Member Library Reviews
Sunday, January 10, 2021 at 11:11 AM **This is a set of reviews and opinions by a few of our members on some of the items in our Member Lending Library. If you are interested in just the list of items or would like to see about checking out one of our items, please click here.**
Introduction to this document and list
This is a list of opinions and recommendations from various JASNA Central and Western Ohio members about Jane Austen related materials. The titles are followed by the name of the person who suggested it and their comments follow. All of the unattributed titles and comments are my own. Wilson Palmer, JASNA Central and Western Ohio Reading Group Coordinator
In 2018 I had 3 boxes of JASNA Central and Western Ohio Library books in my house for a number of months. I decided to use that opportunity to read as many of the volumes and pamphlets as interested me. In emailing Jean Long, our long time Jane Austen expert and Reading Group Leader (who, unfortunately for us, now lives in Michigan) comments or questions about what I encountered, I realized I was creating a record of my reading. Along with comments back from Jean the first glimmers of this document were born. I have tried to make this report parallel the order of books listed on our website's library list.
I hope you will consider this to be an open forum where your opinions about your own Austen related reading may also be included. These can include a different recommendation on the current items listed here or a new entry. Email your suggestions and opinions to wilson3cp@gmail.com.
Some of the items listed below are not in our library and that will be noted after the title.
Books by Jane Austen
Best complete set of Austen's novels: The Oxford Illustrated Jane Austen (Edited fully for the first time by R.W. Chapman. Includes all Minor Works) (EVERYONE should own this set!) – Recommended by Jean Long
Even the new Cambridge Set isn't as well done. I first read Austen in the Oxford version - the notes by Chapman are so precise as to how and where various versions were misprinted or misquoted ....that it is like reading a mystery story. He is the eminent scholar of Austen - all others must follow in his footsteps (or footnotes as it may be?). Without his intense delving - we would have lost a lot of history and the version we now read would be poorer - not following Austen's original. His thoughts throughout each chapter were the first I knew of the 'background' of Jane Austen. Nearly all of Chapman is repeated in Shapard/ LeFaye/ Collins/ Lane. This is because his was the most thorough and the first attempt to put sense into Austen's printed versions, to identify the errors and to explain how and what. Worth checking out, if that sort of history is your thing. It was mine at the beginning.
Wilson’s comment: Before a Reading Group session, I usually read a Shepard annotated version first. But closer to the meeting, I will read the passages again, this time in this old Oxford edition, just the pure text without all the distractions of footnotes or pictures. (There are a few pictures, but enough to call it "illustrated"?)
Best annotated version of Jane Austen's novels: David M. Shapard – Recommended by Jean Long
Wilson’s comment: Many years ago, before I ever met anyone in JASNA Central and Western Ohio, I searched for an annotated version of Pride and Prejudice. I looked at about 3 or 4 and the David M. Shapard version seemed like the best one. I was delighted to find out later that Jean also feels this way. So I have continued to purchase his annotated versions.
Juvenilia Press - Recommended by Jean Long (Currently not in our library)
These are the best of the short, illustrated, juvenilia books and I like all of them: Evelyn, Fredrick & Elfreida, Jack and Alice, Lady Susan, etc. Very funny and well-done illustrations throughout. Love these! (Wilson’s note: The Oxford Illustrated Minor Works includes the text of all Jane Austen's juvenilia, but no pictures.)
3 Prayers and a Poem - Jane Austen (Friends of Godmersham Church) - Recommended by Jean Long (Currently not in our library)
Wilson’s comment: This particular publication is not in our library but the 3 prayers and all Austen's known verses can be found at the end of the Oxford Illustrated Minor Works, already mentioned and recommended.
Fiction by Other Authors
The Castle of Otranto - Horace Walpole Not recommended (Currently not in our library)
This is a very long book, popular in Jane Austen's day, written in a style not much interesting to most readers today.
His Cunning or Hers - June Menzies Recommended by Jean Long (Currently not in our library)
A postscript to Persuasion and a great giggle of a book!
Letters from Pemberley - Jane Dawkins Recommended (Currently not in our library. However a sequel, More Letters from Pemberley is in our library, but I have not yet read it)
I am not much into prequels and sequels, but I really enjoyed this collection of letters written by Elizabeth in the first year of her marriage. It is hard for any writer to match the Austen's writing skills so Dawkins choose a simple idea and I think it works.
