Final day to enter the giveaway for 7 Jane Austen audio books!

Don't delay. Leave a comment today!

Today, December 31st is your last chance to enter our giveaway contest to win one of seven Jane Austen audio books by Naxos AudioBooks. Just follow this link and leave a comment stating why you enjoy reading or viewing Jane Austen by 11:59 pm tonight. Winners will be announced tomorrow, January 1st, 2009.

Good luck to all.

Happy New Year from Vic (Ms Place), Jane Austen's World & Laurel Ann, Austenprose

Great New Regency Blog: An Evening at Almacks

Check out this new blog on the block entitled An Evening at Almacks. Devoted to traditional Regency novels, it features book reviews, author insights, and Regency historical facts written by five sharp ladies who love to read and chat about their passion. Their recent post highlights their Favourite Christmas Regencies and includes a list of Christmas themed Regency Romances such as A Christmas Bride by Mary Balogh, Once Upon a Christmas by Diane Farr, and Mistletoe Mayhem by Kate Huntington.

The blog is geared to new readers of the genre and since I have yet to venture into a Regency Romance, I will be following along and anxiously awaiting their insights.

Best of luck ladies. Love your blog title!

Cheers, Laurel Ann, Austenprose

Jane Austen Character Throwdown: New Year's Eve

Our charitable impulses reached out to Mrs. Smith, who received our Christmas basket. Now our thoughts turn to a pleasanter topic: with which family would you prefer to celebrate New Year's Eve?

I'd Spent New Year's Eve With ...

The Musgroves, Persuasion:

Mr. and Mrs. Musgrove are the party givers in the neighborhood, always inviting friends, relations, and acquaintances over for gatherings. Yes, their daughter-in-law, Mary Musgrove nee Elliot, can be a pain, but her peevish voice is usually drowned underneath the din of laughter from the other members of the family. The Musgroves are kind and generous hosts and know how to treat their guests to a good time,including music. As far as this welcoming couple is concerned, the more the merrier. Besides, if you accept their invitation, you might meet Captain Wentworth and Admiral Croft and learn more about their voyages abroad.



Sir John Middleton and Mrs. Jennings, Sense and Sensibility

Sir John Middleton and his mama-in-law, Mrs. Jennings, might be a tad vulgar, but one has to give it to them: everyone and anyone is welcome at their houses all the time. They will spare no expenses, and will roll up their carpet for a dance at a moment's notice. Besides, one might have a chance to hear Marianne play at the piano and sing, or conduct a sensible discusssion with Elinor Dashwood or lawn bowl with Colonel Brandon. At the very worst, the group will eat a fine supper prior to an evening of cards. I also imagine there are scores of women who wouldn't mind meeting Willoughby despite his bad boy image.

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Jane Austen Character Throwdown: New Year's Eve

The Musgroves Sir John Middleton and Mrs. Jennings

Visit Jane Austen's England Vicariously Through Flickr

If you missed the Jane Austen Festival in Bath this year, now is your opportunity to catch up and enjoy it. This Flickr page holds 80 photos in two sets.

Then visit Chawton on Flickr, where you can choose from many sets of photos, like the one of Jane Austen's quilt above.

The photo set of Bradford on Avon was filmed through the eyes of a truly talented photographer.

Additional photo sets:

• Jermyn Street, where shoppes Jane Austen might have seen still exist
• St. James's Park, London
• Jane Austen's Bath
• Lyme Regis
• Box Hill, Surrey, England
  

Gemma Arterton is Tess

Tess of the d'Urbervilles will be aired on Masterpiece Classic on your local PBS stations on Sunday, January 4th & January 11th. Gemma Arterton, who played Lizzy Bennet last fall in ITV's Lost in Austen will play the very innocent, naive Tess.

Click here to view the BBC's page on Tess Durbeyfield, and to read about the cast and characters.

Read an interview with Gemma at this link and a Times Online article about Gemma here, and a Mail Online article here.




Not to be outdone, here is the PBS page about Tess, where you can see a 30 sec clip.

Merry Christmas to One and All

Laurel Ann and I extend to you our greetings and wishes for a most wondrous day. Vic

Winners Announced in Two Guys Read Jane Austen Giveaway Contest!

Congratulations to the four lucky winners in our giveaway contest for a copy of Two Guys Read Jane Austen.

Jane GS
Ben Millett
Laura
Gormer

Winners: To claim your prize, please e-mail Laurel Ann at austenprose at verizon dot net by December 31st, and include your full name and shipping address. The books will be shipped immediately!

Thank you to all who participated. We currently have two other giveaways under way so you still have two more chances to win. Follow these two links and leave comments by December 31st to be eligible.

