No one who had ever seen Catherine Morland in her infancy, would have supposed her born to be an heroine. Her situation in life, the character of her father and mother, her own person and dispositi…| This Reading Life
Jane lies in Winchester, blessed be her shade!Praise the Lord for making her, and her for all she made.And, while the stones of Winchester – or Milsom Street – remain,Glory, Love, and Honour unto E…| This Reading Life
Emma Woodhouse, handsome, clever, and rich, with a comfortable home and happy disposition, seemed to unite some of the best blessings of existence; and had lived nearly twenty-one years in the worl…| This Reading Life
About thirty years ago, Miss Maria Ward of Huntingdon, with only seven thousand pounds, had the good luck to captivate Sir Thomas Bertram, of Mansfield Park, in the county of Northampton, and to be…| This Reading Life
It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single lady in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a husband. ‘Nonsense,’ Miss Caroline Bingley muttered into her empty teacup…| This Reading Life
It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife. I have reread Pride and Prejudice so many times I have lost count, but we must b…| This Reading Life
We travel for various purposes — to explore the culture of soils — to view the curiosities of art — to survey the beauties of nature — and to learn the manners of men; their different polities, and…| This Reading Life
In the autumn of 1996 my daughter, the writer Anne Giardini, and I travelled to Richmond, Virginia, to present a joint paper at the Jane Austen Society of North America, an organisation that compri…| This Reading Life
Reading Jane Austen If people like to read their books, it is all very well, but to be at so much trouble in filling great volumes, which, as I used to think, nobody would willingly ever look into,…| This Reading Life