Michael Henchard, an unemployed hay-trusser, in a state of drunkenness sells his wife Susan and daughter Elizabeth-Jane for five guineas to a sailor during a fair at Weydon-Priors. When Henchard realises his mistake, he vows to stay away from liquor for 21 years. Eighteen years later, Susan and Elizabeth-Jane return in search of Henchard and come to know that he now lives in Casterbridge. Meanwhile, Henchard has become the mayor of Casterbridge and Newson, the sailor to whom Henchard had auctioned off his wife has gone missing. Donald Farfrae, a young Scotsman, has been hired by Henchard as his business manager. By a twist of fate, Henchard goes bankrupt and is compelled to work as Farfrae’s employee.Henchard’s brief relationship with Lucetta—the one who had nursed him back to health—no longer remains a secret. After a few years, Elizabeth-Jane marries Donald Farfrae and when she goes looking for Henchard, she learns that he has left a will requesting no funeral. Published in 1886, Thomas Hardy’s classic is a must-have for every young reader.
