read with Marines discussion

Hello, friends! I will be rereading Pride and Prejudice in April and hope some of you will join me!

This is a very casual and relaxed buddy read. There is no reading schedule. Get to it when you can and come on over to discuss as you can.

Please start every post with the chapter or page number through which you have read, that way people know if it's safe to read without fear of spoilers.

If you have any questions, let me know! I often name this story as my favorite of all time because I love Lizzie and it's been in my life for so long! If this is your first time reading, I'd say to pay attention to the MC's humor and the way she comments on things and people in a tongue-in-cheek kind of way.

Happy reading (and if you are like me, immediately watching all of the adaptations...)!

x

Are you reading the book or listening to an audio version?

Claudia wrote: "Are you reading the book or listening to an audio version?"

I've got the audiobook narrated by Rosamund Pike because in all of my years of reading this story, I've never listened to it! I'll try that out first and see how it goes! I know a few other people who said they were going to participate this month also said they were going to give the audiobook a try. :)

Yes do! I listened to audiobook with her doing the narration and I found it absolutely stunning! Her voices are really well suited to the story and are very different from one another.

I might re-listen to it if I get through the the first three of the Raven Cycle before the fourth one comes out...

yes! i'm using two free Audible credits for the Rosamund Pike P&P audio and LOTR (also bc of you, Mari!)

I'm also reading along with audio narration. I can't promise I will be great about commenting because I'm a terrible person when it comes to that, but I'll try! This is the first Jane Austen book I've ever read (please don't judge me. My classics reading is sorely lacking) and I'm a little nervous because everyone I know *loves* Austen and I'm afraid I...might not. But I'm hoping I'll love it as much as all my friends!

Wendy wrote: "I'm also reading along with audio narration. I can't promise I will be great about commenting because I'm a terrible person when it comes to that, but I'll try! This is the first Jane Austen book I..."

I was just coming on here to add my first comments. I feel like if you don't love Austen that's understandable. I mean, the first 15 chapters (which are where I've reached) are about a new neighbor and dinner time conversations, etc. There are people who need a little more meat to their plot.

Austen excels with characters and humor and dialogue. I just find it endlessly funny. Through Lizzy and the narrator's descriptions of everyone else, you can tell that she's picking a little bit of fun at the neighbors and dinner time conversations and etc.

At least, that's how/why I enjoy it! Thank you for reading with me! I love your face!

I'm going to start the Rosamund Pike audiobook today and I'm very excited :)

Nothing much more to add. I've only read P&P once, and it was about 6 years ago so I'm sure I'll get even more out of it this time around. I hope I love it just as much as I did when I was in high school!

Sabrina wrote: "I'm going to start the Rosamund Pike audiobook today and I'm very excited :)

Nothing much more to add. I've only read P&P once, and it was about 6 years ago so I'm sure I'll get even more out of i..."

I listened to this version as well and found it really well done! I hope you enjoy it.

x

I'm through about chapter 20 right now. First of all, Rosamund Pike does killer voices. Also, I'm really enjoying it, maybe even more than I anticipated.

I had somehow forgotten the narrative perspective of the novel. In my head, I expected it to mostly follow Lizzie and her point of view, but it's much more complex than that. There are some hilarious and poignant insights found in the omniscient narrator's voice. I had also completely forgotten that you know about Darcy's crush on Lizzie extremely early in the book; it is never a mystery whether or not he likes her after their first or second meeting. The dramatic irony is great!

Sabrina wrote: "I'm through about chapter 20 right now. First of all, Rosamund Pike does killer voices. Also, I'm really enjoying it, maybe even more than I anticipated.

I had somehow forgotten the narrative pers..."

I was JUST talking to my co-worker about this because she wast talking about her preferences between first person, third person limited and third person omniscient. Somewhere in the conversation I mentioned Pride and Prejudice because in my head, the story is told in Lizzy's voice and from Lizzy's POV, but that's not quite accurate! It IS more complex than that and much of the humor that I attribute to Lizzy herself is actually found in the omniscient narrator's voice, commenting on society, the rules, the norms, the practices or the characters themselves.

Man, I love this book.

This is making me want to read P&P again! Maybe after I catch up on library books... P&P was an annual read throughout my teenage years, and I even made it my pick for the homeschooled teen book club where we read aloud and discussed every meeting - and I converted them all into enjoying it by the end! ;-)

Just finished chapter 20. Thoughts so far:

1. Narration is amazing on the audio book. Pike does a wonderful job with all of the many voices.
2. The writing is crisp and...dry, I guess, is the word I'm looking for. I very much like the style.
3. As Mari commented earlier, not much has happened at this point. I'm having a little trouble getting into it, just because I'm not that interested in dinners and balls. But I am really enjoying all of the observations and subtly sly humor about the class differences.
4. I don't have any strong feelings about any of the characters yet. I like Lizzy a lot, and Mr. Bennet. I also quite like Jane. Maybe it's supposed to be seen as naive, but I think her tendency to try to see the good in people is kind of awesome. Maybe because I try to assume the best of people until they prove me wrong. I *want* people to be good to each other, and be able to converse and disagree and compromise, and Jane seems to be the embodiment of that.
5. Similarly, I don't massively dislike any of the other characters yet, except maybe Mr. Collins. Mrs. Bennett annoys me, but I see her as a reflection of the times. Mr. Bingley's sisters irritate me far more, especially with the things they say about Lizzy while Jane is sick. Snobbery is something that will always make me bristle.
6. Mr. Collins is the original man-splainer. When he was telling Lizzy about the practices of "elegant females" and concluding she could not "be serious in her rejection of him" I kept waiting for the "well, actually..." It's a little disheartening to see how little things have changed.