Number One: Jane Austen's birthday celebration giveaway of 7 Naxos AudioBooks

Number Two: Twelve Gifts of Christmas giveaway of books 1-5 of The Pemberley Chronicles.

Cheers, Vic (Ms Place), Jane Austen's World & Laurel Ann, Austenprose

Twelve Gifts of Christmas

Inquiring readers, During this month of holiday celebrations, Laurel Ann and I will be offering the Twelve Gifts of Christmas. Some of the gifts will be giveaways, others will be free offerings online, and still others will be great gift ideas for you to give to others. Every gift will have a special relationship to this blog, us, or Jane Austen. Today we are happy to offer another great giveaway: volumes one through five of The Pemberley Chronicles as a set to one lucky winner.

Gift Twelve: Giveaway of The Pemberley Chronicles Books 1- 5

“No Regency soap opera, but a work true to the spirit of Jane Austen’s characters, The Pemberley Chronicles are an intriguing, moving and unprentious narrative, which follows the stories of the “Pemberley families” with affection and humour.” The Shades of Pemberley website

The Pemberley Chronicles was first published in Australia in 1997 fueled by the author’s life-long passion for Jane Austen, and the 1995 BBC/A&E production of Pride and Prejudice and are now available internationally in new editions. As the adaptation and novel conclude with the wedding of the Bennet sisters to Darcy and Bingley, the novels continue exploring their lives together, their families trials and exploits, and challenges in a changing society of early 19th-century England.

The five books available in this giveaway include:

The Pemberley Chronicles: Book 1

The Women of Pemberley: Book 2

Netherfield Park Revisted: Book 3

The Ladies of Longbourn: Book 4

Mr. Darcy's Daughter: Book 5

Visit the author’s website for complete description of the five novels being offered in this great giveaway.

To qualify for a chance to win this set of books 1-5 of The Pemberley Chronicles, please leave a comment by December 31st answering this question.

Why is Pride and Prejudice Jane Austen’s most popular novel?

Winner to be announced on January 1st. Comments are open to everyone, but only US residents are eligible for the drawing.

Happy Holidays to all. Vic (Ms Place), Jane Austen’s World & Laurel Ann, Austenprose

Jane Austen Naxos AudioBooks Giveaways!

Win a copy of a Jane Austen audio book!

A gentle reminder to readers that the Jane Austen birthday celebration contest is still open for seven unabridged copies of Jane Austen's novels by Naxos AudioBooks until December 31st. Just leave a comment answering why you love reading or viewing Jane Austen, and seven lucky Janeites will be the winners of these wonderful audio books. What a great way to start the New Year!

Follow this link to the orginal post and leave a comment today!

Twelve Gifts of Christmas

Inquiring readers, During this month of holiday celebrations, Laurel Ann and I will be offering the Twelve Gifts of Christmas. Some of the gifts will be giveaways, others will be free offerings online, and still others will be great gift ideas for you to give to others. Every gift will have a special relationship to this blog, us, or Jane Austen. Today we are happy to present instructions for making cookies.

Gift Eleven: Instructions for Making Jane Austen Teapot Cookies

Mischief Mari productions shows you step by step how to make these unique Jane Austen teapot cookies in a "wickedly entertaining and clever little tutorial!" Their creation does not look hard; merely time consuming.

Click here to find out how.

You will have to supply your own cookie recipe and find your own teapot cutter, like this one and this one from Amazon.You will also need Jane's silhouette as a template, such as the one to the left. Make sure to size it down. (The easiest way would be to reduce your copy in the printer.)

After making your one of a kind, cookies, why not serve them with tea? This looks like a fun way to spend a winter's afternoon.

These teacups hang in a tearoom near Chawton.

Jane Austen Character Throwdown: Spirit of Giving

We now know who you think will add conversational spice to your Christmas eve dinner: Henry Tilney. He won by a nose, but the contest was never certain, for Lizzy Bennet pulled ahead on several occasions. This was our most popular throwdown to date, which tells us how passionate you are about your dinner guests.

Our next throwdown is designed for the spirit of giving. You have filled a sturdy basket with a roasted goose, side of ham, Christmas pudding, dishes of vegetables, orange marmalade, a box of tea leaves, yards of French lace, and enough ribbons to trim several bonnets. Jane Austen described many households in her novels, but I can't think of two that are more deserving of your largesse than Mrs. Bates' and Miss Bates', and Mrs. Smith's households. This week we ask you to decide on the individuals who are ...

