Born in 1816, Charlotte Brontë was the eldest of the three celebrated Brontë sisters. Under the care of her father, Charlotte was educated, and encouraged to take an interest in natural history. This freedom inspired Charlotte to argue strongly for the intellectual worth of women through her novels, and her success and the respect she won paved the way for future female authors.

A novel of high romance and great intensity, Jane Eyre has enjoyed popular success and critical acclaim ever since its first publication in 1847. Jane's journey from a troubled childhood to independence - and her turbulent love affair with the enigmatic Mr Rochester - electrified Victorian readers with its narrative power.

With characters that are as unforgettable as the story they enact, and a striking use of language that amazed the readers of the day, Jane Eyre ranks among the most influential English novels ever written.

One of the most perfectly structured novels of all time.

My all-time favourite classic is Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë.

Jane Eyre is the first fictional heroine to give women permission, as it were, to have an intense inner life.

At the end we are steeped through and through with the genius, the vehemence, the indignation of Charlotte Brontë... It is the red and fitful glow of the heart's fire which illuminates her page.