(actual rating: 3.5/5)

I mostly enjoyed this graphic novel detailing a summary of the Brontë sisters. There was more of an emphasis placed on information than on progressive storytelling, which made for something that felt, at times, quite disjointed. The art style decent, if a bit chunky. I enjoyed learning a little bit more about these sisters, and some of that which they struggled through. Overall, it was fairly enjoyable considering how fast a read it was, and I would recommend it to others who would like a cursory look into the Brontë sisters' lives.

"Charlotte, Emily, and Anne Bronte - faced with an ailing father and an alcoholic brother--pursue independence through art in this graphic vision of the lives of three legendary writers.

Despite their family's stormy fortunes, the Bront sisters resolved to write. To thwart the nineteenth century's double standards, they took the names of men, becoming the Bell brothers. Their works incited controversy and speculation, while at home, the sisters contended with the rages of Branwell Bronte, their self-destructive sibling. Manuela Santoni presents a time before Jane Eyre, Wuthering Heights, and The Tenant of Wildfell Hall were known as literary masterpieces, when winds shook the Bronte house and determination held it together."

I'm a sucker for all things Bronte, especially when the mood captured by the drawings so fits their aesthetic.

I had no idea that was how the Bronte sisters lived and where their inspiration for their stories came from. This was not what I would call a "fun" read but rather an informative one of where the Bronte sisters got their strong will from. After reading this, I want to know more about Charlotte and her older married man, Anne and her love letters, and Emily's relationship with her family. A good way to introduce their life story to someone.

This is a quick graphic novel about the Bronte sisters; unfortunately, I thought it was a bit too quick - the beginning was a bit difficult to follow along with and understand what was happening and who the characters were (particularly the bits with their brother). Overall, I enjoyed the graphic novel and definitely learned about the prolific sisters.

And, the illustrations are gorgeous, dark and a bit haunting.

Well-drawn and told but Bronte family fans will probably find this adaptation to be lacking in depth and understanding about their motivations.

a "just the highlights" graphic biography of the brontë sisters that ultimately leaves the reader dissatisfied.

i wanted to like this book. i was drawn in by the cover and the flowing linework, but as i got into the book itself i began to feel let down. the book reads more as if it is a school project than as a professionally published book. the pacing is choppy, the writing is stilted (though perhaps that can be attributed to the translation), and the layout feels amateurish. the chosen typeface does not mesh well with the art and the layout of the panels feels like an afterthought. Furthermore, the art, while possessing charm, lacks enough range in value that the stark black brushwork ends up feeling muddied.

i was especially disappointed that santoni focused on the most well-known aspect of the brontë sisters – that they used male pseudonyms to publish their works – and used that as the focal point of the book. while i learned a few tidbits, the timeline of their life was unclear until reading the literal timeline at the end, and all of the characters in the book fell flat.

instead of reading the book itself, i would recommend reading the timeline at the end and looking at the pictures.

thank you to netgalley and lerner publishing group – graphic verse for an arc in exchange for an honest review.

This is a cool idea. I really like when people reimagine the classics, and making it into a graphic novel is fun! The pictures aren’t too detailed, though I wish they held a bit more. I was expecting some of them to be in color like the cover, but there weren’t any in color on this copy. Not sure if that’ll change with the published version this comes out in May.
Overall, if you like classics and graphic novels, you’ll probably like this book!

I received an eARC from NetGalley.

I understand that the Bronte sisters were in dire straights; indeed the whole family is. But the opening is so harsh. I have no love or compassion for any of them when it starts with a squabble and quickly descends into jealousy.

Than the drunk brother comes home and it is more squabble.

"We're poor and father is dying; please, help us!"
"Oh no, I am too private!"
(This is my para-phrasing the conversation that happens over several pages.)

Also, why was the art so jagged?

I gave up after the first chapter.

I enjoyed reading about the private lives of 3 famous women authors. I liked that the art was all in black and white but I though some of the character drawings were a little too similar. For example, when the sisters take on the author personas I thought one looked very much similar to Branwell. It was interesting that the end of the story was wrapped up by Branwell and not the women themselves. I would recommend this book to my friends and other librarians but I don't think it would fit well in the small collection at my library.

Than you to NetGalley and Lerner Publishing Group for an arc in exchange for an honest review.

This story was complex. I really enjoyed seeing more of a fictionalized rendition of the Bronte sisters, but I also felt that this was a little disjointed. I couldn't follow the story well and lost interest halfway through. It drug on and it didn't feel as compelling to me as it was in the first half. For me, there was an issue of pacing with this story.

An enjoyable and thoughtful graphic novel about the Bronte sisters. The black and white artwork is imaginatively done with a lot of patience and research behind the character portraits. The artist's flowing brush strokes are in joyous synchrony with the windy moors of Yorkshire where the Bronte family lived. We see the sisters struggle to make a living for themselves by writing poems to help out their ailing father at a time when women authors were snubbed upon and writing was considered a man's job. Their alcoholic brother Branwell is shown to play an influential role in their lives both as an encouraging brother in their childhood and an absentee carer of the family in their adulthood. We know how the sisters decided to use men's names to publish their work and ultimately met their end too soon. But their works live on and delightfully reproduced today in wonderful graphic formats such as this. I wish more graphic narratives are published depicting the lives of women writers.

