4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A comprehensive biography of my favorite author., March 24, 2011
This review is from: Jane Austen: A Life Revealed (Hardcover)
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I've known Jane Austen is my favorite author from the very first time I started reading Pride and Prejudice. Over the years I've read her major novels many times and am slowly making my way through Jane Austen's Letters (New Edition) Collected and Edited by Deirdre Le Faye which is no small task. But, as a true Janite, it is my privilege to read them. When I noticed this book, and then when I realized it was geared toward readers in the age 12 and up category I decided to find out how Catherine Reef would summarize Austen's life into approximately 180 pages. I'm very happy to say that she has done it well and this is a fantastic book filled with the fascinating bits of information which make Jane Austen such a 'real' person.
Some authors try to portray Austen as too good to be true, too good to be a real person. If you have a chance to read any of the Austen novels you immediately see that Austen was a keen observer of human nature and she must have had some of those very same traits she writes about in order to recognize them in others. I liked the way historical fact was woven into the telling of this story so that it was interesting and pointed out how close Austen came in her novels to portraying the people and events she witnessed in her daily life. Each of Austen's six major novels is discussed regarding the story line and by including them while imparting information about Jane's private life the reader can see how she pulled her ideas from real life.
This is a very well written biography of a true giant in literary history. I am grateful to Catherine Reef for managing to be so thorough with the details while not once becoming boring. A remarkable feat which will be appreciated by readers of all ages who explore this work.
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
This is an excellent introduction to the life and times of Jane Austen, May 6, 2011
This review is from: Jane Austen: A Life Revealed (Hardcover)
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Catherine Reef authored over forty nonfiction books, including other biographies. She writes well, simply, graphically, drawing readers into her tale, and the book has many pictures. She overcame a serious problem with this volume, for little is known about Jane Austen (1775-1817), one of the world's most beloved writers, for there are conflicting reports about her. Did she like people, or did this author of such books as Sense and Sensibility and Pride and Prejudice, books about love and family, really dislike people and even mock them? After her death at age 41, unmarried, her niece praised her, "I do not suppose she ever in her life said a sharp thing." Yet she herself wrote, "I do not want People to be very agreeable, as it saves me the trouble of liking them a great deal."
Reef tells us about the heavy-handed and discriminatory life in England during Austen's lifetime. The nobility ruled and looked down upon the non-noble. Women were disparaged; they couldn't inherit money; whether married or not, their life depended upon the whim and will of men. Jane once had trouble traveling a hundred miles because there was no man to take her. She published six mature novels between 1811 and 1818, all anonymously, because she was a woman. Her father, a clergyman of modest means, not her mother who had no say, gave up one of his sons to a rich childless relative for adoption so that the boy would be able to inherit money. The people believed that all of this was the will of a wise God.
Schools and teachers were unregulated and frequently unsanitary; food was scanty at school and many schools didn't allow outside play. Jane almost died in one of them. Her teacher did die from an infection. She quite school forever at age 10. She wrote that there are places "where young ladies for enormous pay might be screwed out of health and into vanity."
Reef tells about the books that Austen admired, the many early books and plays that she wrote beginning at age 11, about her family, her sister, brothers, relatives, and friends. She tells also about her first love who she couldn't marry because the man's family didn't want their son to marry a girl who was not rich. Later, she accepted a marriage proposal from a friend but turned it down the next day because she felt that friendship was insufficient grounds for a marriage. She wanted love.
As successful as Austen became, it may surprise some readers to know that she had a hard time finding a publisher and had to pay for the printing of her first book. Since she had no money, her brother paid for her. Reef tells about this book, Sense and Sensibility, the plot, characters, as well as about her other books. She also writes what critics said, such as: Austen makes her love scenes too short. The book sold well and Austen made 140 pounds in 1813, much more than an average worker makes in a year. For the first time she had money. She was 37, with four more years to live. The publisher was so satisfied that he agreed to publish her next book Pride and Prejudice without Austen having to pay a cent. This second book was an immediate success. Her books were liked by many people. When she died, the church had to keep her coffin open for viewing for six days.
Mark Twain noted that whether a person likes a book or not is a matter of personal taste. He disliked all of Jane Austen's books. But whether one likes them or not, readers will enjoy Catherine Reef's story of her life.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
A serviceable YA biography., September 20, 2011
This review is from: Jane Austen: A Life Revealed (Hardcover)
Some readers take on Jane Austen out of necessity for school. Others linger over her words for pleasure.
This short biography, meant for young adults, is a well-researched history lesson full of anecdotes on the various life events that shaped Jane's novels. It's also peppered with interesting facts, photographs, and historical information, including the story of how Jane initially had to self-publish her books since no one would take a chance on her, and my personal favorite, a little tidbit on the wheeled, horse-propelled bathing machines that Jane and her sister used on their family outings on the coast of Wales.
This is a nice primer for anyone who perhaps is new to the world of Jane Austen, but it's rather dry in the way the information is presented. It reads less like a nuanced portrait of a lively, opinionated woman than a very long encyclopedic entry. It's certainly difficult to write a story about a woman whose life has remained so much of a mystery since most of her personal papers were lost after her death; but it doesn't seem unreasonable to hope that the writing would be a little more engaging.
With a subject that is so famous for her sharp wit and keen observation, most readers, especially those who love and are familiar with her work, would likely want to gain a little more insight into the writer's internal life. Jane Austen's life is indeed "revealed" to readers in this brief volume, but it would have been lovely if that same life had been a little more illuminated as well.
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