The Mysteries of Udolpho - Ann Radcliffe Not recommended
If the black veil mentioned in Northanger Abbey has gotten you to read this tome, you have a lot of pages to get through to reach... not that much. One value of reading this is to ponder how Jane Austen could see past all this bad writing to come up with a new style. As we all know, Jane came up with something timeless while almost none of the popular works in Austen's day are still being read, except by serious Janeites.
Sanditon - Jane Austen and "Another Lady" (Marie Dobbs) Recommended (Currently not in our library)
This is more Austen-based and realistic novel than the 2020 PBS mini-series completion of this fragment. Marie Dobbs is not Jane Austen, but who is? This is light but worth reading.
Vicar of Wakefield - Oliver Goldsmith Slightly recommended
This is an amusing little story whose greatest asset is that it is relatively short for a novel of its time. The characters do not act like any real people and one can easily imagine Jane Austen pondering how to write a better book. This is a good way to read an old book that Jane Austen would have read, but without taking a vast number of days to do it.
Travel
A Charming Place: Bath in the Life and Novels of Jane Austen - Maggie Lane Recommended
This book is about Bath. Maggie Lane is a good writer and delivers on the subtitle.
Chawton: Jane Austen's Village - Rupert Willoughby Slightly recommended
This is my least favorite of travel/place books I read that I recommend. But there are a number of parts that I did find interesting. There were tidbits about some of the neighbors referenced in Jane Austen's letters and knowing where their homes were made it all more real.
Godmersham Park Kent - Nigel Nicolson Recommended
Hampshire Papers - Audrey Hawkridge Recommended
This describes Steventon, Chawton and other locations in the county of Hampshire.
In the Steps of Jane Austen - Anne-Marie Edward Recommended if you are a walker going to England
A couple of decades ago I used this book to design my own Austen themed week walking around England in various places. If you are planning your own self guided trip to England, this can give a structure to your visit. There is a report of my trip available on my Facebook page.
Jane Austen and Alton - Jane Hurst Not recommended
Hurst is focused on whatever Alton history she can find and does not help us understand any real connection to Austen's life near there.
Jane Austen and Chawton - Jane Hurst Not recommended
Hurst is focused on whatever Chawton history she can find and does not help us understand any real connection to Austen's life there.
Jane Austen and Lyme Regis - Maggie Lane Recommended
This stays fairly focused on Austen related information, so it should be interesting to Janeites even if they never travel to Lyme.
Picture of Lyme-Regis and Environs - M. Phillips Slightly recommended
This is an odd little curiosity, printed in 1817 by a tourist (in those days this word meant upper class visitor) who only stayed there 2 days. But, it is another portal in which you can travel back in time.
Sherborne St John & the Vyne in the Time of Jane Austen - Rupert Willoughby Not recommended
While it is technically true that the Vyne and the Chute family were in Austen's neighborhood, the title is a blatant attempt to trade on her name to sell a book that has virtually nothing to say about Jane or her writings. This is more about the medieval founding of two huge mansions and their family histories. There are minute descriptions of the houses and grounds but almost no pictures, maps or drawings for the reader to get some idea of what they are talking about. I did not finish this one, but I would say there is nothing here for a Janeite, unless you were on a tour to see one of these places.
Nonfiction
Book of Common Prayer - Anglican (Cambridge) - Recommended by Jean Long (Currently not in our library)
Wilson’s comments: Jane Austen would have been familiar with the 1662 version. Since Austen's religious views enter into her writings, reading this is a way to experience something that influenced her works. This book defines the order of service, sacraments and prayers, so it could shed light on what occurred during Austen's Anglican Sunday church service.
A Country Parson - James Woodforde - Recommended by Jean Long (Currently not in our library)
Woodforde's Diary from 1759 - 1802. A grand look at the life of an outstanding and very literate man.
The Improvement to the Estate - Alistair M. Duckworth Highly recommended
Almost 80 pages in 3 introductions! I advise skipping the first 2 and begin reading the first chapter (third introduction). Save the other introductions until you have read all or part of the book so you can have some idea of what he spends so much time defending against. Although this book occasionally becomes a little thick, both Jean and I find he has useful ideas that help us appreciate Austen in deeper ways. He uses Mansfield Park to establish a theme he will use to view all of Austen's works. I have read critics who dismiss Austen as an apologist of the old order and others who claim she was an advocate of revolution. Duckworth believes Austen both valued the past centuries of wisdom and tradition while continuously advocated for improvement, for living up to the highest ideals of our wisdom, religion and history.
