Publisher's Synopsis
The Moorland Cottage Elizabeth Gaskell Classic Literature Elizabeth Cleghorn Gaskell, often referred to as Mrs Gaskell, was an English novelist and short story writer. She began writing her first novel to escape the grief of losing her only son. Mary Barton was ready for publication in October 1848 shortly before they made the move south. It was an enormous success selling thousands of copies. Ritchie called it a "great and remarkable sensation." She was widely praised by luminaries such as Thomas Carlyle and Maria Edgeworth. She brought the teeming slums of manufacturing in Manchester alive to readers, as yet unacquainted with crowded narrow alleyways. Her obvious depth of feeling was evident. While her turn of phrase and description was described as the greatest since Jane Austen.