"Neither Jane Austen nor her family could leave her characters alone. Her nephew James Edward-Austen Leigh and neice Anna Lefroy frequently asked what happened after the novels ended..." And so begins Peter Leithart's Christian Encounters biography on Jane Austen.
I love Jane Austen's novels, I love the movies that have been made from her novels, even the ones such as Clueless that barely resemble the stories but still come from her classic writings. I also enjoy reading a good biography, however I have never been impressed with a Jane Austen biography. The two I have read previous to this one were very dry and very difficult to finish due to boredom on my part. This biography, however, while still a bit too detailed for me in some parts, was the most entertaining one I have read on Jane Austen.
The author not only shares excerpts from letters Jane wrote to family members, but his writing is more engaging. He is able to keep the reader interested by making Jane Austen's life a bit more personable as well as showing us her Christian views which is refreshing to read. For someone who is very familiar with Jane Austen's novels, there are parts of the biography where the author discusses parts of her books which you will tend to scan rather than read. If you are not as familiar with her stories, however, he brings good insight that might tempt you to read them.
Disclaimer: Thomas Nelson, through Booksneeze, provided me with a complimentary copy of this book for the purpose of this review. No other compensation was received. All views expressed are my own opinions.
1 comment:
Do you have the book so I can read it?
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