Most Deserving of a Christmas Basket

Mrs. Bates and Miss Bates, widow and spinster, Emma
Miss Bates's cheery and gregarious disposition cannot hide the unalterable fact that she and her aged mother live in genteel but dire circumstances. Oh, yes, the Woodhouses, Eltons, and Mr. Knightley invite these two ladies over for teas, dinners, and picnics with regularity, but these two women must stretch every farthing and shilling to their utmost, darn every sock, mend every torn hem, boil every ham and chicken to the bone, and rework every bonnet in order to make ends meet. At Box Hill Mr. Knightley remonstrates Emma after she made fun of Miss Bates: "She is poor; she has sunk from the comforts she was born to; and, if she live to old age, must probably sink more. Her situation should secure your compassion. It was badly done, indeed!."

Mrs. Smith, widow, Persuasion
Prevented from benefiting from her husband's small inheritance through Mr. William Elliot's willful neglect, she is alone and impoverished. In such poor health that she is unable to walk or leave her small Bath apartment in Westgate Buildings, Mrs. Smith, has only the company of Nurse Rooke and the gossip she brings to keep her amused. She nevertheless manages to retain a cheery and optimistic outlook. Once Anne Elliot's supportive friend at school, she now depends on Anne's friendship in turn. "She had been used to affluence,--it was gone. She had no child to connect her with life and happiness again, no relations to assist in the arrangement of perplexed affairs, no health to make all the rest supportable. Her accommodations were limited to a noisy parlour, and a dark bed-room behind, with no possibility of moving from one to the other without assistance, which there was only one servant in the house to afford."

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Jane Austen Character Throwdown: Spirit of Giving

Mrs. Bates and Miss Bates Mrs. Smith

Posted by Vic, Jane Austen's World

The Twelve Gifts of Christmas

Inquiring readers, During this month of holiday celebrations, Laurel Ann and I will be offering the Twelve Gifts of Christmas. Some of the gifts will be giveaways, others will be free offerings online, and still others will be great gift ideas for you to give to others. Every gift will have a special relationship to this blog, us, or Jane Austen. Today we are happy to present instructions for making a kissing ball.

Gift Ten: Instructions for Making a Kissing Ball

In 18th century England, tradition stated that if a maid received a kiss on the cheek under a kissing ball, she would soon be married.

• Our gift? How to make a kissing ball. Click here to see the video.

• Click here for instructions for making a kissing ball.

Click here to read The Kissing Bough byBy Judith H. Simpson and Margaret Lorine, Judith H. Simpson, Margaret Lorine, a partial Google Book.

Click here for the Christmas Archives.


Posted by Vic (Jane Austen's World) and Laurel Ann (Austenprose)

Two Jane Austen Fans Review Two Guys Read Jane Austen: Part Two

Gentle Readers: Laurel Ann (Austenprose) and I have finished reading Two Guys Read Jane Austen and had quite a jolly time reviewing it. This new book by writers and lifelong best friends Steve Chandler and Terrence Hill is in an epistolary format written over a course of five months and touches on their male perspective of reading Pride and Prejudice and Mansfield Park together. As they go Austen Trekking, (bravely going where few men have gone before), sharing their thoughts on Austen’s writing, life and social impact, we two gals found ourselves reacting to their comments, insights and observations in many different ways. What evolved was our joint review of Two Guys Read Jane Austen - in epistolary format, of course! Part One of our review sits here.

Dear LA,

I just finished reading Part Two of Two Guys Read Jane Austen, in which Steve and Terry discuss Mansfield Park, and couldn’t believe how quickly I finished the book. Steve and Terry conclude that Jane Austen is no whiner. No kidding. Unlike the woman that they described in Santa Monica who talked loudly into her cell phone about personal issues that every stranger in standing distance could (uncomfortably) hear, our Jane and her characters retain an air of mystery. Towards the end of Mansfield Park we are not even made privy to Edmund’s proposal to Fanny or any details of their marriage. We read more about the Crawford’s and what they are up to! I posit (and I believe that Steve and Terry will back me up on this) that herein lies the secret to Jane’s greatness – she sums up her novels in less than lurid or sappy circumstances and leads us to make a number of significant conclusions that expand our knowledge about the human character, a fact that escapes many romance and JA sequel writers. – Vic

Nothing surpasses the feminine mystique and Jane Austen was one mysterious woman in private, and through her characters in her novels. She was so mysterious in Mansfield Park that some critics complain that we were cheated out of a good wrap up of the love story between Fanny and Edmund. I must concur with you that sequel writers often tell too much and it spoils the allure. Having Darcy and Lizzy do the wild thing just fractures the fairy tale for me. :) I think that Jane Austen would be the Greta Garbo of mysterious screenwriters if she was alive today because she wrote like one 200 years ago. – LA

