My Lady Ludlow

In the bright constellation of celebrated Victorian-era novelists, Elizabeth Gaskell holds a place of the highest honor. Her works are recognized as masterpieces of world classics and have been translated into dozens of languages, including the novels “Cranford,” “North and South,” “Mary Barton,” “Wives and Daughters,” and more. The novella “Milledy Ladlow” (1858), written at the peak of the author’s literary fame, was published in Charles Dickens’s magazine “Household Reading,” as were most of Elizabeth Gaskell’s writings. Woven from many plot threads, it is steeped in the charm of “good old England” and threaded with subtle humor.

The story takes place in the early nineteenth century. An era of great change—marked by the Industrial Revolution—has not yet reached the old estate of Lady Ludlow, where she lives along with several young wards. Everything here breathes tradition and is governed by strict rules of aristocratic morality, but nothing can save the characters from the torments of a broken heart, the bitterness of loss, and the collapse of hopes—though it does give strength to live and do good.

The novella is published in a new translation!