In Defense of Mrs. Elton - Diana Birchall Recommended
Even though she pushes this a little too far, this surprised and delighted me and is an entertaining read.
My Dear Cassandra - [A selection of Jane Austen's Letters] Penelope Hughes-Hallett - Recommended by Jean Long
Wilson’s comment: This was my first introduction to Jane Austen's letters. There are now more recent books that include more letters.
Jane Austen, Edward Knight, & Chawton: Commerce & Community - Linda Slothouber – Recommended by Meredith Stoehr (Currently not in our library)
It is very sound on the business side of managing an estate and also the other duties of a great landowner.
Jane and her Gentlemen - Audrey Hawksridge - Recommended by Jean Long
Jane Austen - Tony Tanner Slightly recommended
I am not sure whether I should say "recommended" or "slightly". There were some interesting ideas, like Anne Elliott saying to Captain Harvell that the pen has always been in your (men's) hands. This is shortly after Captain Wentworth drops his pen (that is, that symbol of patriarchal power) and Tanner says this is a sign the he is offering to Anne a marriage of equals.
The trouble with this book is that it is pretty dense. Tanner talks about stuff that does not make sense to me, sometimes. Not that I disagree, more that I cannot even follow what is trying to be told to me. There was one place in Mary Waldron's book (see below) where Waldron specifically disagrees with Tanner's opinion about something. And I trust Waldron more than Tanner. So, in summary, you could find some good things here but it was slow reading for me and the gems were few and far between. There are other books I would recommend you read before this one.
Jane Austen and her Art - Mary Lascelles Not recommended
This is written at a high scholarly level and is also so subtle that it is hard to understand. But ultimately, what she says in far too many words is, not very much. It seems to me to use a lot of speculation unsupported by very many examples. She does not help me see Jane's works in a new way or enrich my understandings of what I am reading. This is a scholar's book written for other scholars. Both Jean Long and I feel this book should be low on your list of Jane Austen readings.
Jane Austen and the Fiction of Her Time - Mary Waldron Highly recommended (Currently not in our library)
This is a book that helps me very much in appreciating Jane Austen in a deeper way. I really like Waldron's approach, where she assumes Austen knew exactly what she was doing, unlike other critics who's interpretations are sometimes based what they believe are weaknesses in certain places of her writing. Waldron carefully reads what Austen wrote and gives me answers to questions that previously bothered me.
Jane Austen and Representations of Regency England - Roger Sales Slightly recommended
This is a somewhat thick book that concludes Jane Austen's writings both critiqued England's prince Regent and dandy Beau Brummell, but was also so fascinated with them that she gave them more ink than the more positive, lesser characters in her novels. At least, I think this is what the author is trying to convey. This book is not high on my list of recommended reading, but I put it ahead of Mary Lascelles because every once in a while Sales says something interesting about characters in Austen's novels. For instance, I like the theory that Tom Bertram was the "prince regent" of Mansfield Park when his father was away. There was also some education for me about two "Regency crisis" events that occurred during or near the time Austen was living and writing.
Jane Austen, Feminism and Fiction - Margaret Kirkham Recommended
I like how Kirkham educates me how the feminist movement evolved for 100 years from Mary Astell through Mary Wollstonecraft. She shows how there were many voices advocating for women's education and moral strengthening and maturing. Americans and other casual historians seem to like hero thinking, believing Wollstonecraft or Austen invented feminism out of nothing, instead of seeing these people as beacons in a larger movement. After using the first third of the book establishing this background, only then does she focus on Austen. She begins with odd epitaphs and biographies from Austen's family.
After Wollstonecraft's death, her husband (an overly dedicated historian who did NOT listen to the advice of his and Mary's friends) published a very complete biography, never realizing how the raw truth of all her views and scandals totally disgraced the fledgling women's movement. Kirkham has a believable argument that Austen's family had to distance themselves from the disgraced Wollstonecraft (although Mary was popular while she was alive). Kirkham provides an interesting viewpoint of how to read Austen's books with an eye toward seeing how the feminist movement is embedded in her fiction. Kirkham speculates that Northanger Abbey was suppressed by the publisher because of the Wollstonecraft scandal. So Austen was forced to be sneaky, using irony, to get the feminist ideals across. Kirkham believes it is the "dull elves" that miss this but educated women would see and approve.
Jane Austen for Dummies -- Slightly recommended
It is likely you will find something in here that you did not already know. I read some of it. I really liked the map on page 28 that shows Jane Austen's imaginary locations of most of the homes of the characters in her novels. Could be a good first book for Austen newbies, but it has so many pages I wonder if anyone would read all of it at once.
