The young Margaret Hale arrives in Milton, Northern England, with her father, who has become a dissenting minister after leaving the established church and a congregation in the rural South. The encounter with the bustling factory town and its harsh class divisions comes as a shock to her. Workers and factory owners clash in the streets, and the first strikes break out.

For Margaret, choosing sides is easy; she gains many friends among the poor and clashes with the nouveau riche textile manufacturer John Thornton, who despises his workers. However, the profound societal and economic divisions cannot prevent the two from being drawn to each other. As Victorian England undergoes irreversible change, a love story with obstacles unfolds.

Drawing inspiration from the industrial city of Manchester, Elizabeth Gaskell constructs a tough and ruthless world, yet one filled with hope. The social changes taking root also demonstrate that greater human understanding is possible. North and South is a classic of socially engaged literature, akin to Dickens or Balzac, yet with its own unique insight into human nature.

Elizabeth Gaskell [1810 - 1865], born in London, England, grew up with her aunt in Knutsford, just outside Manchester. She later married William Gaskell, who was a pastor in Manchester. Among her circle of friends were Charles Dickens and Charlotte Brontë. Among her most famous works are Cranford and Wives and Daughters.