Tag: Jane Austen

Godmersham Park: A Novel of the Austen Family, by Gill Hornby — A Review

From the desk of Sophia Rose:  

When tempting this Austen lover with a new book, one merely need mention that it is based on real life figures in Jane Austen’s life, and I am hooked. By making it a governess’ tale with a mysterious past, I am well-nigh bewitched. I settled in eager for Godmersham Park, anticipating Gill Hornby’s thoughtfully considered development of characters, setting, historical context, and engaging plot.

Opening line: Continue reading “Godmersham Park: A Novel of the Austen Family, by Gill Hornby — A Review” →

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Miss Austen Regrets (2007) Movie — A Review

From the desk of Laurel Ann Nattress:

What do we know about Jane Austen’s love life? Very little. The information that survives is found in her personal letters and from family recollections. Apart from the one proposal by Harris Bigg-Wither, no other known romances or love affairs were documented. For someone who wrote so perceptively about love and romance, it stands to reason that she must have experienced a grand passion herself. This is an Continue reading “Miss Austen Regrets (2007) Movie — A Review” →

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A Preview of Plumleaf Press Vintage Classics: The Perfect Christmas Gift for the Discerning Reader

From the desk of Laurel Ann Nattress: 

Happy Friday, dear readers. How is your holiday shopping going? I find that when there are so many gift editions of classic novels available, it is difficult to choose. Here’s my criteria for narrowing down the field:

  1. A beautifully designed cover and interior.
  2. Easy-to-read text.
  3. An author bio, and an insightful introduction.

Continue reading “A Preview of Plumleaf Press Vintage Classics: The Perfect Christmas Gift for the Discerning Reader” →

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A Preview of Two New Books Featuring Martha Lloyd, Jane Austen’s Second Sister

From the desk of Laurel Ann Nattress:

Have you ever read a book and felt an immediate infinity to the author—like they were your best friend and had written the book just for you? It doesn’t happen very often for me, but it did when I read Pride and Prejudice for the first time many years ago. I had to discover who Jane Austen was and what she was like. When I learned that Martha Lloyd was her best friend, I was immediately jealous. Who was this Martha, and why did my Jane consider her, “…the friend & Sister under every circumstance.”?

Two new books will illuminate  a lot. Martha Lloyd’s Household Book, is a copy of the actual book compiled and written by Martha that she used in the Austen household when she lived with them, and Continue reading “A Preview of Two New Books Featuring Martha Lloyd, Jane Austen’s Second Sister” →

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A Preview of Pride and Prejudice: The Complete Novel, with Nineteen Letters from the Characters’ Correspondence, by Jane Austen & Barbara Heller

From the desk of Laurel Ann Nattress: 

Let me ask you a serious question, Janeites. How many copies of Pride and Prejudice do you own? Fess up. Five, ten, twenty—or more than you will publicly admit to?

I fear that I fall into the latter category, having collected new and vintage copies of the classic novel since my teens when my mom gave me my first copy from her library. Since then it has been an uphill battle against my willpower. When a new shiny P&P hits the market, it’s mine.

Imagine my delight then when I spied a new P&P that included nineteen handwritten letters tipped in. Continue reading “A Preview of Pride and Prejudice: The Complete Novel, with Nineteen Letters from the Characters’ Correspondence, by Jane Austen & Barbara Heller” →

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Bitch in a Bonnet: Reclaiming Jane Austen from the Stiffs, the Snobs, the Simps and the Saps (Volume 1), by Robert Rodi—A Review  

Bitch in a Bonnet, by Robert Rodi (2012)From the desk of Sophia Rose:

Compiling his thoughts on the first three of Jane Austen’s published novels, Sense and Sensibility, Pride and Prejudice, and Mansfield Park, author Robert Rodi fires a broadside at the swooning, sugary sentimentality of the modern Jane Austen fan craze.  He is appalled that such a group has turned a witty, sharp-tongued wonder into trite purple prose and slapped her silhouette on a t-shirt. Forging ahead for over four hundred pages, he dissects these Austen novels chapter by chapter, line upon line, precept upon precept highlighting a lack of romance and a decided prevalence of comedy and insight into the human condition.

