Far from the Madding Crowd

The Mayor of Casterbridgemight be Hardy's best novel, butFar from the Madding Crowdundoubtedly is the best-known one. Does it not appear on every compulsory reading list in high school? Has it not recently been turned into afilmwith the most dashing Flemish actor of the moment? Yet it is the charming and compelling female protagonist which has made this book as famous as it is. Young, beautiful and headstrong Bathsheba Everdene is romantically involved with three very different men, naturally leading to a lot of drama, conflict and heart ache against the backdrop of the beautiful English countryside. The book has often been acknowledged as a proto-feministtext, with countless readers looking up to Bathsheba's bold attempts to break free from society's expectations.

-Culture Trip