This inspired novella, with its outrageous cast of superficial characters, brilliantly showcases Jane Austen's comic genius. Presented here with A History of England and Catharine. As Miss Margaret Lesley and Miss Charlotte Lutterell divulge their innermost secrets through a series of letters, each reveals where her true priorities lie—if a bridegroom is fatally wounded the night before his wedding, the first concern must inexorably be for the luxurious food that will be laid to waste. As one plot gives way to the next, and as the heroines exchange wisdom on adultery, elopement, divorce, and remarriage, they increasingly fall prey to the merciless and lambasting sword of Jane Austen’s wit. Author of the masterpieces Pride and Prejudice and Emma, Jane Austen is one of the world’s best-loved novelists.
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"An impressively chosen list." -- Simon Schama
From the Publisher
Since its U.S. launch in 2003, Hesperus Press has enjoyed a growing reputation for its inspired selection of short classic works. Written by illustrious authors, and often unjustly neglected or simply little known in the English-speaking world, these works have been made accessible via a completely fresh editorial approach and new translations. Now, in addition to the Hesperus Classics, Hesperus Press is introducing a new series: Modern Voices. Drawing from the very best of 20th-century literature, Modern Voices will retain the exceptional quality of the Hesperus Classics, with a new series look that reflects the more modern nature of the list. Among the first authors will be Carlo Levi, Katherine Mansfield, and Graham Greene, and Hesperus has already secured prominent contemporary writers like Anita Desai, William Boyd, and Colum McCann to introduce the books—again retaining one of the key successes of the Hesperus Classics. Finally,! 2005 heralds the launch of the Hesperus Contemporary series, opening with The Nightingale Papers, the fiction debut of prize-winning biographer David Nokes.
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Though the domain of Jane Austen's novels was as circumscribed as her life, her caustic wit and keen observation made her the equal of the greatest novelists in any language. Born the seventh child of the rector of Steventon, Hampshire, on December 16, 1775, she was educated mainly at home. At an early age she began writing sketches and satires of popular novels for her family's entertainment. As a clergyman's daughter from a well-connected family, she had an ample opportunity to study the habits of the middle class, the gentry, and the aristocracy. At twenty-one, she began a novel called "The First Impressions" an early version of Pride and Prejudice. In 1801, on her father's retirement, the family moved to the fashionable resort of Bath. Two years later she sold the first version of Northanger Abby to a London publisher, but the first of her novels to appear was Sense and Sensibility, published at her own expense in 1811. It was followed by Pride and Prejudice (1813), Mansfield Park (1814), and Emma (1815). After her father died in 1805, the family first moved to Southampton then to Chawton Cottage in Hampshire. Despite this relative retirement, Jane Austen was still in touch with a wider world, mainly through her brothers; one had become a very rich country gentleman, another a London banker, and two were naval officers. Though her many novels were published anonymously, she had many early and devoted readers, among them the Prince Regent and Sir Walter Scott. In 1816, in declining health, Austen wrote Persuasion and revised Northanger Abby, Her last work, Sandition, was left unfinished at her death on July 18, 1817. She was buried in Winchester Cathedral. Austen's identity as an author was announced to the world posthumously by her brother Henry, who supervised the publication of Northanger Abby and Persuasion in 1818.
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8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Early and Delicious Austen,
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This review is from: Lesley Castle (Hesperus Classics) (Paperback)
Jane Austen's early work can never seem truly great to those readers who know her more mature novels, and that will be the case with Lesley Castle. Yet it is by no means to be treated with scorn. Lesley Castle is a delicious and amusing comedy presented to us as a series of letters written between two worldly and at times very cynical correspondents. In using this epistolary form the young Austen is imitating the works of the eighteenth Century masters (Richardson particularly comes to mind) and more than rivaling them. For what is most unusual in Austen is the authentic 'voice' of the upper class women she is describing. They stand before us, revealed in their letters, utterly convincing as examples of closely observed humanity. Richardson's women, though charming in their way, never had such energy.
Reading this collection it's hard not to look for the ways her writing would develop later, into a more assured style. Yet it is here that we see how Austen honed those skills that make her mature novels' conversations so pleasing, so arch, so comic.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Calling all Austen Fans,
This review is from: Lesley Castle (Hesperus Classics) (Paperback)
Charming three short novellas/pieces of writings from Lady Austen. Her humorous side is quite apparent here and her characters, are very believable.
The first novella, Lesley Castle, is told entirely in letters. Think chick lit of Austen's century, think cabot and her novels (like the guy next door, written in email form). You'll laugh at the obvious exaggeration in some parts, and giggle helplessly at the turn of events. Then comes 'A History of England', Austen's take on another historical book. This parody would surely give you a glimpse of the author's sense of humour and you might even side with her when she attacks Queen Lizzie. The last novella, Catharine, was entertaining, humorous and light. Any Austen fan should read this!
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