Steve and Terry adhere to a reading schedule that I admire very much. You probably don’t know this, LA, but I receive a chapter or so of Persuasion from Dailylit in my email inbox every day. I’m hard pressed to read these emails, which must be the easiest way to read Jane Austen, but Steve and Terry manage to stick to a rigid schedule, which allows them to finish Jane’s two novels - Pride and Prejudice and Mansfield Park - in tandem. I wish I had their stick-to-it-ness. I’d be rich and set for life, even in this tanking economy. - Vic

I too admire their dedication, but I also am humbled by yours. Strict schedules are a guy thing Vic. They love the competition. At one point Steve got ahead of their reading and started reading another book to fill in the time. I bet that revved up Terry’s testosterone. – LA

LA, you are too much. I loved reading this book, as I mentioned before, and I finished Part Two even faster than Part One. I wish Steve and Terry lived in Richmond so that I could invite them to my Christmas cocktail soiree. Two men who can discuss Jane Austen? They’d be the LIFE of this Janeite’s party! They likened the plot of Mansfield Park to a certain fairytale, which I won’t reveal, but the moment they went down that path I thought – yeah, this interpretation makes sense. Of course, MP can be read on many more levels, which I don’t think Steve or Terry would disagree with. – Vic

I wish I lived in Richmond so I could receive an invite to your Christmas cocktail soiree! If Mansfield Park is like that un-named fairy tale, then I missed the pumpkin into a barouche trick and even though Aunt Norris’ ego would like to think that she was Fanny’s fairy godmother, I do not think that was what Austen had in mind. – LA

28 January 2008
Steve’s reaction to ITV’s 2007 version of Mansfield Park is one of horror. He called Billie Piper (who recently became a mother) a Bavarian milkmaid. Hah! I must admit I disliked this film adaptation as much as the guys did, but their reasons for disliking the flick are funnier than mine.

A Bavarian milkmaid in a porn flick no less! The Two Guys understood how the screenwriter and director missed the boat on this one and “lost the brooding depth of the story.” Since we are in such total agreement with them, I flatter myself by thinking that they possibly read our reviews for research! – LA

Next thing we know, Steve talks about Dorothy Parker, a witty, vibrant, though dissolute character, much like Mary Crawford. Born in the U.S. just 120 years after Jane’s birth, Dorothy Parker was known for her scathing wit, but I personally think our Jane was funnier and more observant. While Dorothy forked her tongue for deadly effect, Jane’s observations are timeless.

Ooo…, Mary Crawford and Dorothy Parker. What a brilliant connection. Parker’s wit was caustic and abrasive, whereas Austen’s was a sideways and sly. Two similar authors, but two totally different ladies. – LA

As I said before, these guys make associations that are unique and interesting, mentioning Nabokov's lectures on Mansfield Park in one moment, then jumping to contemporary movies. Terry compares Henry Crawford to the detestable characters in The Company of Men, in which two guys intend to woo and dump a vulnerable woman. Henry comes to actually love Fanny (in his own stunted way), but his initial intent in pursuing her was for sport and fun. – Vic

I was really glad that the Two Guys spent some time talking about Henry Crawford. He is a villain that tried to become a hero for all the wrong reasons. I always felt that Henry didn’t love Fanny. She was just another one of his projects. I’ve know a few men like this in my life and seen the destruction in their wake. Not a pretty sight. – LA

2 February 2008
I’ve not heard a reference to Dolores Hart in over a decade, but Steve makes one on page 91. (Don’t you love the way these men’s minds work?) This beautiful, engaging, and talented actress of the early 60’s (George Hamilton’s love interest in Where The Boys Are) left Hollywood at the height of her career to pursue the contemplative life as a nun. Steve is of two minds when talking about her decision to become a Bride of Christ. As a man, he thinks it was a waste. As a thinking and sensing person, he admires her Chutzpah! As do I. I wish today’s politicians, CEOs, and bank managers had the same resolve. Dolores’s moral compass is similar to Fanny Price’s, who did not waver in her ability to judge right from wrong, and what was right for HER. Both women are strong, morally upright characters. – Vic

LOL Vic! Oh I am so glad that you mentioned the reference to actress now nun Dolores Hart. She was an icon to the nuns at my parochial school; -- a modern recruitment tool for young impressionable Catholic schoolgirls. She was a bit before my time, but they still doled out her name ten years after she chose her vocation. My older sister explained it all to me. We watch Where The Boys Are every Easter religiously! It’s a rites of passage thing. Interestingly, the character that Hart portrays, Merritt Andrews, shares Fanny Price’s principles also! Would Jane Austen approve? – LA

