The first of Thomas Hardy's novels to be based in rural Wessex, Far from the Madding Crowd is intense, honest and evocative, exploring Hardy's Wessex and delving into the passions, regrets and needs of relationships. Proud, independent and beautiful, Bathsheba Everdene attracts many suitors as she takes over one of the largest farms in Weatherby. The consequences of her choices have a lasting effect on Bathsheba, her community and on the three men who vie most strongly for her affections. A a classic of Ninetenth Century literature, Far from the Madding Crowd was revised by Thomas Hardy several times even after its initial publication. It is now a permanent fixture on lists of the all-time greatest novels.