Warriors are now rising up

The Guardian comments on the fact that British writers are doing so well in the Great American Read.

From Jane Eyre to Pride and Prejudice, a clutch of very British books have emerged as frontrunners for the title of the US’s best-loved novel, as a public poll that has seen millions cast their votes draws to a close. [...]
With just days to go before voting closes on 18 October, PBS has revealed the current top 10. These include Harper Lee’s seminal novel of racism in the American south, To Kill a Mockingbird, and Margaret Mitchell’s sweeping historical romance, Gone With the Wind, set against the backdrop of the American civil war. Two classic American children’s stories also make the final 10: Louisa May Alcott’s story of the March sisters, Little Women, and EB White’s tear-jerking tale of a pig and a spider, Charlotte’s Web.
But competing with these are some of Britain’s most beloved stories: Charlotte Brontë’s Jane Eyre, Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice and JRR Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings series. Two of the UK’s most popular children’s series, JK Rowling’s Harry Potter books and CS Lewis’s Chronicles of Narnia, are also in the running. (Alison Flood)

Our Auckland (New Zealand) shows off its (unexpected) Brontë heritage.

Auckland is a long way from the wild moors of Yorkshire where Charlotte, Emily and Anne Brontë lived and wrote, but their first published work is part of the Heritage Collections at Auckland Libraries.
Currently, on display at Tāmaki Pātaka Kōrero - Central City Library is an extremely rare copy of the only collaborative work by the Brontë sisters – Poems by Currer, Ellis and Acton Bell (Pseudonyms for Charlotte, Emily and Anne respectively). [...]
The copy now sitting in our Auckland library once belonged to Auckland lawyer and art patron Edmond Mackechnie, and was donated to Auckland Libraries by his widow in November 1902. It sits alongside Shirley, Charlotte’s second novel published in 1849.
Jane Wild, Manager of Auckland Libraries’ Heritage Collections is excited by the books on display. “Poems is a compelling example of the scope and value of our heritage collections,” she says.
“We have extraordinary items from all over the world, which have survived against the odds. It’s wonderful that Aucklanders have such a valuable collection right on their doorstep and we are committed to showcasing these treasures.”
The books will be on display until the end of October in the Reading Room on level 2 of the Central City Library as part of the Real Gold Case which features rare items every month from the treasures book Real Gold published in 2007 with support from the Auckland Library Heritage Trust.

IN (India) wonders 'What ties Jane Eyre to today's #MeToo Movement?'

Back to #MeToo - remember when Mr Rochester falls off his horse the first time he sees Jane? Jane gracefully helps the gentleman up. Upon learning that Jane will be the governess to his ward, back at his residence, Rochester, arrogantly, teases Jane of bewitching his horse that he fell off from. Sounds like a #MeToo incident right there. That isn't even the end of Rochester's tale - how can we forget his mad wife locked in the attic. The character spun an entire feminist literary canon: the madwoman in the attic. Speak up and you'll be considered crazy.
That is exactly what is happening in the ongoing #MeToo movement. Women are calling out predators living comfortable lives and, in turn, are being subjected humiliating questions about their own character. "Why did you allow him to stay over?" "Why didn't you slap him and walk out of the office?" "Why didn't you report it sooner?"
Warriors are now rising up, just like the mad woman in the attic and lighting fires that will leave nothing but ashes to the ground in the wake of the #MeToo movement. Just like Jane Eyre stood up to Mr Rochester and all the other men that followed in the novel. After all, Literature started and Civilisation followed. (Almas Khateeb)

Público (Spain) interviews actress Ariadna Gil about her role as Jane Eyre in Carme Portaceli's take on the novel.

Una mujer con la fuerza de Eyre, ¿nace o se hace? Eyre tiene mucho de Charlotte Brontë. Como su personaje, la autora tuvo una vida muy complicada; su madre murió, sus hermanas también lo hicieron, su hermano cae en el alcoholismo y ella estuvo internada. La fuerza de Charlotte tiene mucho que ver con las circunstancias que le tocaron vivir, todo eso fue curtiendo su carácter. También creo que hay gente que tiene esa pulsión rebelde o contestataria y en cambio existe otra más tendente a la adaptación o la sumisión.
Incluso en el amor Eyre reivindica su independencia y libertad... Hay gente que por suerte nunca tiene que reclamar una injusticia, luchar por algo o renunciar a determinadas cosas por principios. Pero hay mucha otra que sí se tiene que enfrentar a cosas muy duras como el abandono o el maltrato. Creo que en ese sentido Eyre es un reflejo de Charlotte, de cómo ella también sufrió el desamor, el rechazo de la persona que amaba. Se dice que utilizó pseudónimo porque no podía firmar con nombre de mujer, pero no era eso, lo que sucede es que no quería ser juzgada como una mujer novelista porque eso en aquella época era un hándicap. (Juan Losa) (Translation)

The Irish Echo interviews writer Sue Hubbard.

What book changed your life? Different books at different times: “Memoires of a Dutiful Daughter,” by Simone de Beauvoir. “Austerlitz,” by W.G. Sebald. “Wuthering Heights,” by Emily Brontë; “Jude the Obscure,” by Thomas Hardy. (Peter McDermott)

Ara (in Catalan) interviews writer Santiago Posteguillo, winner of the Premio Planeta 2018.

Es va llicenciar en lingüística, és doctor en filologia anglesa i és professor titular a la Universitat Jaume I de Castelló. ¿Té gaire temps per escriure? El trec d’on sigui. Les hores mortes, els caps de setmana, les vacances... Dilluns, el dia que vaig venir a recollir el Planeta, vaig fer quatre hores de classe, de nou del matí a una del migdia. Vaig parlar de Jane Eyre, de Charlotte Brontë i del Juli Cèsar de Shakespeare. (Jordi Nopca) (Translation)

Tranås Tidning (Sweden) tells about a recent afternoon tea at a local library during which the Brontë sisters were discussed.

Under måndagskvällen berättade makarna Anna-Karin Malmström Ehrling och Per Ove Ehrling, från Sandviken, om de tre brittiska författarnas liv och levnadsöden.
Systrarna Brontë tog avstånd från den av samhället sanktionerade normen för kvinnlighet. De ville bland annat kunna försörja sig själva.
Kvällen kom att handla om systrarnas personliga förhållanden, deras kamp för självständighet och om författarsystrarnas böcker.
– Det är böcker som håller för läsning än i dag, säger Christine Åström.
De båda föreläsarna är översättare med ett gemensamt intresse för Systrarna Brontë. Tillsammans har paret översatt tre av Charlotte Brontës romaner och gett ut en översatt bok, Systrarna Brontës värld, om de tre brittiska författarsystrarna.
– När vi fick erbjudandet om att ha föreläsningen här på biblioteket tänkte jag att det kunde vara trevligt med ett engelskt koncept rakt igenom hela kvällen. Sagt och gjort, vi bakade scones, skaffade sylt, kokade te och dukade upp med gammaldags koppar med rosor på, berättar Christine Åström. (Jenny Henningsson) (Translation)