LA, We should have titled our posts ‘Two Catholic Gals Review Two Guys Who Read Jane Austen.’ LOL. - Vic

7 February 2008
Steve is spot on when he describes Jane’s heroines as being powerful. ‘Nuff said. – Vic

I liked his answer to his six-year old grandson about what special powers the Jane Austen Action figure has. “She writes.” – LA

27 March 2008
Both Steve and Terry react to Jane’s statement that Edmund wants a sisterly marriage. They assert that no warm-blooded male would want such a relationship with his wife. I concur, and realize after reading their remarks on why I have always thought of Edmund (and Edward Ferrars) as wusses. They seem too milk-toasty brotherly to be REAL men. – Vic

Oh Vic, I so agree. I love my dear Jane, so sorry Miss Austen, but your two heroes Edmund Bertram in Mansfield Park and Edward Ferrars in Sense and Sensibility are wusses. I laughed when Terry quoted Ohio State football coach Woody Hayes’ description of a tie game as “like kissing your sister”. When I read that Edmund wants a “warm and sisterly marriage” with Fanny Price after the exalted delights of Mary Crawford, I know he is wimping out. It has never sat well with me. I agree with his question, “why does Jane Austen run out of steam at the end of the book?” I am often the cheese alone when I openly declare my adoration of Mansfield Park. I never said that it was perfect! – LA

I enjoyed the second half of this book as much as the first, but before ending my part of the review, I want to comment on the cover of the book, which I think will work against its marketability. The photo of Terry and Steve is murky and the yellow and orange pattern looks like Victorian wallpaper. There is no Jane Austen/Regency feel to this cover, which is the primary reason we have been displaying the blue graphic from Steve’s website. I – we - simply refuse to have the orange, brown, and ochre cover grace our nice little blog. (Well, we did import this teensy cover to show you what we mean, with apologies to orange, brown, and ochre lovers everywhere.) Aside from this observation, this book will make the perfect gift for the Jane Austen fan who has read everything written by her and about her. –Vic

Having just come off reading a slough of Austen sequels, I found this book so refreshing Vic. I just ate up all of the references to modern media and culture. Our enthusiasm and praise for The Two Guys is not alone. I read this week on Steve’s web site that the Chawton gift shop will be carrying Two Guys Read Jane Austen. Next to the author herself, this is the highest seal of approval available for them. My only hope, which I pride myself we are in agreement on, is that with the second edition, they redesign the cover. Jane Austen fans are a very loyal group Two Guys, but we do have our limits. – LA

Thanks for your insights, L.A. You are right. This short book is one FUN read. For those who are wondering how to spend their Christmas bonuses or checks from Santa, click on the link below to order Steve and Terry’s book.

GIVEAWAY

We are giving away two copies in two separate contests.
Deadline? December 23rd. Look for the contests on our sidebar or click on these links to answer the question, or click here and click here.

Two Guys Read Jane Austen
by Steven Chandler & Terrence N. Hill
Trade paperback (126) pages
Robert D. Reed Publishers, Bandon, OR
ISBN: 978-1934759172

With best wishes to all, Laurel Ann (Austenprose) & Vic(Jane Austen's World)

Jane Austen Quiz

Weary Ankles, Dirty Stockings is a Jane Austen quiz that tests your knowledge of why Jane's characters move around. The quiz is relatively easy, since the average score is 8/10. Can you top the average? Click here.

In the Footsteps of Jane Austen. If you can't visit Bath in the foreseeable future, a free MP3 walking tour of Bath with accompanying maps is available at this site. We've pointed it out before, but thought it worth mentioning again. Click here to download the files into your MP3 player.

Posted by Vic, Jane Austen's World

Twelve Gifts of Christmas

Inquiring readers, During this month of holiday celebrations, Laurel Ann and I will be offering the Twelve Gifts of Christmas. Some of the gifts will be giveaways, others will be free offerings online, and still others will be great gift ideas for you to give to others. Every gift will have a special relationship to this blog, us, or Jane Austen. Today we are happy to present recipes that Jane might have made.

Gift Nine: Old Timey Recipes to Make Your Holiday Special

Foods from the Yellow Admiral includes recipes for Syllabub and Ratafia Biscuits. They will take time to make, but they would add to an authentic Jane Austen Christmas.

Cooking With Jane Austen: This partial Google book describes the foods popular during Jane's time and includes a number of recipes. Better yet, you can order your own copy at this link. Here's the recipe for-
Broiled Mutton Chops: 6 lamb loin chops, 2 T water, 2 T butter, 1 shallot thinly sliced, 1 T mushroom ketchup, 1/2 tsp salt. Heat the broiler or barbecue grill. Grill or broil the lamb chops on each side until the desired degree of doneness. Meanwhile, heat the water, shallot, mushroom ketchup, and salt together in a small pan. Serve the sauce in a small dish alongside the chops.

