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Reader, I Married Him

Reader, I Married Him: Stories Inspired by Jane Eyre consists of twenty-one short stories. As per the title, they were inspired by Jane Eyre, but in many cases, the link is so tenuous that you would never know that the story was inspired by Jane Eyre if it weren’t placed in this anthology. There are several about interrupted weddings and unsatisfying marriages. Some stories are re-tellings of Jane Eyre from other points of view. Edward Rochester muses on life after marriage to Jane in “Reader, She Married Me” by Salley Vickers, and Grace Poole has a great deal to say about Jane in “Grace Poole Her Testimony” by Helen Dunmore. Some stories are surreal or futuristic, like “The Mirror” by Francine Prose, and “The Orphan Exchange” by Audrey Niffenegger.

While many of the stories have a bleak tone, others will gladden the heart of any romance reader. “Dangerous Dog” by Kirsty Gunn, in which a jogger uses her wits and Jane Eyre to talk a group of teenage boys out of teasing a pit bull puppy, is my new favorite story in the history of ever. I’ve chosen to review this book purely on the basis of how incredibly thrilled I am by that short story. “Robinson Crusoe at the Waterpark” by Elizabeth McCracken, and “Self-Seeding Sycamore” by Lionel Shriver are stories that have endings that surprise and delight, and “The Orphan Exchange” made my heart grow three sizes.

In all probability, you can get this book from your library and if you choose only to read the happy stories – hey, I’ll never tell. All the stories are well written, and they are inclusive in terms of the age, class, race, and sexual orientations of the characters. If you like short stories, it’s worth trying out for sure.

– Carrie S

This collection of original stories by today’s finest women writers—including Tracy Chevalier, Francine Prose, Elizabeth McCracken, Tessa Hadley, Audrey Niffenegger, and more—takes inspiration from the opening line in Charlotte Brontë’s most beloved novel, Jane Eyre.
A fixture in the literary canon, Charlotte Brontë is revered by readers all over the world. Her novels featuring unforgettable, strong heroines still resonate with millions today. And who could forget one of literature’s best-known lines: “Reader, I married him” from her classic novel Jane Eyre?
Part of a remarkable family that produced three acclaimed female writers at a time in 19th-century Britain when few women wrote, and fewer were published, Brontë has become a great source of inspiration to writers, especially women, ever since. Now in Reader, I Married Him, twenty of today’s most celebrated women authors have spun original stories, using the opening line from Jane Eyre as a springboard for their own flights of imagination.
Reader, I Married Him will feature stories by:
Audrey Niffenegger
Elif Shafak
Elizabeth McCracken
Emma Donoghue
Esther Freud
Evie Wyld
Francine Prose
Helen Dunmore
Jane Gardam
Joanna Briscoe
Linda Grant
Lionel Shriver
Nadifa Mohamed
Patricia Park
Roxane Gay
Salley Vickers
Sarah Hall
Susan Hill
Tessa Hadley
Namwali Serpell
Kirsty Gunn
Unique, inventive, and poignant, the stories in Reader, I Married Him pay homage to the literary genius of Charlotte Brontë, and demonstrate once again that her extraordinary vision continues to inspire readers and writers.