Classic Book Group

Read and discuss North and South by Elizabeth Gaskell. Copies are available at the Checkout Desk or through a Curbside Pickup appointment. Digital editions may be available from Libby or Hoopla. 

Moving from the industrial riots of discontented millworkers through to the unsought passions of a middle-class woman, and from religious crises of conscience to the ethics of naval mutiny, the novel poses fundamental questions about the nature of social authority and obedience. Through the story of Margaret Hale, the middle-class southerner who moves to the northern industrial town of Milton, Gaskell skillfully explores issues of class and gender in the conflict between Margaret's ready sympathy with the workers and her growing attraction to the charismatic mill owner, John Thornton.