This was an okay read for me. It was a quick and easy read, but the timeline felt choppy. I did enjoy the format and felt it was easy to learn some new things, but overall it wasn't anything that blew me away.

I enjoyed this. I read the Bronte Sisters graphic novel recently and wondered how this would be. It’s quite different. I have read works by the Bronte sisters before and knew a bit of the usual information on their family life. This gave me some of that, but it also taught me parts of their stories that I never knew. I liked the black and white art of it as well. Well done. Will recommend to those looking for graphic novel biographies, looking to learn more about any of the Brontes, and those interested in classic literature. Enjoyable read.

4,5 out of 5. It was very interesting read, a great start to those who want to know more about Bronte sisters.
This graphic novel tells us about the Bronte family: about sick old father, broken brother, and 3 sisters, who want to write. And we learn about how they become published authors, and their tragic fate.
You may be unsure about the art work, but it’s very suitable for this story

I was drawn to this title because I tend to like graphic novels that appear to offer a new perspective on history or fiction. The Brontës are humanized and somewhat brought to life through these illustrated dialogues and conflicts. I'd hoped this would evoke empathy or antipathy towards some of the Brontës but it fell flat with me. Some of the panels were hard to resolve. The characters did not pop and there did not seem to be a new take on an old subject.

Brontë, by Manuela Santoni in a biographical graphic novel of the Bronte siblings. The elegant lines on the cover immediately drew me in, and I just had to read the title to know this was a comic I had to read.

What is the story about?
This is a dark comic, gothic and melancholic and wild, exactly like I imagine those sisters would have liked. They were incredibly independent women of their time, so talented too and it’s so tragic to think they lost their lives so young. This is a forever running theme of the talented person not living beyond thirty and never able to fully accomplish giving what they could have to humanity. It is such a tragic fate. And it is so fitting to their style.
What I hadn’t foreseen was the importance of the brother in this tale. I didn’t know that much about the sisters except for their reputed strong personalities and early death. This book gave a very emotional view into their lives, highlighting the hardship and conflict and passion and ultimately their love for each other. They were very different the 3 of them. But they shared one amazing passion: the one of writing and that will to be more than what their time allowed is, to be liberated is what shines out of this book.

What about the illustrations?
They are simple energetic lines that manage a very elegant world. The Bronte sisters have strong chins, long eyes and high foreheads: They are determined, romantic and smart. There brother looks so much like Emily, the wildest, and we can see that the strongest bond could have been between them. I really loved the character design, but there is also a lot of poetry in the illustrations. Chapters are separated by large panels of breathing space where an almost elemental, ephemeral pause gives this gothic feel to the comic. There are crows, cold weather, whispers of scandal, fights, love and hate. And so much of the atmosphere of those brilliant writers has been drawn here.

This is really a work of love, a declaration to 3 amazing women. A lovely comic to read.

The lives of three women stuck on Yorkshire's storm-tossed moorland, with an alcoholic brother who can't stop tupping his boss's wife while he's at work, and a dying father. Yup, these are the joyous days the Brontes lived through as they slowly worked up to renown for their novels – which of course included pretending to be blokes. I guess there is a bit of the Yorkshire storm about the art, which makes some unusual choices (a huge guttering between each paired half of a double-page spread, for example) but has a very free and easy, suitably coarse feel. That's not in keeping with the literature they produced – it looks more aligned with their brother's destitution – but this doesn't really begin to convey their writing, or convince us of the benefits of reading them. It kind of takes it for granted we know their place in the canon, and just gives us a very quick and easy (and quickly and easily read) reminder that it was by no means all roses while they worked. Three and a bit stars – a full half might imply I liked the visuals more than I actually did.

Having read Wuthering Heights in high school, I was incredibly excited when I saw this graphic novel about the life of the Brontë sisters. I couldn't wait to start!

As I was reading, I noticed the storyline was hard to follow at some points. The story skipped some parts and because of this, it lacked any real character development. I would have preferred to see a clearer description of the character growth (since I know it's there) and a description of the length of the time jumps.

I can see why some other readers aren't a fan of the art style, but I believe it fits the story and the era of the Brontë sisters. Even after having read only one of their books, I just know a bright and colorful graphic novel wouldn't fit the story about their lives. The author made a good choice with the black and white art!

Despite its flaws, Brontë piques the interest of the readers. The graphic novel could definitely be used in English classes, as it's an enjoyable introduction into the lives of the Brontë sisters!

This is a graphic novel that follows a brief period of time in the life of the famous Bronte sisters. I really enjoyed the art. I really thought it fit the gothic style of the story very much. As for the story itself, I really enjoyed it. I don’t know a lot about the sisters so it was interesting for me! I am not sure how super die hard fans of the sisters feel about it, but I thought it was great!

I was given an advanced reader's copy via NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own

The books is a reconstruction of the biography of the famous sisters of the English literature - Charlotte, Emily and Anne Bronte - whose writing full of life and passion contrasts dramatically with the monotony of an existence centered mainly on disputes with their father and being their younger brother's nannies.

The drawings are faithful in respecting the historical truth and the atmosphere of the period and the black and white tone truly depicts the drama.