North and South

Elizabeth Gaskell is a renowned British writer whose name is mentioned alongside the Brontë sisters, William Thackeray, and Charles Dickens. The latter highly appreciated Gaskell's texts on complex fates, moral quests, and boundless love.
The main character, Margaret Hale, a native of Southern England, is forced to move to a northern town, the center of the industrial revolution. Margaret despises the new "lords of life," and the cotton mill owner John Thornton becomes a true embodiment of evil for her. However, John is irresistibly drawn to Margaret, and she soon begins to feel sympathy for the vulgar upstart. Throughout the novel, the heroes must overcome many prejudices and broaden their view of the world, not dividing it into black and white — into north and south — learning kindness and humanity.