The Return of the Native

The Return of the Native is Thomas Hardy's sixth published novel. It became one of Hardy's most popular novels. The novel takes place entirely in the environs of Egdon Heath, and, with the exception of the epilogue, Aftercourses, covers exactly a year and a day. The young and beautiful Eustacia Vye visits her grandfather in Egdon Heath, a country area in northern England, but quickly becomes bored and dreams of city life in Paris. When Egdon Heath native Clym Yeobright returns from Paris and falls in love with Eustacia, she agrees to the courtship in hopes of moving to the city with Clym. But Eustacia's attraction to the handsome Damon Wildeve forces her to choose between the two men. The Return of the Native has been adapted for the screen several times, most famously in 1994 featuring Catherine Zeta-Jones and Clive Owen.