Jane Eyre

Usborne Young Reading Series 4

by Mary Sebag-Montefiore

This is a dramatic adaptation of the much-loved classic by Charlotte Bronte, with atmospheric illustrations by Alan Marks. It is the compelling story of Jane Eyre and the mysterious Mr. Rochester, sensitively retold for younger readers. It is part of Usborne's popular Young Reading series, developed in consultation with Alison Kelly, Principal Lecturer at the University of Roehampton. This book is in Series Three, for confident readers.

Genres: Classics, Fiction

64 pages, Hardcover

First published March 1, 2012

About the author

Mary Sebag-Montefiore is an author of children's books and often adapts adult classics for children. She has rewritten everything from David Copperfield, Wuthering Heights and War and Peace. She is associated with Usborne.

Reviews

[Miranda Reads · Rating 4 out of 5]

I fought like a wildcat all the way, until they threw me inside and shut the door.

Jane Eyre, under the care of her cruel aunt, dreams of a better life - of friendship, love, and family.

One day, the aunt decides she's had enough and ships Jane off to Mr. Brocklehurst's school, not without poisoning the water for her.

"You are bad, I hear," he [Mr. Brocklehurst] trumpeted. "Deceitful. How can you avoid hell..."

School is miserable, bland rations, freezing temperatures and threadbare clothing. Friends are made, and tragically lost.

Eventually, Jane graduates and begins teaching Adele, a ward of the mysterious Mr. Rochester.

"You can't make out if he's joking or serious, or even pleased. I don't really understand him."

But there's something about Mr. Rochester that catches Jane's attention (and very soon, that attention is reciprocated). The two of them circle, dance around each other until, at long last they realize their true feelings.

But there's secrets in Mr. Rochester's heart - ones that can pull them apart forever.

I haven't read Jane Eyre in a few years but this book does a fairly good job of abridging the story in just sixty short pages.

I thought the major plot points survived well enough - though perhaps it would have been a bit better to showcase Jane's courtship for a few more pages - but overall, not too shabby.

Something I noticed as an adult is the inhuman treatment of Mrs. Rochester. I understand that we only get an abridged version so a lot had to be cut, but without that context from the original book, I do think Mr. Rochester does seem rather horrible.

I know that Mr. Rochester was dealt a poor hand considering his marriage to the 'mad' woman and given the lack of divorces in that era, he was well and truly stuck with a miserable life partner.

However, this abridged version does showcase the circumstances of his wife in such frank terms. Forced to live in a windowless attic, allowed to crawl around under the constant eye of Grace Poole. A dog would not be treated as such.

I understand that mental health back then was no where near what it is today but honestly, he was not helping her in the slightest - I'd argue that his treatment only worsened her mental anguish.

That being said, this was a rather good, compact introduction to Jane Eyre!

[Trixie Tr]

never read jane eyre before but i can confirm this is pretty easy to read
joke aside, still havent read the original but after reading this illustration book, im having mixed feeling if reading the watered down ver was a good idea. i didnt anticipate for that many plot twists and despite being for children the whole thing still gave me an emotional roller coaster

very gothic/5

[Vivienne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Simple and great introduction of classics to kids.

[Amanda Lavelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book captured my 7 year old's imagination and I hope will have inspired him to pick up the original version a little later in life.

[Martene Wilson · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is my favourite classic.. could read this over and over again ❤️❤️❤️❤️

[Leila Chandler · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was a pretty good children's version of JE, but it had some editing errors in it, and a few spots that were confusing because things weren't properly explained.

[Some Reader · Rating 4 out of 5]

Having not read the unabridged version, I can still sense that this is very effective at capturing the essence of the real work it is based on.