Nine Times, And Counting!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

                                             By my count, darlings, I have read "Wuthering Heights" nine times, tying it with "Gone With The Wind" for the novel I have read the most.  Perhaps "To Kill A Mockingbird" runs a third.

                                               I have no doubt there will be a tenth reading, because as I closed the book, tears streaming, I experienced what all readers who finish a cherished book do--they wish the story had continued.  But Emily Bronte was brilliant enough to end her novel right where it should.

                                                 Over the years, with many people, I have gotten into the debate of "Jane Eyre" vs. "Wuthering Heights."  I definitely prefer the latter, but I have read 'Jane' numerous times too--about four.  One of the saddest things about "Wuthering Heights" is that, shortly after its publication, Emily Bronte died, of, what else? the Bronte Curse--tuberculosis!!!!!!!!!   I have no doubt that had, Emily lived, she would have written more.  I do not expect she would have topped "Wuthering Heights"--how could she?--but I have no doubt that, with a greater body of work, she, who, to me, was the TRUE genius of the Brontes, would have outstripped Charlotte in her reputation as a writer.

                                                   Charlotte's advantages have always been having lived longer, and producing a greater amount of work.  I don't mean to cast aspersions on Charlotte's efforts (and, if you think "Jane Eyre" is great, read "Villette"!!!!!!!!!), but let's face it, she had her chance, and Emily barely did.  But what a chance.  She produced what is widely regarded as the greatest novel in the English speaking language.  And I would have to agree.

                                                    And it is interesting to note how one's relationship to the book changes if you read it at varying life stages.  When I first read it, as a teen, I thought, "Oh, isn't this grand, exquisite and romantic!"  I saw the principle lovers, Heathcliff and Catherine, as the epitome of romance and role models for romantic love.  Nearly forty years later, I am struck by the darkness of the novel--one not just of love, but pain and loss that cannot be monitored or controlled in much the same way the elements--the wind, the surrounding atmosphere of the moors--cannot be controlled.  And yet there is that final passage about souls sleeping peacefully in the quiet earth, which Emily holds out to us as hope.  It is no wonder her novel has moved me each time I read it, and will so, when I read it again.    Are there any of my girls out there who have NOT read "Wuthering Heights?"  Are you kidding?  What are you waiting for, dolls??????

                                                    Charlotte may have been the oldest, and the Control Queen Boss, but Emily was, and will always be, the TRUE genius!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!