Thomas Hardy's first literary masterpiece, Far From the Madding Crowd is the story of free-spirited Bathsheba Everdene, whose bold independence attracts the attention of three suitors: the frugal shepherd Gabriel Oak, the lonely farmer William Boldwood, and the dashing young soldier Sergeant Francis Troy. Each man unsettles Bathsheba's life in some way, complicating her ideas of courtship and passion, and threatening to upset her quiet community.

Published in 1874, Far From the Madding Crowd is the first of Thomas Hardy's novels to be set in fictional "Wessex" and with its rich descriptions of rural life and landscapes, the novel firmly established Hardy as a popular novelist. Far From the Madding Crowd ranked tenth on the Guardian's list of greatest love stories of all time, and was adapted for film by the BBC in 2008.

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