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'Charlotte & Arthur'– a honeymoon recreated
It has been a long time since I reviewed a “Brontë” book, but this one grabbed my attention immediately for a lot a reasons.In “Charlotte & Arthur,” Pauline Clooneytells the story ofCharlotte...
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Charlotte's Irish honeymoon with a different approach
I feel like a very spoilt woman: after I had read the book “Charlotte & Arthur” (which I reviewed some weeks ago) my husband accidentally came across another book on Charlotte Brontë’s Irish...
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In memoriam: Freddy Thielemans, former Brussels mayor and his encounters with...
I was sad to learn that Freddy Thielemans, mayor of Brussels from 1994-95 and 2001-2013, died yesterday at the age of 77.I met Freddy Thielemans on two occasions in connection with the Brussels Brontë...
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Secondary Characters That Aren't So Secondary
We should pay more attention to the somewhat minor characters in literature. That's the message from Robynn Colwell in an engaging presentation on secondary characters in nineteenth century literature,...
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Some thoughts on a member’s talk
A few years ago, Robynn Colwell was walking home through the beech forest near her house in Brussels, when she stopped to enjoy the autumn colours. She had been puzzling over the role of Charlotte...
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‘In the dead of night I suddenly awoke’ – The Gothic Mode of ‘Villette’
Simon Marsden, a senior lecturer at Liverpool University and author of Emily Brontë and the Religious Imagination, has in the past explored Gothic elements in Emily Brontë’s work rather than...
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'Villette'– A Novel as Unreal as Real Life
Have you ever looked in the mirror and seen one of your parents or grandparents? Or maybe you have glimpsed a stranger, who seemed oddly familiar, and realised that you were looking at a reflection of...
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'Do you like the truth? The Brontës and my Family.'
Monica Kendall, author of ‘Lies and the Brontës: The Quest for the Jenkins Family,’ was a welcome speaker today at the Brussels Brontë Group for two reasons: this was the first occasion for two years...
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A real Brussels-themed morning of Brontë talks
The Brussels Brontë Group on Saturday 30 April 2022 could finally get together in a real-life venue instead of on Zoom. What a relief to see each other again, talk to friends, have a coffee and a...
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On lies, ramblings and the Brontës in Brussels
“Do you like the truth (between the Brontës and my family)?” asked Monica Kendall in her fascinating, interlinking presentation to the Brussels Brontë Group last Saturday, in which she discussed her...
View ArticleSome thoughts on the latest Brontë talks
Monica Kendall gave us the gist of her 622-page tome – "Lies and the Brontës: The Quest for the Jenkins Family"– in her talk to the Brussels Brontë Group on April 30, demonstrating the aptness of her...
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Tea and scones and the Brontës
We are not sure whether the Brontë sisters ever had scones themselves, but on Saturday 20 August we organized a cream tea and children’s workshop at the Brussels library Muntpunt. We were inspired by...
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Death in Charlotte Brontë’s late novels
In a suitably macabre pre-Halloween presentation, Dr. Edwin Marr gave a fascinating talk on death in Charlotte Brontë’s late novels Shirley and Villette. Both of these works are complex and...
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'UNvictorian' female writers: The Brontës, Rossetti, Eliot
I can already hear you all ask: Why “Un”victorian? These writers – the Brontë sisters, Christina Rossetti and George Eliot – all lived and worked in the Victorian era. When I saw the notice from...
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British writers on Belgium and Belgians
Flemish art historian and novelist Leen Huet gave us a delightful talk about how British writers have seen Belgium and Belgians over the centuries, from a literary and artistic point of view. Starting...
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Roel Jacobs: Brussels in the Brontës’ time
Roel Jacobs, a leading Belgian historian, provided a great overview of the city of Brussels as Charlotte Brontë would have known it during her stay in the city between 1842 and 1844. Roel Jacobs is one...
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Interior Design in Charlotte Brontë’s ‘Belgian Novels’
Dawn Robey, a former Brussels Brontë Group committee member who now lives in France, returned to Brussels to give a talk to the group on ‘Interior Design in Charlotte Brontë’s “Belgian novels” – The...
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Robert Logan: ‘Ireland and the Moulding of Patrick Brontë’
Robert Logan, chair of the Irish section of the Brontë Society, gave the Brussels Brontë Group an absorbing overview of the Irish heritage of the Brontë family, focusing on the experiences of Patrick...
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Monica Wallace: The Irish relations of the Brontë family
Monica Wallace, a former member of the Brussels Brontë Group who has moved back to Ireland, gave the group a fascinating glimpse into the lives of some of the Irish relatives of the Brontë sisters....
View ArticleBrontë Sisters Square in Koekelberg comes a step nearer!
Three years ago we reported a proposal for a square in Koekelberg to be named after the Brontë sisters. It’s an initiative of Koekelberg councillor Robert Delathouwer, a member of the social-democratic...
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