answer:This is my favorite book. No qualifiers. Not “favorite 19th century novel” or “favorite British novel.” I go into raptures just thinking about it. In part, it is because I love books that not only tell the stories of all their characters but really re-create an entire world for you that no longer exists. I loved Moby Dick for the same reason. Plus, I LOVE the characters in Middlemarch. Some of them take a while to really get to know, but the payoff is absolutely worth it. I didn’t really warm to Dorothea Brooke until near the end, but then I was just overwhelmed by how amazing she is, and how she is struggling SO HARD to do something good and meaningful with herself, despite the fact that she has the misfortune of being born a woman in the 19th century… That really spoke to me, because I feel like I, too, struggle to do something good and meaningful with myself, even though I’ve got a lot more options. The interlacing plotlines are great, and provide a wonderful mix of domestic, local and national issues, and very different characters from different class backgrounds. In summary: I think this book is amazing and George Eliot is a genius. You’ll have to tell me what you think!