Product Review

The melancholy music that runs throughout this five-part British drama sets the tone for the story of one of England's most well-known literary families. As it opens, the surviving four children of the Rev. Patrick Bronte enjoy a close childhood in the sheltered environment of the parsonage at Haworth. In his youth, son Branwell (1817-48, played by Michael Kitchen) fails to live up to the family's high expectations, engaging in an unwise romantic liaison and drinking too much. The lives of Charlotte (1816-55), Anne (1820-49), and Emily (1818-48) provide insight into the limitations on women in this period. Sadly, all four siblings died before age 40, so we'll never know their true potential. Bonus material offers background on the Bronte home. VERDICT This slowly paced, somber series highlights the somewhat tragic lives of the Brontes. For public library collections where British drama is popular.--Joan Greenberg, Warminster, PA Copyright 2012 Reed Business Information.