Overall, I'm enjoying the book, but not loving it yet. It does seem to be picking up a little for me, though. Onward!

i just finished the book :)

i never read anything of jane austen and it wasn't on my tbr list. but because it was the book of this month i picked it up. and i'm glad i did.

i really enjoyed it.
most of the time i liked the relationship of jane and lizzy. and how lizzy was speaking with the people around her.
like mari said "she's picking a little bit of fun at the neighbors and dinner time conversations and etc. " i liked the sometimes ironic descriptions.

i think this book is a lot about family values and not to judge a person to fast. so i was a little bit suprised how eagerly lizzy wanted to leave her family behind and live somewhere else at the end of the book.

i think i will re-reat this book in the future. because i might get even more out of it. i'm not quite familiar with the time they live in and english isn't my first language.

Wendy wrote: "Just finished chapter 20. Thoughts so far:

1. Narration is amazing on the audio book. Pike does a wonderful job with all of the many voices.
2. The writing is crisp and...dry, I guess, is the wor..."

I love Jane and her characterization Perhaps because I'm more prone to thinking bad of people's actions, I really appreciate her trying to be the voice of reason. Plus, it makes her silent heartbreak all the more feelsy for me.

One thing I'm always interested in with P&P adaptations is how they'll portray Mrs. Bennet. She's sometimes well-meaning but dimwitted and other times more... mean-spirited? Or like willfully obtuse. She mostly frustrates me for Lizzy's benefit and also specifically during the whole Lydia drama, where she kind of refuses to acknowledge the truth of the situation.

Anyway, I'm glad you are enjoying your read and I hope it picked up for you!

Ian wrote: "i just finished the book :)

i never read anything of jane austen and it wasn't on my tbr list. but because it was the book of this month i picked it up. and i'm glad i did.

i really enjoyed it.
..."

Thank you so much for reading with us! I'm so happy you enjoyed your first Austen and I would definitely recommend rereading. You get a lot out of the text with repetition, especially since you become more familiar with the language Austen uses.

Excellent point about Lizzy at the end. I think the book is a lot about accepting people for who they are, but maybe also learning to live in a way that constitutes your own happiness. I'm pretty sure it says at the end that Jane moves further away afrom Longbourne as well, later on. The girls love their family, but the mom is especially imposing. It's probably how they can deal with her best, keeping her a certain distance away. ;)

I actually watched the 2005 version of Pride and Prejudice a couple of weekends back and I think I appreciated it more than I ever have. I still prefer the BBC version because it is so much more faithful to the source material, because it can be. A feature film can't really compete with a mini-series. That said, I think there are a few things 2005 does so, so well:

- It's casting of Jane is 100000% better and I love the Bingleys as well. Casting in general was well done, though I give an edge to BBC's Lizzy and Darcy, probably just out of loyalty and nostalgia.

- For having to cut so many corners, 2005 does a really great job at capturing the essence of characters and interactions. It adds a bit more humanity to things, if that makes sense. I'm thinking specifically of Jane and Lizzy under the covers, talking about the ball where Jane met Bingley and the adorable little freak-out she does. I think I also prefer the way Mr. Bennett teases Mrs. Bennett here, but there is generally more love between them than is usually portrayed. I love seeing things like Bingley proposing to Jane and her reaction. This is where the freedoms and licenses succeed for me.

Plus, I really love the score.

Just wanted to share that! Between listening to Rosamund Pike for the first time and this, I found even more things to love about Pride and Prejudice this time around.

I have a few days left in April. I might be able to squeeze in the mini-series too!

yes i liked the end whe the sisters live close to each other again. the short part before that i was a little bit surprised. but i like your explanation. thank you mari.

now i am even more excited to watch the move. but i promised a friend that we will see it together so it won't happen this month.

2 questions:
1) what do you thinking about lydia?
when i read the book i didn't liked her and her selfish actions which could influence her sisters lifes so badly.
but now that i'm thinking about it: she lived in a terrible time. it was accepted and maybe even desired by society that a women would marry a man, she didn't even now. but condemned if she spend time alone with a man and didn't marry him right away.
yes it would affect lydias whole family and it makes her unlikeable that she doesn't even cares about that. but the pure fact that she disobeys the rules of her society to be happy isn't that bad. now that i'm thinking about it.

2)what other books of Austin would you recommend? i want to get used to her language and the way people behave in her time and area.

Wendy wrote: "Just finished chapter 20. Thoughts so far:

1. Narration is amazing on the audio book. Pike does a wonderful job with all of the many voices.
2. The writing is crisp and...dry, I guess, is the wor..."

Collins is the original man-splanier - YES!

I'm so glad so many people listened to the audiobook because I did too and it was LOVELY. I especially loved Pike's Mrs. Bennett and Mr. Collins voices. (Although all of her voices were on point.)

I'm super familiar with the story and have watched the various versions a million times and read the book back in college. I actually just re-watched The Lizzie Bennett Diaries not that long ago and it makes me so happy. Now I want to re-watch the 2005 and BBC mini series.

I'm really glad I gave the book a re-read!

This time around, I felt bad for Darcy the entire time and kept on getting so frustrated with Lizzie! I know that he seems stand off-ish, but he's just an introvert and socially awkward at times gosh dangit! And even when you're seeing he's trying to impress her and other people are trying to defend him, Lizzie just won't hear it and I'm all "STOP HE LOVES YOU!" Which... I guess is the point. But yeah, I felt bad for him. I mean, who hasn't felt shy/awkward/misunderstood at times?

Also, I especially loved Mr. Bennett this time around. I love his sense of humor and Pike read it so well! It would be so dry and I would have to take a second to be like "oh wait... he's joking- that's hilarious!"

I loved the whole thing. It's one of my favorite stories and brings me endless happiness. There's a ton of stuff that I like about the book, but those were the first two things that really stood out to me this time reading it.