This last year I read the complete novels of Jane Austen
(in order of date published):
Sense and Sensibility
Pride and Prejudice
Mansfield Park
Emma
Northanger Abbey
Persuasion
Lady Susan
I never read romance or popular novels, and so in a sense Jane Austen's books became my Sue Grafton or J.K. Rowling. Although her language is advanced and sometimes difficult, Austen consistently wrote about society, romance, and marriage (and sex, for that matter). If you think about it, Austen grew up when England was going through some seriously uncertain times, with the American and French Revolutions, to just name a couple of events. That fact that her novels never incorporate death, politics, poverty, or anything serious of the sort, you can begin to see Austen as an extremely talented writer who obsessed over marriage. And yet, despite her choice of themes, her characters have more depth than most writers could ever dream of creating.
I feel a bit remiss without any more Austen to read. I really came to rely on them. I suppose I just move on, and consider re-reading them some years down the road. Pride and Prejudice was really her best, if you only have time to read one of her works. But, I found Persuasion a close second.
Cheers, Miss Austen.
