I should have remembered this yesterday...

[olde_fashioned]

...but as it is I hope she will forgive me for being a day late. :-/

On July 18th, 1817, Jane Austen died, leaving six wonderful major novels, two unfinished fragments, and countless other writings. She was 41 years old.

I'm quoting directly a lovely quote from a JA biography, shared on Pemberley by another devoted reader whose original post may be found HERE. I think it's beautiful and a fitting tribute.

"To the child for whom books were a refuge, offfering a world that sometimes made better sense than the one she had to find her way about. To the girl whose imagination took off in startling directions as she began to see the possibilities of telling stories of her own. To the energetic young woman who loved dancing and jokes, and dreamt of a husband even as she apprenticed herself to novel-writing with all the force of her intelligence. To the 25-year-old who decided she did not like people and could not write any more, and who was tempted to make a comfortable, loveless marriage and put the temptation behind her. To the loving sister and aunt who always made time for her family even though she would sometimes have preferred to be left to think and write in peace. To the woman who befriended governesses and servants. To the published author in the glow of achievement and mastery of her art. To the dying woman with the courage to resist death by writing in its very teeth. To the person who on occasion preferred to remain silent rather than cut across the views and habits of those she loved, and who kept notes of what people said about her work, to read over to herself."

(A wonderful tribute to JA from 'Jane Austen: A Life' by Claire Tomalin)


I can't ever tell how many countless hours of enjoyment I've had because of her wonderful, delightful stories, and they've also been incredibly inspiring for me in other ways, too. :-) Requiem in Pace, and I hope I get to meet her in heaven. :-)

Comments

[princessjune.livejournal.com]

I can't find the words to describe how I feel about Jane Austen and how she's helped me.

I hope to meet her as well.

[olde-fashioned.livejournal.com]

I feel the same way. :-)

[ancientwhispers.livejournal.com]

Wow, she was young! Poor woman. I've never read any of her books all the way through, but I have P&P on audio and I must say that I enjoyed it quite a bit, but thought the ending should've been different. Which of her works, besides P&P, would you recommend? I did begin to read Persuasion, but haven't continued it. The sentences are quite long!

[olde-fashioned.livejournal.com]

I know. :-( It's sad, and if only she had lived a few more years, how many more novels might she have written? :-(

Well, Emma is my personal favourite, but the pleasure of that might be diminished if you know the plot already. It's a very subtle story with tons of "little things" that you miss if you so much as blink, so I don't know how much you like to "scout for clues" in a book, or if you're just looking for a fun read.

Yes, JA's sentences are long!! ;-P They do take some getting used to, and it never ceases to amaze me how the sentence can begin on one subject, and end on an entirely different matter..... ;-)

What about Northanger Abbey? She wrote it when she was a bit younger, so it's not as "complex" as most of her other works, but that doesn't make it any less of a masterpiece. ;-) It's delightfully funny, and very cute. It's a satire on the trend of Gothic literature which was popular at the writing of the novel, and JA wields a very sharp wit and pokes fun at it very deftly. lol. I'd say it's the most fun of her books. [/JA rant]

Hope this helps! :-)

[ancientwhispers.livejournal.com]

Thank you for the recommendations!

Yes, her sentences do certainly stray a bit from whence they began. XD

I'll definitely consider your suggestions, as well (though I must confess I've always been partial to Dickens)! What about modern Christian fiction? Do you have any recommendations in that genre? I'm curious!

[olde-fashioned.livejournal.com]

My pleasure. :-)

I rather enjoy that, actually, now that I've gotten used to it!!

I used to think I'd read a lot of Christian fiction, but I've been "out of the loop" for so long I'm not sure that's true anymore. ;-) One series both my mom and I loved was The Russians by Michael Phillips and Judith Pella. Excellent series, with lots of seemingly-boring Russian history made fascinating and personable. Also the Corrie Bell Hollister series by the same authors was enjoyable. That's set in Gold Rush California and also touches on the Civil War.

Janette Oke's Love Comes Softly series and its spin-offs are classics, and she has a Canadian west series as well, but I didn't care for that one because the heroine is a ninny IMO. ;-P I've read a few of Lauraine Snelling's books, but to be brutally honest I'm not overly impressed with her writing style. Sisters of the Confederacy isn't too bad if you don't mind a tomboy-ish heroine.

Have you read Christy by Catherine Marshall? That is wonderful, but a slightly more mature read. (if you've seen the series I can tell you most of what I'm talking about without spoiling it for you) Taking a peek at your profile, I read it when I was younger than you, so you should be okay. ;-)

Sorry this has gotten so long, lol!! :-) I hope some of these turn out to be enjoyable for you.

[robertinbc.livejournal.com]

I have enjoyed the movie versions of her novels.The only book I have read is Persuasion,though I plan on reading the others.She has inspired me in several ways.

Here is a Jane Austen quiz I came across http://www.funtrivia.com/playquiz/quiz2516841cd0de8.html It's a question and answer one.I got 14/20.

[olde-fashioned.livejournal.com]

Persuasion is definitely one of her best books, but so far the movies do not come close to doing them justice IMO.

Thanks for the link. :-)

[smile-no-regret.livejournal.com]

hahaha i did the quiz that robertinbc posted and i got 20/20 hahaha. Jane Austen Fanatic much. & a proud one to be exact.How my life change without the lovely Miss. Austen(so kinda drastic but hay...) and even though her life was kinda sad to live so badly as she did, but if she had married she wouldn't of had time to write all 6 of those glorious novels

which would of ment no Mr.Darcy
*GASP*

[olde-fashioned.livejournal.com]

LOL!!! Well, IMO it doesn't necessarily follow that marrying and having a family would have prevented JA from continuing her writing. Elizabeth Gaskell married and had several children, was a pastor's wife, carried out charitable duties and socialized frequently, and she still found time to write far more novels than JA wrote. Granted, she lived a lot longer, but I think JA still could have written as a wife and mother, if she so chose. :-)

[smile-no-regret.livejournal.com]

Yes she could have witten novels but they probaly would not of been the same if she had. And the little we know about her life is that she a that offer of marrige from that Harris man he was quite upperclass and if she accepted him and being an more higher class might of made it more difficlut for her to write. I'm not saying she could not write but the stories might not have been the same with out the things she herself went through, but who knows.
LOL