is a lot like reading about the Golden Girls. This is a very lighthearted, funny book in many places, but still very touching. The ladies are very provincial, focused on the mundane details of their lives—but very loyal to one another, as seen when Matty looses her money and her friends conspire to help her out. It took a few pages for me to get into the story, but once I did, I was fully engaged in the lives of the characters in this book.
    • 5/5
      Though the subject of the novel is a group of quaint, elderly ladies bent on manners and morality, the wit is sharp, the storytelling endearing, and the humor raucously funny. In fact, the humor took me completely by surprise. From the clueless old woman who take advice given in jest literally and dresses up her cow in grey flannel, to the maid forbidden to take followers who insists she never takes on more than one at a time, every page presents one hilarious comment and eccentricity after another. But the novel doesn't cross the line and mocks its own characters; it balances well sweet, endearing moments with the laughter.The town of Cranford is "ruled" by spinster sisters Deborah and Matty Jenkins, Miss Pole, and widows Mrs. Jamieson and Mrs. Forrester. The women live in genteel poverty, valuing their social positions above monetary wealth. Wearing an outdated dress is no matter, but heaven help a woman who marries below her station!The book moves along in chronological order without a major plot. Instead, we are given 16 chapters of Cranford life: their highs, their lows, their triumphs,and their faults. We are left with a charming portraiture of village life and of characters we would not mind knowing better.An absolute must-read. I knew before I finished the fist chapter that this book would be a favorite.
    • 5/5
      What if Lizzie and Jane hadn't met Darcy and Bingley, or if Elinor and Marianne hadn't met Edward and Colonel Brandon? A few decades later they might have ended up in Elizabeth Gaskell's Cranford, a village whose society consists almost entirely of spinsters and widows. Cranford is a deceptively simple novel, yet it has much to say about domestic life in mid-19th century England, and particularly the difficulties unmarried women faced in meeting society's expectations while living on fixed incomes. If you've read Jane Austen and haven't yet discovered Elizabeth Gaskell, I recommend that you give her a try. I don't think you'll be disappointed.
    • 4/5
      Ever since seeing Cranford on Masterpiece (made by the BBC), I've been meaning to get to this work. The makers of the television series took a lot of liberties with the book, but I think that the book and the TV series feel the same, and they are both equally good.

      I loved it - thought it was adorable and fun. It's a series of short stories tripping through a small town's life, a town whose society is largely populated with women (spinsters or widowers). There are no earth shattering stories, there is no huge plot. It's just a fun, little humorous look at small town society.
    • 3/5
      An inocent story. I really liked it the first time around.
    • 5/5
      I didn't love Cranford at first. It felt trivial and slow. But half way through the book I realized that I loved these characters, our narrator Miss Smith, the gossipy Miss Pole and most of all, the gentle, trusting Miss Matty. The book is made up of 16 chapters; each chronicles a small event in the quiet English town of Cranford in the 1840s. The women in the town are a tight-knit group, skeptical of outsiders and protective of each other. There are many humorous sections with mistaken identities, misunderstandings and unneeded panic, but those aren't the sections that will stay with me in years to come. The chapter that finally hooked me was ch. 13 Stopped Payment. When a local bank has unexpected troubles we have a chance to see Miss Matty's goodness shine. She is so selfless in her concern for others that it broke my heart. Her sincere love for her friends and neighbors knows no bounds. When Miss Matty own finances seem dire, the dear ladies of Cranford come together to help her without her knowledge. That's the true heart of this sweet book, friendship that rises to the occasion, silently offering a shoulder to cry on or a hand to hold. To me, this quote from Miss Pole summed up how the women of Cranford see themselves ... "We, the ladies of Cranford, in my drawing-room assembled, can resolve upon something. I imagine we are none of us what may be called rich, though we all posses a genteel competency, sufficient for taste that are elegant and refined, and would not, if they could, be vulgarly ostentatious."
    • 5/5
      Very impressive and enjoyable.
    • 5/5
      A young visitor recounts her adventures with some of the older ladies - primarily spinsters and widows - of Cranford as they live their lives in a charming small town.My idea of Elizabeth Gaskell's writings was completely different from reality. I had read a couple of short stories as an English major, confused them, and had this image of Gaskell as the John Steinbeck of the Victorian Era. I overcame some reluctance to even add Cranford to my TBR list. And am I glad I did! This book is a delightful, episodic tale of a small town and its inhabitants. The narrator often stays with Miss Matty while visiting the town, so many of the events involve this lady in some way or another. As I think about the book, I'm realizing that very little actually happens by way of plot, but the characters are by turns sweet, funny, and quirky. The story gives a picture of small town life in general as well as the class distinctions of its time period in an amusing, rather than depressing, way. Cranford has definitely convinced me to try more by this author.
    • 4/5
      Cranford details the tightly-drawn world of the upper-class citizens of a small English village. I definitely think E.F. Benson had the Cranford ladies in mind when he constructed his delightful societal struggles in the Mapp & Lucia books. Gaskell's world is set earlier and is necessarily gentler, but has a similar level of detail and observation. An enjoyable read, with subtle humor.
    • 4/5
      "Cranford is in possession of the Amazons; all of the holders of houses above a certain rent are women."Cranford is not exactly a novel, rather a series of short stories published in Dickens' Household Words taking place amongst the old maids and widows of the fictional (but seems to be a village in Lancashire) village of Cranford. Unlike Gaskell's other works it doesn't contain any of the social aspects of life in the Victorian age (apart from the social etiquette of when and which tea to serve), but it does focus on women; and although these women are genteel simple village women, they are as strong and independent as the Manchester heroines of North and South and Mary Barton. It's also hilariously funny in places - a gorgeous Sunday afternoon read.
    • 5/5
      I love this sweet, funny, gentle book. I'd always enjoyed the BBC show, this of course was even better. I was so glad to see how close the BBC was to the book. Superb reader.
    • 4/5
      A thoroughly enjoyable gem of a book. I like authors who play with language and complicated sentence structure, and I was not disappointed. Witty, subtle, and charming.
    • 4/5
      Very pleasant glimpse into an unusual world--single aging women of the 19th century. Poor, but hiding their poverty. Gentle and genteel. None of the explosiveness of Dickens, but well worth reading.