Bøger af Maria Edgeworth

It is 'Downton Abbey' meets 'Succession' - but in the 18th century.Four generations of heirs to the Rackrent estate in Ireland are shown to have unique talents for mismanaging it.The careless big spender Sir Patrick O'Shaughlin, litigious Sir Murtagh Rackrent, abusive gambler Sir Kit Rackrent and the kind but unwise Sir Condy Rackrent are brought vividly to life by Maria Edgeworth through a narrator, Rackrent steward Thady Quirk.As the four heirs fight and foul up, behind the scenes there is a master manipulator pulling the strings. Will he benefit from the chaos?'Castle Rackrent' is Edgeworth's first novel and is regarded as pioneering in the field of historical and regional novels.It satirises Anglo-Irish landlords at a time when the English and Irish governments were trying to formalise their union.The novel is alluded to in F. Scott Fitzgerald's 'The Great Gatsby'. It is also cited by Sir Walter Scott as the inspiration for his 'Waverley' historical novels.The Irish poet and dramatist W.B. Yeats called Castle Rackrent "one of the most inspired chronicles written in English."The Irish writer Maria Edgeworth (1768-1849) was highly regarded in her day as a pioneer of early 19th century fiction and children's literature.A friend of the novelist Sir Walter Scott ('Ivanhoe', 'Rob Roy'), she was active and vocal about political and estate reform.Today, she is rather underappreciated - and overshadowed - by other 19th century satirical novelists like Jane Austen and Anthony Trollope.A prolific writer, Edgeworth's best-known works include 'Ennui', 'The Dun' and 'Belinda', which was controversial in its day for featuring inter-racial marriage.

Lord Glenthorn is bored and lacking oomph. But before you feel sorry for him, it is worth knowing that he has a pile of money, a grand title, estates in England and Ireland and no stress.That is until he finds out he is not Lord Glenthorn, the Anglo-Irish earl. He is in fact the peasant Christy O'Donoghoe, which is a fly in the ointment for his efforts to provide for the woman he loves.At the same time, he gets caught up in the violent Irish Rebellion of 1798.Can he shake off the ennui, become a self-made man and win the hand of his love?Those who enjoy Jane Austen's novels, including 'Persuasion', 'Sense and Sensibility', and 'Pride and Prejudice', will love 'Ennui'. Like Austen, Maria Edgeworth has a gift for gently exposing the hypocrisy and accidental comedy of Britain's 19th century upper-middle class.First published in 1809, 'Ennui' is a didactic novel, which means it aims to teach the reader a moral lesson - like 'Aesop's Fables'.The Irish writer Maria Edgeworth (1768-1849) was highly regarded in her day as a pioneer of early 19th century fiction and children's literature.A friend of the novelist Sir Walter Scott ('Ivanhoe', 'Rob Roy'), she was active and vocal about political and estate reform.Today, she is rather underappreciated - and overshadowed - by other 19th century satirical novelists like Jane Austen and Anthony Trollope.A prolific writer, Edgeworth's best-known works include 'Ennui', 'The Dun' and 'Belinda', which was controversial in its day for featuring inter-racial marriage.