I would like to give an early warning that this is not a book for those who have never read these novels. Though, it might be argued that it is exactly for those who are still considering them. My warning is for those who prefer to go into their books without spoilers and no undue influence because, reader, the author most definitely means to influence and discuss with thoroughness each character and each event and he does. Continue reading “Bitch in a Bonnet: Reclaiming Jane Austen from the Stiffs, the Snobs, the Simps and the Saps (Volume 1), by Robert Rodi—A Review  “ →

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Jane Austen, the Secret Radical, by Helena Kelly—A Review

Jane Austen Secret Radical 2018From the desk of Tracy Hickman:

Was Jane Austen a radical? Was she sympathetic to the “radical reforms” of Charles James Fox and others that included universal male suffrage, the abolition of slavery, and women’s rights? Few would readily place her in the company of Thomas Paine, William Godwin, or Mary Wollstonecraft, but perhaps that is because she kept her dangerous views so well hidden that most of her contemporaries, as well as later generations, have missed them. While I began reading Jane Austen, The Secret Radical with an open but somewhat skeptical mind, I was curious to see what evidence Helena Kelly would provide. In Chapter 1, she throws down the gauntlet: 

We’re perfectly willing to accept that writers like [William] Wordsworth were fully engaged with everything that was happening and to find the references in their work, even when they’re veiled or allusive. But we haven’t been willing to do it with Jane’s work. We know Jane; we know that however delicate her touch she’s essentially writing variations of the same plot, a plot that wouldn’t be out of place in any romantic comedy of the last two centuries.   Continue reading “Jane Austen, the Secret Radical, by Helena Kelly—A Review” →

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A Preview & Slideshow of The World of Sanditon: The Official Companion Book, by Sara Sheridan

The World of Sanditon, by Sara Sheridan (2019)Welcome to Sanditon, an 1819 Regency seaside community in Sussex England—the fictional site of the new ITV/PBS television adaptation/continuation of Jane Austen’s final unfinished novel.

For those who are watching the eight-part series currently airing in the US on PBS, The World of Sanditon, by Sara Sheridan will be catnip to heighten your addiction. A copiously illustrated behind the scenes look at the making of the new television series, it also is filled with a biography of Jane Austen, historical information on the era, seaside life and health resorts, and Regency life for women.

In addition, there are spotlights on the characters and interviews with the actors who brought them to the screen. Here is a description of the book from the publisher Grand Central Publishing, details on the content, and images from the production for your enjoyment. Continue reading “A Preview & Slideshow of The World of Sanditon: The Official Companion Book, by Sara Sheridan” →

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A Preview & Exclusive Excerpt of Miss Austen: A Novel, by Gill Hornby

Miss Austen, by Gill Hornby (2020)Happy New Year Janeites! I am starting off the new decade by introducing you to a fabulous forthcoming book in the Austenesque genre, Miss Austen, by Gill Hornby.

I had the great pleasure of reading an early manuscript of Hornby’s new novel Miss Austen last year. If like me, you have always been baffled by Jane Austen’s older sister Cassandra destroying much of her sister’s correspondence after her death and are curious why she felt she needed to do so, this forthcoming novel which releases on April 7th fills in the story, and much more. I was moved by this beautiful and engaging story and I hope that you will be intrigued by the book description and the exclusive excerpt here and add it to your TBR pile. There is also an announcement of a sweepstake by the author’s publisher Flatiron Books of a giveaway of five (5) copies of an advance reader’s copy of the book. Enjoy, and good luck to all. Continue reading “A Preview & Exclusive Excerpt of Miss Austen: A Novel, by Gill Hornby” →

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The Ultimate Jane Austen-inspired Holiday Gift Guide for 2019

 

The Ultimate Jane Austen-Inspired Holiday Gift Guide (2019)

The holiday season is upon us once again with all the joys of gift giving for loved ones and friends. To make it easy for you, here is a handy gift guide for the Jane Austen fan in your life.