If you live in Lichfield, the library will host a Jane Austen's Christmas on December 19th where guests will be able to hear a recipe of Jane's own seasonal puddings. Yum.

Posted Laurel Ann (Austenprose) and Vic (Jane Austen's World)

Fabulous Brock Images of Jane Austen's Sense And Sensiblity

Many websites and blogs provide C.E. Brock illustrations of Jane Austen novels. All Edges Gilt, a blog devoted to book illustrations, offers large closeup image files of Sense And Sensibility illustrations in the following posts: One and Two.

At this link, you can download two S&S images in these sizes:

315x500 52K; 424x674 94K; 566x900 191K; 755x1200 233K; and 1007x1600 490K

Image title: The gentleman offered his services, took her up in his arms, and carried her down the hill. (Willoughby and Marianne.)

Source: Austen, Jane: "Works of Jane Austen" (1906)

Posted by Vic, Jane Austen's World

12 Gifts of Christmas: Jane Austen's Birthday!

Inquiring readers, During this month of holiday celebrations, Laurel Ann and I will be offering the Twelve Gifts of Christmas. Some of the gifts will be giveaways, others will be free offerings online, and still others will be great gift ideas for you to give to others. Every gift will have a special relationship to this blog, us, or Jane Austen. Today in honor of Jane Austen’s Birthday we are happy to present gifts to our readers, all seven of Jane Austen’s major novels on unabridged audio by Naxos AudioBooks. Leave a comment stating why you enjoy reading or viewing Jane Austen by December 31st, and you will be eligible for a drawing for one of the following unabridged audios.

Gift Eight: Jane Austen Birthday Celebration Giveaways!

Sense and Sensibility: Read by Juliet Stevenson

When Mrs Dashwood is forced by an avaricious daughter-in-law to leave the family home in Sussex, she takes her three daughters to live in a modest cottage in Devon. For Elinor, the eldest daughter, the move means a painful separation from the man she loves, but her sister Marianne finds in Devon the romance and excitement which she longs for. The contrasting fortunes and temperaments of the two girls as they struggle to cope in their different ways with the cruel events which fate has in store for them are portrayed by Jane Austen with her usual irony, humour and profound sensibility. 11 CDs • Running Time: 11½ hours • ISBN: 978-9626343616

Pride and Prejudice: Read by Emilia Fox

Jane Austen’s most popular novel, originally published in 1813, some seventeen years after it was first written, presents the Bennet family of Longbourn. Against the background of gossipy Mrs Bennet and the detached Mr Bennet, the quest is on for husbands for the five daughters, beautiful Jane, witty Elizabeth, scholarly Mary, impressionable Kitty and wilful Lydia. The spotlight falls on Elizabeth, second eldest, who is courted by Mr Darcy though initially she is more concerned with the fate of her other sisters. This marvellous account of family life in Regency England is read with vigour and style by Emilia Fox. 11 CDs • Running Time: 15 hours • ISBN: 978-9626343562

Mansfield Park: Read by Juliet Stevenson

When timid, ten-year-old Fanny Price is plucked from her large, raucous and somewhat impoverished family in Portsmouth to live with wealthy relatives in Mansfield Park her life is changed for ever. Immediately forming a strong attraction for her cousin Edmund, she develops into a genteel and mature young woman, whose love for him remains undimmed despite the diversion brought into both their lives by the attractive but morally bankrupt Crawfords. With its suggestion of adultery, and written with all the wit and style of the mature Jane Austen, this is the work of a writer at the peak of her powers. It was published in 1814, and unlike its predecessors, Pride and Prejudice and Sense and Sensibility which were revisions of her juvenile writing, Mansfield Park was completely original. Like its heroine Fanny Price, who develops during the course of the story to reach maturity, Jane Austen’s third published novel was a much more mature work from a writer of increasing experience. 14 CDs • Running Time: 17 hours • ISBN: 978-9626344675

Emma: Read by Juliet Stevenson

Arrogant, self-willed and egotistical, young Miss Emma Woodhouse is Jane Austen’s most unusual heroine. Her interfering ways and inveterate matchmaking are at once shocking and comic. She is ‘handsome, clever and rich’ and has ‘a disposition to think too well of herself’. When she decides to introduce the humble Harriet Smith, the natual daughter of who knows whom, to the delights of genteel society and to find her a suitable husband, she precipitates herself and her immediate circle into a web of misunderstanding, intrigue, and comedy from which no-one emerges unchanged. 13 CDs • Running Time: 16 hours • ISBN: 978-9626343944

