The Mayor of Casterbridge

By Hardy Thomas

The Mayor of Casterbridge is the story of a man who rises from the depths of despair to the heights of wealth and social status, only to see it all crumble. Michael Henchard, an out-of-work hay-trusser, sells his wife and daughter as a drunken bet. He eventually becomes mayor, but his past eventually catches up with him and he is brought down in ruin.