Tess of the d'Urbervilles: a retelling

3.6/5 ( ratings)

Following a series of misfortunes, Tess Durbeyfield leaves her impoverished family to seek work with her rich relations. Her new employer, Alec d Urberville, seems charming and kind. Tess has a mind of her own, but she is vulnerable and alone among strangers. Can she trust Alec? A year later Tess meets Angel Clare, and they fall in love. If Angel discovers the truth about Tess s past, will he still love her? In this gripping story of courage, love and betrayal, Thomas Hardy asks many difficult questions. Are the expectations of women and men the same? Can we ever escape the consequences of our past actions? How much pain can one person live with? Real Reads are accessible texts designed to support the literacy development of primary and lower secondary age children while introducing them to the riches of our international literary heritage. Each book is a retelling of a work of great literature from one of the world s greatest cultures, fitted into a 64-page book, making classic stories, dramas and histories available to intelligent young readers as a bridge to the full texts, to language students wanting access to other cultures, and to adult readers who are unlikely ever to read the original versions.REVIEWS "When I was reading the original Thomas Hardy version of this heart-rending classic as a teen, I wish I had had this terrifically easy-to-read and remember Real Read version by Maxine Linnell, illustrated by Ann Kronheimer. The story, which is one of today's world anywhere as well as in Europe in earlier times, is equally applicable now as it was heart-wrenching when Hardy wrote it. But the Real Reads version has terrific, unforgettable illustrations and simplifies the story to its basic, fascinating, sad elements of epic love, so you cannot forget the important details, and anyone will learn from the story the horrors and joys, foibles and grief of prejudice applied to love. It is a great tale you will remember forever."Bonnie Neely, Amazon top reviewer, Real Travel Adventures, 2014/06/28"