Northanger Abbey: Read by Juliet Stevenson

When Catherine Morland, a country clergyman’s daughter, is invited to spend a season in Bath with the fashionable high society, little does she imagine the delights and perils that await her. Captivated and disconcerted by what she finds, and introduced to the joys of ‘Gothic novels’ by her new friend, Isabella, Catherine longs for mystery and romance. When she is invited to stay with the beguiling Henry Tilney and his family at Northanger Abbey, she expects mystery and intrigue at every turn. However, the truth turns out to be even stranger than fiction. 7 CDs • Running Time: 9 hours • ISBN: 978-9626344279

Persuasion: Read by Juliet Stevenson

Anne Elliot has grieved for seven years over the loss of her first and only love, Captain Frederick Wentworth. When their paths finally cross again, Anne finds herself slighted and all traces of their former intimacy gone. As the pair continue to share the same social circle, dramatic events in Lyme Regis, and later in Bath, conspire to unravel the knots of deceit and misunderstanding in this beguiling and gently comic story of love and fidelity. Juliet Stevenson reads this unabridged recording with her customary clarity and particular understanding for the words and world of Jane Austen. Running Time: 8½ hours • ISBN: 978-9626344361

Lady Susan: Read by Harriet Walter, Kim Hicks, Carole Boyd, and cast

Lady Susan was the first of Jane Austen’s novels to be completed. An epistolary novel in eighteenth-century style, it tells the story of the recently widowed Lady Susan Vernon, intelligent but highly manipulative, who is intent on gaining financially secure relationships for both herself and her wayward but shy teenage daughter Frederica. Less known than Austen’s six great later novels, it demonstrates the wit and sharp observations of Jane Austen – and is shown at its best in audiobook form, with different actresses presenting real characters as they read their letters. Featuring nineteenth-century chamber music. 2 CDs • Running Time: 2½ hours • ISBN: 978-9626342282

Both Vic (Ms. Place) and Laurel Ann adore audio books and know that each of the winners will be thrilled to listen to one of these quality recordings. You can visit the Naxos AudioBooks web site for detailed information on each of the audio recordings and listen to previews.



Happy Birthday Jane Austen! Pass on the celebration by sharing the news of this giveaway with your friends. A big thank you to the folks at Naxos AudioBooks USA for their generous support in our celebration of Jane Austen’s Birthday.

Happy Holidays from Vic(Jane Austen's World) & Laurel Ann (Austenprose)

The Conqueror: A Review of a Georgette Heyer Historical Novel

Inquiring readers, Hillary Major kindly agreed to read and review Georgette Heyer's historical novel, The Conqueror. Written when Ms. Heyer was still in her twenties, this novel takes William from birth through the Battle of Hastings, the event that made him a British king. This is Ms. Major's second review for us (thank you, Hillary, for your excellent insights). Her first Heyer review on the Royal Escape can be found at this link.

With the story of William the Conqueror, Georgette Heyer tackles history on a grand scale and, in doing so, she provides her readers with a larger-than-life hero. While (atypically) Heyer does not provide specific references for The Conqueror, it is clear that this thoroughly-researched novel draws from a gamut of historical sources, including The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, the details of the Bayeaux Tapestry, contemporary and near-contemporary accounts, and modern analyses. In his own time, William was already a legend, and Heyer chooses to incorporate these legends into her account. Thus, we first meet William on the day of his birth, his mother, a burgher’s daughter, having dreamed of a great tree stretching from Normandy across the Channel to England. When visited by his nobleman father, newborn William stretches out his hands to grasp his sword.

Alongside the myth, however, Heyer presents a William who owes much of his success to practical and military innovations, including quick troop mobilisation and trained archers. She emphasizes the struggles he faces as a bastard son in a hierarchical medieval society, including repeated assassination attempts from his own courtiers. William’s dreams (whether you describe them as nationalist, imperialist, or simply ambitious) are big, but he is able to accomplish them with careful strategy, execution, and, yes, a certain ruthlessness.

