Revisit the Brontës in July

According to Vogue, one of the best things to do in July is to

Revisit the Brontës 

The allure of the Brontës never wanes. Earlier this year [well, it was about a month ago], Sotheby’s announced the rediscovery of the Honresfield Library collection, amassed at the turn of the century and presumed lost, including a wealth of treasures belonging to the Yorkshire-based sisters. Included in their number: rare handwritten verse by Emily mentioned in the preface to Wuthering Heights, and the family’s copy of A History of British Birds, made famous in the opening chapter of Charlotte’s Jane Eyre. If placing a bid at the forthcoming auction is out of budget, order a copy of the newly released volume Walking the Invisible by Michael Stewart, a gripping study of the landmarks that inspired the Brontës, and stay tuned for the release of an Emily Brontë biopic, starring Emma Mackey and Joe Alwyn, in 2022. (Hayley Maitland)

Keighley News reports that there are talks about having an extra through train between London and Keighley.

“Businesses and leisure attractions in Keighley and surrounding Brontë Country would benefit hugely from a second through train from London, departing King’s Cross say at 9am and arriving in Keighley at noon. This could be advertised and actively promoted as The Airedale Express – destination Brontë Country & the Dales.

“That same train would return to King’s Cross early afternoon, providing a welcome facility for locals heading to London for shopping or theatre and staying overnight – to return the following day on the 9am to Keighley and Skipton.”

He said Keighley district had many attractions to draw visitors, including the Worth Valley Railway, rail museums at Ingrow and Oxenhope, East Riddlesden Hall, Cliffe Castle Museum and park, the Brontë Parsonage Museum and the surrounding landscape. (Alistair Shand)

Writing reviews Widowland by C.J. Carey.

Rose, the novel’s central character, is a member of the Geli caste – the golden ticket, ostensibly, but only when compared to the circumstances of those below.  Rose works for the Cultural Ministry and is tasked with removing perceived subversive texts from the literature she loves.  Rose is an intelligent woman for whom inventing a narrative that presents Jane Eyre as submissive, or Elizabeth Bennett as dull, to support the ideology of her employer, severely conflicts with her innate feminist beliefs. (Angela Connaughton)

The Independent is digging into the archives of its books section and has come up with a review of The Book Thief by Markus Zusak by former Spice Girl Geri Halliwell.

Whenever anyone asks me what my favourite book is, I find it very hard to answer. I have read so many brilliant books. It is tempting to pick a classic: Lawrence’s Sons and Lovers, a Dickens, a Brontë – and I do love Wilde’s The Picture of Dorian Gray. But the one book I cannot let go of is The Book Thief by Markus Zusak.

Finally, a question from The Guardian's weekend quiz.

What links: [...]

14 Ellis (1); Acton (2); Currer (4)? [...]

14 Pseudonyms of Brontë sisters: Emily, Anne and Charlotte (number of completed novels). (Thomas Eaton)