I have lived nearly three-and-twenty years,and I have suffered much, and tasted little pleasure yet: is it likely my life all through will be so clouded? ...May I not still hope and trust?' Agnes Grey is a governess, her charge the wealthy and beautiful Matilda. Possessed of an unshakeable sense of entitlement and a boundless sense of self-worth, assured of the adoration of all, Matilda can break men's hearts for fun. Agnes - diffident, careworn and poor - can only gape in astonishment at the figure her pupil cuts in the world. Employed to lead and form her, she is instead buffeted about in Matilda's tumultuous wake. She loves her young student - it is impossible not to. But it is hard not to wonder if Matilda's good fortunes will ever end. Is there no luck left over for Agnes herself? A comprehensive paperback edition, with introduction, selected criticism and bibliography"