If any aspect of the novel strains the reader’s credulity, it is the haughty heroine rather than the singular hero. Heyer may be anachronistic in giving Lady Matilda the freedom to choose or reject William’s proposal though, as a widow who has already done her familial duty and a favorite of her indulgent father, Matilda enjoys considerably more latitude than her female contemporaries. Even if Matilda’s ability to chart her own nuptial course, unswayed by mere political concerns (such as William’s station or his direct petition to the Pope), is accepted, her obsession with William’s violent potential ultimately comes across as silly:

She lifted her arm and observed a bruise like a shadow on the flesh. Her fingers touched it. Jesu, the man knew not his own strength! She shook her head at it, frowned in an assumption of anger, but ended by thinking no worse of him for his rough handling. If she kindled him to a blaze and was herself scorched she would not blame him for that. His fingers had crushed her soft flesh so that she had to stifle a cry of pain. She knew herself at his mercy, and could not be sure that he dealt in so gentle a virtue. Yet she could be calm before his brute strength; what fear she nursed she kept for the intangible power he held over her. It crept up to set her shivering in the fastness of her chamber, and stalked beside her even when he was furthest away. If she was already both wife and widow she had still borne a virgin heart until Normandy strode up her father’s audience-hall, and bent his hard stare upon her."

Fortunately, The Conqueror at its heart is more of a buddy story than a romance, for the novel also tells the story of fictional Raoul de Harcourt, an idealistic young nobleman who believes William will bring stability and social justice to Normandy. As Raoul faithfully accompanies William in a series of adventures that leads ever-closer to a climactic account of the Battle of Hastings, we observe magnanimity and deliberate cruelty, political blackmail coupled with a reverence for the feudal codes of fealty, apparently devout prayer followed by wily manipulations of clergy, and friendship at war with ambition. It is through the lens of Raoul’s (fairly modern) sensibilities that we readers view William, a device that allows us to come to our own conclusions regarding William’s motivations and merits and encourages us to take a stance on some intricate and messy ethical issues. Even in its most unlikely depictions, The Conqueror delivers an enjoyable read, but in its best moments, it challenges us to examine our own allegiances in a time that may be just as volatile and uncertain as Heyer’s eleventh century.

• Read our other review of The Conqueror here
• Order the book
• Bayeux Tapestry in Bayeux
• Battle of Hastings

These Georgette Heyer books, available this holiday season, will be reviewed on this blog and Jane Austen's World through mid-December: Cotillion, Simon the Coldheart, The Reluctant Widow, Faro's Daughter, and The Conqueror. See our reviews in the sidebar.

The Complete Works of Jane Austen from Girlebooks

Girlebooks has opened up a new area: an ebook store. In the ebook store the gals will offer compilation ebooks and other goodies you can’t get elsewhere.

Their first offering is The Complete Works of Jane Austen. You can enjoy the convenience of all Jane Austen’s writing in one ebook file. It contains all of her major works: Sense and Sensibility, Pride and Prejudice, Mansfield Park, Emma, Northanger Abbey, and Persuasion; Minor and unfinished works: Sanditon, The Watsons, and Lady Susan; and Juvenilia: Frederic & Elfrida, Love and Freindship, Lesley Castle, The History of England, A Collection of Letters, Scraps. You may download your ebook immediately upon purchase.

We have ideas for subsequent offerings including compilations of the Brontë Sisters including all of their novels, poems and juvenilia; The Scarlet Pimpernel series in chronological order; the Anne of Green Gables series also in chronological order; other “complete works” of Elizabeth Gaskell, George Eliot and Fanny Burney; a compilations on different themes like young adult novels and American pioneers stories.

Twelve Gifts of Christmas

Inquiring readers, During this month of holiday celebrations, Laurel Ann and I will be offering the Twelve Gifts of Christmas. Some of the gifts will be giveaways, others will be free offerings online, and still others will be great gift ideas for you to give to others. None are expensive, but every gift will have a special relationship to this blog, us, or Jane Austen. Today we offer directions for Jane Austen Bingo Cards, a game you can play with your family or Janeite friends during this holiday season. During Jane's time this game was known as Lotto and it was all the rage among the intelligencia, spreading quickly from France to every part of Europe. Back then the game was used for educational purposes as well as gaming. When Lotto made its way to the U.S., it became known as Beano, then as the more popularly known Bingo.

Gift Number Seven:

Our 7th gift is a link to Jane Austen Bingo cards. You may download the cards for free or make your own cards using their card creator. Click here for the directions to play this game and for making your own cards in this fabulous link.

Here are some of the directions you can download:

Notes: How long a bingo game lasts depends on what pace you read the clues at and how many players you have. If you read faster, such as for older or more experienced students, or if you have more players, the game tends to end more quickly. In general, I suggest allocating between twenty and thirty minutes to a bingo game. Since they can potentially end as early as the fourth word called, though that is quite rare, I encourage you to keep playing in the event of the game being over earlier than you expected it to be.

View our other gifts in these links:

• Gift Number One

• Gift Number Two

• Gift Number Three

• Gift Number Four

• Gift Number Five

• Gift Number Six
  

Posted by Vic (Jane Austen's World) and Laurel Ann (Austenprose)