Jane Austen: A Companion - Josephine Ross Recommended
This book is like an annotated version of Austen's novels, except with space to expound on the concepts. There is a great section on income describing what Austen's family and characters in her books could do with 200, 400, or 1000 pounds per year, and so forth. She touches on other topics as well. However after reading something interesting, unless you wrote it down, you might never find that reference again. The chapters are grouped by subject but they cast a wide net. If you are an Austen scholar there is not much new here, but I found portions that were interesting and seemed like new information to me. I guess I would recommend not for a newbie or scholar but someone who has started on their exploration of all things Austen.
Jane Austen: A Family Record - Dierdre LeFaye Highly recommended (Currently not in our library)
Jean Long says this is the best Austen history. I have not read as widely as Jean, but I feel this is the closest we can get to a factual biography of Jane Austen. There is also much about her near family here, but again, if we have little original, contemporary data about Jane, telling her family's story may indirectly tell us something about her.
Jane Austen: A Literary Life - Jan Fergus Recommended for beginners, slightly recommended to others
As an experienced Janeite, I did not need all the review of Austen's life and death. But there is educational value in learning about the publishing business of the time. There is a lot of speculation here of how Austen felt about being an author, but it does not disagree with what we have from her letters. There are also some comments on Austen's novels which I enjoyed. Someone new to learning about all things Jane Austen, this might be a useful beginner book. It also is not very long, so that might also be encouraging to beginners.
Jane Austen: Parson's Daughter - Irene Collins Recommended by Jean Long (Currently not in our library)
Best book on the religious part of Austen.
Jane Austen's England - Maggie Lane - Recommended by Jean Long
Jane Austen's England - Karen Quint - Recommended by Jean Long (Currently not in our library)
Not quite as well done as Maggie Lane's book of the same title, but newer.
Jane Austen's Family - Maggie Lane - Recommended by Jean Long (Currently not in our library)
Family Austen Stories. Maggie is a delightful writer.
Jane Austen's Letters - Dierdre Le Faye - Recommended by Jean Long
Closest you come to talking with Jane Austen (now in its 4th Edition).
Jane Austen's Town and Country Style - Susan Watkins - Recommended by Jean Long
I go to this most often for pictures of various JA items, etc. Big luscious book! Best book out yet showing where Austen lived and how her house looked, etc. If I had just one book of this sort, it would be this one.
Jane Austen's World - Maggie Lane - Recommended by Jean Long (Currently not in our library)
The book that I use for photos, text and research. The best book there is about Jane Austen, her life and her world.
Life in Georgian Britain - The Pitkin Guide Slightly recommended
I would say "recommended" to someone new to exploring all things Austen. This is a 30 page picture book Jean Long brought back from England in 2000. Brief aspects the 1700s are presented. This is a quick way to learn a little about that time period.
May, Lou, and Cass, Jane Austen's Nieces in Ireland - Sophia Hillian – Recommended by Meredith Stoehr (Currently not in our library)
This is a scholarly yet perfectly readable account of the fate of Edward Knight's three youngest daughters. Their lives illustrate how completely dependent even women from wealthy families were on their male relatives.
My Aunt Jane Austen - A Memoir - Caroline Austen Recommended
Jane Austen died when Caroline Austen was 12 years old, so it is neither a long memory nor an adult one, but still nice to read something by someone who actually met her. All of the most interesting quotes in this little booklet have already been presented to you twenty times over by other commentary and biographers.
A Preface to Jane Austen - Christopher Gille Highly recommended
I found this is a very fine reference manual. It is not for Austen newbies, but for serious Janeites there is a lot of valuable information here. I do not own a copy of this yet and at my age I do not like to buy lots of new books but I would like to refer to it again and again, so perhaps I might purchase a copy. Great background about the influence and importance of authors like Samuel Johnson and William Cowper.
Like Alistair Duckworth, Gille has theories about themes throughout Austen's works. You might not agree with everything he says, but it is really fun to have new ideas and new ways at looking at her works.
The Making of Jane Austen's Emma - Sue Birtwistle, Susie Conklin - Recommended by Jean Long (Currently not in our library)
Companion book to the Kate Beckinsale version of the movie Emma.
The Making of Pride and Prejudice - Sue Birtwistle, Susie Conklin - Recommended by Jean Long (Currently not in our library)
Companion book to the Colin Firth version of the movie Pride and Prejudice.
