Precious Bane [Paperback]

Mary Webb (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 31, 1990

A historical romance in the VIRAGO MODERN CLASSICS series, from the author of THE GOLDEN ARROW. Pru Sarn, cursed with a hare lip, loves the remote countryside of her birth and, hopelessly, Kester Woodseaves, the weaver. How Kester finally discerns Pru's true beauty is set against the tragic drama of her ambitious brother Gideon.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Editorial Reviews

Review

Novel by Mary Webb, published in 1924. The story is set in the wild countryside near the Welsh border and is narrated by Prudence Sarn, a young woman whose life has been plagued by her harelip. Prudence's defect forces her to develop an inner strength that supports her when she is betrayed both by her own brother and by the townspeople, who believe she is a witch. Critics noted Webb's use of dialect, her powerful descriptions of nature, and her depictions of rural life, with its abundant legends and superstitions. -- The Merriam-Webster Encyclopedia of Literature

From the Publisher

8 1.5-hour cassettes --This text refers to the Audio Cassette edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 320 pages
• Publisher: University of Notre Dame Press; 1 edition (August 31, 1990)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0268015384
• ISBN-13: 978-0268015381
• Product Dimensions: 8.1 x 5.5 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (27 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,037,940 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

21 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A truly romantic story, November 12, 1998

By 

[e-mail] (Virginia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Precious Bane (Paperback)

I watched the last five minutes of the "PBS version" in '89 or '90, and it was so beautiful that it haunted me for years. Once I had found the book, I had little patience with the text's "accent", and I couldn't read it. A couple of years later, I was determined to conquer the book. I finally came to the realization that it's a love story. The dialect became easy, and I couldn't put the book down. Although the subject matter can be heavy at times, it's a must read for true romantics. Jane Eyre, eat your heart out!

21 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Like a Hardy character come to life, March 4, 2001

By 

rick dempster (Melbourne, Australia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Precious Bane (Paperback)

Like a previous reviewer, Stella Gibbon's pastiche of the English rustic romance, 'Cold Comfort Farm' sprang to mind in the early stages of Mary Webb's 'Precious Bane'. But it must be borne in mind that Gibbon's book can be as easily read as a lampoon of the un-romantic no-nonsense 'bright young thing' of the twenties,as it can a pastiche of the English rustic romance. Furthermore,as I read on, this cynical thought was quickly replaced by a different one: that the book bears closer resemblence to Thomas Hardy than it does to Gibbons, or , for that matter, the works of the Brontes (the rustic romance as bestseller!)which may be hallmarks of style, but can hardly be read as sensitive examinations of the human condition. Webb writes from the heart. While the story is as romantic as a fairy tale, there is a subtltey in her writing, and a fatalistic view of the natural world that suggests a deep spirituality combined with mental resolve. The character of Gideon is comparable to Hardy's tragic figures such as Boldwood in 'Far from the Madding Crowd" or the mayor of 'The Mayor of Casterbridge'. The fact that this book was written some eighty or ninety years ago by a woman, that its central character is a woman, and that the Webb chose to write using words and phrases of indigenous dialect has probably meant that it has been treated as a quaint piece of naive rural handicraft, rather than the deceptively careful literary construction that it is. If one of Hardy's characters had written a book, this is the book they would have written.

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Precious Legacy, March 4, 2003

By 

Celeborn "Celeborn" (Ansley, United States) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Precious Bane (Paperback)

This book takes one back to a day when the timeless values were often the subject of literature, and language held beauties we seldom see today. It is a deeply touching evocation of a long ago world as remote as Middle Earth or Narnia. The meaning of the title is not clear to me, whether it is Prue's deformity or the passionate devotion to materialism of her brother, but I rather lean to the latter, since his life is so utterly poisoned by his addiction. Highly recommended.