Charming Charlotte Brontë
Happy Birthday, Charlotte Brontë!
April holds a month of celebrated birthdays. My daughter, mother,
and father were born in April. 😀 So were artists and inventors like Joan
Miró and Leonardo da Vinci; world leaders such as Queen Elizabeth II and
Ulysses S. Grant; actors Charlie Chaplin and Alec Baldwin; and authors Hans
Christian Anderson, Washington Irving, William Shakespeare, Tom Clancy, Maya
Angelou, and Harper Lee, to name a few.
Another famous author born in this month was Charlotte Brontë.
Charlotte Brontë, one of the three renowned and talented writing sisters, was born April 21, 1816. Charlotte, Emily, and Anne Brontë wrote Jane Eyre, Wuthering Heights, and Agnes Grey respectively, each using a male pen name and published their novels in the same year. Jane Eyre was an instant success. In her journal, Queen Victoria noted that she was reading Jane Eyre to her dear Albert. She had high praise for the book remarking that it "proved so interesting that we went on till quite late."[1] In fact, she reread it years later and commented that it was "a wonderful book, very peculiar in parts, but so powerfully and admirably written..."[2] Such praise may have been a highlight in Charlotte's otherwise tragic life. 
Here’s a look at that fabulously famous novel from my 2013 review:
Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë is my favorite of the Brontë sisters'
books. This novel is the account of an orphan girl who grows up in harsh circumstances to become a governess and eventually finds love. Throughout her
challenging life, Jane overcomes as many obstacles as Wonder Woman deflects
bullets. First she is abused by the aunt who takes her in after her parents die.
Then she’s shoved off to Lowood, a school that puts boot camps to shame. Heat,
proper meals, and decent clothing are luxury items. So is dignity. Jane is
singled out and humiliated in conditions that, in this day and age, would
garner lawsuits or at the very least a book deal. She deserves a T-shirt
that says “I Survived Lowood.” After eight arduous years as a student and
later a teacher, Jane finally sets out on her own as governess to Adèle Varens,
ward of the formidable Mr. Edward Rochester. She falls in love with Mr.
R., which is of course, totally inappropriate given her place in the household
as well as the fact that she’s kind of homely compared to his upscale friends.
Will they or won’t they get together—that’s the question. And I’m not giving
the answer. I can say, however, that you may find a surprise or two along
the way. This was definitely a memorable book which I continue to hold
close to my heart many years after having read it. Go, Jane!
How much do you know about Charlotte Brontë and Jane
Eyre?
1. What
was the pen name Charlotte used?
a. Currer
Bell
b. Charlie
Bean
c. Chuck
Brawntee
2. Charlotte
Brontë died:
a. While
pregnant with her first child
b. From
a stroke
c. When
she fell off a horse
3. How
old was Charlotte when she died?
a. 23
b. 38
c. 18
4. Which
one of these books did Charlotte NOT write?
a. Villette
b. Shirley
c. The Tenant of Wildfell Hall
5. In
Charlotte Brontë’s Jane Eyre, what is the name of the man who runs the Lowood boarding
school?
a. Mr.
Brocklehurst
b. Mr.
Stinkleheimer
c. Father
Smith
6. In
Jane Eyre, what happens to Jane’s
best friend, Helen Burns, at Lowood?
a. She
is sent to the chokey for punishment
b. She
runs away and elopes
c. She
dies of consumption in Jane’s arms
7. In
Jane Eyre, what was the profession of
Adèle Varen’s mother?
a. She
was a dancer
b. She
was a washer woman
c. She
was a midwife
8. What
is the name of Edward Rochester’s estate in Jane
Eyre?
a. Tara
b. Thornfield Hall
c. Pemberley
9. When
was Jane Eyre published?
a. 1816
b. 1916
c. 1847
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