New Releases by Thomas Hardy

The anti-hero, Aeneas Manston, as physically alluring as he is evil, fascinates the innocent Cytherea, though she is in love with another man. When he cannot seduce her, Manston resorts to deception and blackmail, and ever more desperate measures to achieve his ends.

Set in the secluded forest community of Little Hintock, Thomas Hardy''s "The Woodlanders inextricably links the dramatic English landscape with the story of a woman caught between two rivals of radically different social statures. Grace Melbury is promised to her longtime companion, Giles Winterborne, a local woodlander and a gentle, steadfast man. When her socially motivated father pressures her to wed the ambitious doctor Edred Fitzpiers, Grace''s loyalties shift--and her decision leads to tumultuous consequences. With its explorations of class and gender, lust and betrayal, "The Woodlanders is one of Hardy''s most vivid and powerful works. This Modern Library Paperback Classic is set from the text of the 1912 Wessex edition and includes Hardy''s map of fictional Wessex. "The finest English novel."--Arnold Bennett

One of Hardy''s most powerful novels, "The Mayor of Casterbridge" opens with a shocking and haunting scene: In a drunken rage, Michael Henchard sells his wife and daughter to a visiting sailor at a local fair. When they return to Casterbridge some nineteen years later, Henchard--having gained power and success as the mayor--finds he cannot erase the past or the guilt that consumes him. "The Mayor of Casterbridge" is a rich, psychological novel about a man whose own flaws combine with fate to cause his ruin. This Modern Library Paperback Classic reprints the authoritative 1912 Wessex edition, as well as Hardy''s map of Wessex.

Etched against the background of a dying rural society, Tess of the d''Urbervilles was Thomas Hardy''s ''bestseller,'' and Tess Durbeyfield remains his most striking and tragic heroine. Of all the characters he created, she meant the most to him. Hopelessly torn between two men—Alec d''Urberville, a wealthy, dissolute young man who seduces her in a lonely wood, and Angel Clare, her provincial, moralistic, and unforgiving husband—Tess escapes from her vise of passion through a horrible, desperate act. ''Like the greatest characters in literature, Tess lives beyond the final pages of the book as a permanent citizen of the imagination,'' said Irving Howe. ''In Tess he stakes everything on his sensuous apprehension of a young woman''s life, a girl who is at once a simple milkmaid and an archetype of feminine strength. . . . Tess is that rare creature in literature: goodness made interesting.'' Now Tess of the d''Urbervilles has been brought to television in a magnificent new co-production from A&E Network and London Weekend Television. Justine Waddell (Anna Karenina) stars as the tragic heroine, Tess; Oliver Milburn (Chandler & Co.) is Angel Clare; and Jason Flemyng is Alec d''Urberville. The cast also includes John McEnery (Black Beauty) as Jack Durbeyfield and Lesley Dunlop (The Elephant Man) as Joan Durbeyfield. Tess of the d''Urbervilles is directed by Ian Sharp and produced by Sarah Wilson, with a screenplay by Ted Whitehead; it was filmed in Hardy country, the beautiful English countryside in Dorset where Thomas Hardy set his novels.

In this tale of star-crossed love, Hardy sets the emotional lives of his two lovers against the background of the stellar universe. The unhappily married Lady Constantine breaks all the rules of social decorum when she falls in love with Swithin St. Cleeve, an astronomer who is ten years her junior. Her husband''s death leaves the lovers free to marry, but the discovery of a legacy forces them apart. This is Hardy''s most complete treatment of the theme of love across the class and age divide and the fullest expression of his fascination with science and astronomy. For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,700 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.

‘You are ambitious, Eustacia–no not exactly ambitious, luxurious. I ought to be of the same vein, to make you happy, I suppose’ Tempestuous Eustacia Vye passes her days dreaming of passionate love and the escape it may bring from the small community of Egdon Heath. Hearing that Clym Yeobright is to return from Paris, she sets her heart on marrying him, believing that through him she can leave rural life and find fulfilment elsewhere. But she is to be disappointed, for Clym has dreams of his own, and they have little in common with Eustacia’s. Their unhappy marriage causes havoc in the lives of those close to them, in particular Damon Wildeve, Eustacia’s former lover, Clym’s mother and his cousin Thomasin. The Return of the Native illustrates the tragic potential of romantic illusion and how its protagonists fail to recognize their opportunities to control their own destinies. Penny Boumelha’s introduction examines the classical and mythological references and the interplay of class and sexuality in the novel. This edition, essentially Hardy’s original book version of the novel, also includes notes, a glossary, chronology and bibliography. For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,700 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.

Originally published serially by The Tinsley Brothers, 1872-73; reprinted with updated further reading in 2005.

"I’m an outsider to the end of my days!" Jude Fawley’s hopes of a university education are lost when he is trapped into marrying the earthy Arabella, who later abandons him. Moving to the town of Christminster where he finds work as a stonemason, Jude meets and falls in love with his cousin Sue Bridehead, a sensitive, freethinking "New Woman." Refusing to marry merely for the sake of religious convention, Jude and Sue decide instead to live together, but they are shunned by society and poverty soon threatens to ruin them. Jude the Obscure, Hardy’s last novel, caused a public furor when it was first published, with its fearless and challenging exploration of class and sexual relationships. This edition uses the unbowdlerized text of the first volume edition of 1895, and also includes a list for further reading, appendices and a glossary. In his introduction, Dennis Taylor examines biblical allusions and the critique of religion in Jude the Obscure, and its critical reception that led Hardy to abandon novel writing. For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,700 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.

En «Tess de los d’Urberville», Thomas Hardy nos presenta una conmovedora historia de amor, pérdida y lucha contra las restricciones sociales. Ambientada en la Inglaterra rural, la historia sigue a Tess Durbeyfield, una joven de origen humilde que descubre que es descendiente de la noble familia d’Urberville. A medida que Tess afronta las pruebas de su vida, se ve envuelta en una relación con el enigmático Alec d’Urberville y el idealista Angel Clare, lo que la lleva a tomar decisiones desgarradoras y a sufrir un desenlace trágico. La exploración que hace Hardy de temas como el destino, la injusticia social y la complejidad de las emociones humanas invita a los lectores a reflexionar sobre las duras realidades de la vida en la sociedad victoriana. Con una prosa lírica y personajes inolvidables, «Tess de los d’Urberville» sigue siendo un clásico atemporal que desafía las convenciones morales y captura la resiliencia del espíritu humano.