Dark Romance Was Born Here

The Washington Examiner describes Lena Dunham's new series, Too Much:

When Jessica’s long-term boyfriend leaves her and promptly gets engaged to a social media influencer, she flees to London under the guise of career reinvention. Really, she’s chasing an English countryside fantasy where she plays Elizabeth Bennet, pining for a Mr. Darcy to sweep her off her feet. Instead, she finds Felix (Will Sharpe), a brooding indie musician with black nail polish, estranged family ties, and a relapsing drug addiction who is closer in spirit to Emily Brontë’s Heathcliff than Jane Austen’s Darcy. (Harry Khachatrian)

Image interviews the writer Aisling Rawle:

Sarah Gill: What are your top three favourite books of all time, and why?

A.R.: Impossible! But for now I’ll say: Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë. Outline by Rachel Cusk and Ulysses by James Joyce. 

A Young(ish) Perspective reviews Gary Starr's Classic Penguins as seen at the Edinburgh Fringe:

When the show begins, Starr slowly swivels around to face us, turns in his swivel chair to face the audience, showcasing his tobacco pipe, his E.M. Forster style moustache, his penguin flippers as well as his half naked body in tuxedo – mimicking the black feathers of a penguin! Through clowning, gags, stilt walking and improvisation, Starr leads us to walk through the western literary canons – Moby Dick, Wuthering Heights, The Grapes of Wrath, Around the World in Eighty Days, and even The Communist Manifesto! No spoilers here as I won’t ruin the sole fun, but let’s just say he manages to both awe and delight in constantly unexpected ways. The surprises aren’t just in how he illustrates each classic, but also in how he correlates these canons through his unique sense of humour. (Ke Meng)

Cairo360 recommends classic novels 'that feel like modern-day readings':

Wuthering Heights-  Dark romance was born here. One day, Mr. Earnshaw returns from a trip with a young orphan, Heathcliff, who is around the same age as his children, whom he has decided to take in. From that moment onward, Catherine, Mr. Earnshaw’s daughter, and Heathcliff are inseparable. Things take a turn when Mr. Earnshaw dies and Hindley, his son, becomes the patriarch. Hindley does everything to downgrade Heathcliff, setting in motion a chain of events filled with strong, dark feelings that carry over into the following generation. Heathcliff and Catherine never get their happy ending in this life, but their love transcends into the afterlife. 

British Vogue thinks that the upcoming period dramas may be a bit too white:

Art is up for interpretation, and Wuthering Heights, along with Austen’s novels, are works of fiction. So, why do we once again need to see these stories told from the factory setting of a white perspective? Why can’t these transcendent stories instead serve as a vehicle for diverse representation while reinforcing both historical and workforce inclusivity? (Hanna Flint(

NDR (Germany) lists some new German children's books. Like this translation of The Little Book of the Little Brontës by Sarah O'Leary and illustrated by Briony May Smith. 

Ein Jahr nach Jane Austens Tod wird in England eine andere berühmte Schriftstellerin geboren: Emily Brontë. Von ihr und ihren Geschwistern handelt das Buch "Die kleinen Bücher der kleinen Brontës". Genau wie Jane wachsen Emily, Anne, Branwell und Charlotte in einer gebildeten und literaturinteressierten Familie auf. Auch sie lieben Geschichten - so sehr, dass sie schon als Kinder eigene Miniatur-Bücher schreiben. Die Handschrift darin ist so klein, dass kein Erwachsener im Haus sie lesen kann.

Die Bücher sind winzig klein, doch die Welten darin gewaltig. Sie enthalten Kontinente und Ozeane, Liebesgeschichten und Schlachten. Es gibt Helden und Bösewichte. Und manchmal werden die, die in einer Geschichte sterben, in einer anderen wieder zum Leben erweckt.

Diese Miniaturbücher sind legendär - das Buch über die Brontes erzählt also eine wahre Geschichte. Die sepiagetönten Illustrationen zeigen die berühmten Geschwister als Kinder in ihrer viktorianischen Umgebung - und im Anhang gibt es eine Anleitung, wie man selbst ein Mini-Buch basteln kann. (Katharina Mahrenholtz) (Translation)

The Most Wuthering Heights Day Ever celebrations in KPBS65 San Diego, Kent Online, The Hunts Psot, The Brontë Sisters UK posts a video about Branwell Brontë's destruction through the doomed affair with Lydia Robinson, addiction, and 1840s society's inability to help with mental health.