HBD, Jane Austen!

Jane Austen turns 250 this year! She’s not still alive, though.

In honor and in preparation for a trip to England this summer, I’ve decided to read all of Austen’s 6 main novels in order of publication. Did I make this a 2024 reading goal? Yes. Did I actually do it? Obviously not. Clearly I knew this challenge needed to wait for this year, the 250th anniversary of Jane’s birth.

I hadn’t read any of Austen’s books until I first watched the 1995 BBC version of Pride and Prejudice at a sleepover in high school. We threw the wildest of sleepovers in the early 00s. After watching what I will forever argue is the best film adaptation of this novel (sorry 2005 version), I knew that I needed to actually read the book. So I did. Obviously, it was great and I don’t really need to sing its’ praises. To this day, I’m happy I saw the miniseries first, because if Austen has a downfall, it’s trudging through the first 6 chapters of very similar character names. Putting faces to the characters helped me to not get bogged down by who was who when I tried to read P&P for the first time.

As of today, I’ve read 4 of her 6 novels. I’ve yet to read Northanger Abbey and Mansfield Park. So, 2025 is my year. I’ve read Pride and Prejudice numerous times and I think I’ve read Emma twice. As it stands, P&P is certainly the fan favorite, but I think Emma is Austen’s best work. This is only based on memory, however, and we’ll see how I feel after reading all 6 back-to back.

Currently, it’s February and I’m nearly finished with her first published novel, Sense and Sensibility. I will post a review when I’m finished and I know you will all be waiting with bated breath. I should also note that I know Austen wrote other things outside of her 6 main novels, and I’d like to read her other works as well, but one thing at a time, okay?!

In order, her novels are:

• Sense and Sensibility (1811)

• Pride and Prejudice (1813)

• Mansfield Park (1814)

• Emma (1815)

• Northanger Abbey (1817, published posthumously)

• Persuasion (1817, published posthumously)

Not too shabby for someone who sadly only lived to be 41 years old.

So, here’s to you, JA! I hope you know we love your novels and find relevance in them 250 years later. Though, it would have been okay to pick a name other than John or Charles every once in a while.