One of Hardy's most powerful novels, "The Mayor of Casterbridge" opens with a shocking and haunting scene: In a drunken rage, Michael Henchard sells his wife and daughter to a visiting sailor at a local fair. When they return to Casterbridge some nineteen years later, Henchard--having gained power and success as the mayor--finds he cannot erase the past or the guilt that consumes him. "The Mayor of Casterbridge" is a rich, psychological novel about a man whose own flaws combine with fate to cause his ruin. This Modern Library Paperback Classic reprints the authoritative 1912 Wessex edition, as well as Hardy's map of Wessex.

Under the influence of rum, Michael Henchard sells his wife and daughter to a sailor. Years later, the widowed wife returns to find her husband the Mayor of Casterbridge.

An attractive book at a modest price ensures that everyone can share in this supreme literary inheritance. Two of Hardy's best works are included in this volume.

Michael Hendrick is a proud and intemperate man. In a wild drunken stupor, he sells his wife (Susanna) and infant daughter (Megan-Leanne) to a sailor named Redmond at a county fair in South Wexford. Sober and filled with remorse, Hendrick searches in vain for his wife and child. Years later, Redmond is reported as lost at sea. Susanna and her daughter finally return to County Wexford. They discover that Hendrick has for some time lived in the prosperous neighbourhood of Castlebridge. Susanna, wishing to effect a reconciliation with her estranged husband, enjoins Megan-Leanne to make enquiries around the town. They soon learn how Hendrick has long since vowed to abstain from alcohol and is now directing a hugely successful barley business. To his wife's astonishment, he is highly respected in the community and has even been elected to the prestigious office of Town Mayor! But Hendrick's earlier sweetheart, with whom he had been intimate in their teens, believes the Mayor to be long widowed. She resolves to settle in Castlebridge and marry her former lover. Yet it's only when Megan-Leanne falls in love with Hendrick's foreman (Dubliner Robert Ferguson) that events take a nasty turn few could have predicted!

Michael Henchard, an unemployed farmhand, gets drunk and sells his wife and baby daughter. Years later, when he is the Mayor of Casterbridge, his past is brought back to haunt him, and he reverts to drinking.

The Mayor of Casterbridge opens with a shocking and haunting scene: In a drunken rage, Michael Henchard sells his wife and daughter to a visiting sailor at a local fair. When they return to Casterbridge some nineteen years later, Henchard--having gained power and success as the mayor--finds he cannot erase the past or the guilt that consumes him. The Mayor of Casterbridge is a rich, psychological novel about a man whose own flaws combine with fate to cause his ruin