COLLECTOR’S EDITIONS OF JANE AUSTEN’S NOVELS

The Jane Austen Collection from the Folio Society

Any Jane Austen fan would give their eye teeth for this glorious collector’s edition of her six major novels by the Folio Society, a small press in England who creates exquisite fine editions of classics and selected contemporary writers. Each beautifully designed book in the collection includes the full text of Jane Austen’s novels and is illustrated in color by leading and award-winning artist. Bound in gold cloth, each book includes a coordinating slipcase.

A CLOSER LOOK:

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Books in the Jane Austen Collection include: Sense and Sensibility (1811), illustrated by Philip Bannister, and introduced by Elena Ferrante; Pride and Prejudice (1813), illustrated by Anna and Elena Balbusso, and introduced by Sebastian Faulks; Mansfield Park (1815), illustrated by Darya Shnykina, and introduced by Lucy Worsley; Emma (1816), illustrated by Sam Wolfe Connelly, and introduced by Fay Weldon; Persuasion, illustrated by Deanna Staffo, and introduced by Siri Hustvedt; and Northanger Abbey, illustrated by Jonathan Burton, and introduced by Val McDermid.

These magnificent editions can be purchased separately or as a collection. Visit the Folio Society’s website for additional details and purchase links. (The books ship from the UK, so check Holiday delivery cut off on publisher’s website.)

THE FOLIO SOCIETY

 

Jane Austen: The Complete Works 7-Book Boxed Set: Classics hardcover boxed set (Penguin Clothbound Classics), by Jane Austen, book cover design by Coralie Bickford-Smith

Penguin Classics Clothbound Jane Austen

This seven-book box set is sure to thrill any Jane Austen fan on Christmas day. It is stunningly beautiful in design and the interior is expertly edited. It includes all six of Austen’s major novels and a volume of her minor works.

DESCRIPTION: Continue reading “The Ultimate Jane Austen-inspired Holiday Gift Guide for 2019” →

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A Preview of the Emma (2020) Movie Adaptation of Jane Austen’s Classic Novel

Detail of Emma 2020 movie poster Focus Features © 2020

UPDATED 12/16/19 – in honor of Jane Austen’s birthday today, Focus Features has premiered the second trailer.  Scroll down to view.  There are some amusing lines. This new adaptation just gets better and better.

Janeites are all aflutter over the forthcoming release of the new Focus Features movie adaptation of Jane Austen’s classic novel Emma, starring Anya Taylor-Joy as the misapplying matchmaker Miss Emma Woodhouse and Johnny Flynn as Mr. Knightley, her older, and wiser neighbor. This new feature film was shot entirely in England in period-accurate settings and costumes this past summer. It will premiere in the UK on February 14th and in the US on February 21st, 2020.

Emma, Jane Austen’s most highly acclaimed novel has been adapted for radio, stage, television, and feature films many times, most recently for television in 2009 starring Romola Garai and Jonny Lee Miller, and for the screen in 1996 starring Gwyneth Paltrow and Jeremy Northam in the starring roles. While Austen’s most Continue reading “A Preview of the Emma (2020) Movie Adaptation of Jane Austen’s Classic Novel” →

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A Completing of the Watsons, by Rose Servitova and Jane Austen — A Review

A Completing of the Watsons, by Rose Servitova & Jane Austen (2019)

From the desk of Debra E. Marvin:

Author of The Longbourn Letters, Rose Servitova’s candid preface in A Completing of the Watsons intrigued me as much as the concept of someone taking on an incomplete Austen manuscript. It’s believed Miss Austen began the story around 1803, but it was no more than a partial manuscript at the time of her death. Published in that form by her nephew in 1871, the original document is safely archived ‘as is’ with her edits and revisions. Once I began Ms. Servitova’s novel, I immediately trusted her efforts—dare I say chutzpah—to be the latest to co-author with Jane Austen. What delicate kid slippers to fill! Continue reading “A Completing of the Watsons, by Rose Servitova and Jane Austen — A Review” →

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