Searching for Jane Austen - Emily Auerbach Recommended
I found chapters 3 through 8, one for each Austen book, were interesting and fun new ways of viewing our favorite stories. This book is slow going at the beginning with chapters about false family biographies and the discussion of Austen's juvenilia. The last chapter on Jane Austen today was also not so interesting to me. So what if Austen is being misrepresented in newspaper articles and the public in general, she sure is popular, one way or another. And popularity translates into a new generation of readers and fans.
Sermons for Young Women - James Fordyce - Recommended by Jean Long (Currently not in our library)
Read it and pretend you are Lydia Bennett.
Wilson’s comment: This is one of the popular conduct books that men used to circumscribe women's activities and brains. This was one of the trends Wollstonecraft and other early feminists (including Jane Austen, I believe, although she had to be subtle so as not to offend her male and conservative female readers) struggled against.
Sex in Georgian England - A.D. Harvey Not recommended
I enjoyed the mystery of the missing areola in the first chapter, but beyond that I don't think the book is worth reading. Warning: This book contains pictures of nudes and drawings of shenanigans.
Two Guys Read Jane Austen - Steve Chandler and Terrence N. Hill Not recommended
This is not so much a book as a collection of emails between two old friends who are also writers who agree to read Pride and Prejudice at the same time and send each other comments. They follow this up with Mansfield Park. There are more comments here about each other's lives than Austen, but, surprise, surprise, they discover Austen is a very good writer. I know of no one to whom I would recommend this book. If you are an Austen beginner, they will not teach you much and if you are an experienced Janeite there is nothing to learn here either.
A Vindication of the Rights of Woman - Mary Wollstonecraft Highly recommended
Be prepared as this is an old document written without the help of a good editor. It was written quickly as a response to a backward thinking book which was getting a lot of positive support in the press at the time. So, it is unpolished with the same comments repeated over and over. But every so often she introduces another argument or a new way to say it.
I will note here that on comparing our library book with the on-line version at Bartleby.com, our book is missing the dedication and chapters 1, 5, 6, 7, 10 and 11! But, as a modern reader with a short attention span, I found there was already plenty of repetition even in the short version, so our book is a quicker way to experience this important historical document.
As I made my way through Vindication I kept seeing Austen's characters and novels. Of course I do not know if there is any direct connection, but Wollstonecraft says girl children should gambol about with the rest of the kids and Catherine Morland is described playing with her siblings using that word. I read that marriage is an act involving rational people in whom love improves both their characters and I think about Elizabeth and Darcy. Wollstonecraft condemns the education and lifestyle of the upper classes, where idleness, produces beings without values and I think of Sir Walter Elliot and John Dashwood. She bemoans the useless education for women where their only value is as an ornament and I think of Lady Bertram, Lady Middleton and the Palmer daughters. She claims women are rational creatures (Mrs. Croft) and need values and strength to be a truly useful helpmate and educator of the children. Wollstonecraft says the middle classes are the more developed people and I think of the rise of the naval classes in Persuasion. Like Austen, Wollstonecraft is not a fully liberated modern feminist, but both are way ahead of their time. I believe Jane Austen was influence by Wollstonecraft, but even if that was proved to be untrue, Austen certainly, I feel, agrees with Vindication.
Jean Long’s comment: The connection between the two is obvious and has formed more than one 'breakout session' at AGMs.
What Jane Austen Ate and Charles Dickens Knew - Dan Pool - Recommended by Jean Long (Currently not in our library)
I use this one often. It has pound equivalents, dates, holidays, lists unending, word definitions, etc.
Miscellaneous
Persuasions - JASNA Highly recommended
Annual JASNA publication papers submitted usually by college professors focused on the previous year's Annual General Meeting (AGM) theme. This is a rich collection for a wide variety of interests. Certainly there is much that I, personally, do not care about, but there is often a new way of looking at Austen's writings or influences that I do find interesting. And most of my emails about Reading Group are inspired by something in one of these publications.
Report for Jane Austen Society - JAS 1966- current - Recommended by Jean Long (Currently not in our library)
This is an annual publication similar to JASNA's Persuasions except published in England by the original Jane Austen Society.
Jane Austen's Regency World (magazine) - Recommended by Jean Long
Jane Austen Jigsaw Puzzle (500 pieces) – Recommended
The pieces and puzzle are small but for various reasons this may be one of the quickest puzzles you have solved.