UK Book Club discussion

OK so not done this before, apologies for any etiquettes broken.

I'm not a book worm, but I do like to read a good book, I've read many books over the years, mainly Fantasy or Crime genres, I'm a 44 year old male, born and raised in the midlands, enjoy reading non-fiction too.

My Eldest brother completed an English literature degree many years ago and a few weeks ago he admitted that some of his favourite books are the Jane Austin books. Just by chance I watched a film the other week aptly named "The Jane Austin Book Club", I'm not a fate believer but it is dawning on me as to whether I should try one of her books. I know this is somewhat flimsy in terms of influencing what I should read, but sometimes if you don't try you'll never know.

So the questions to myself are,

1 - As these are 'older' books, will the language be heavy going, i.e. will it take so much effort to understand the flow that it removes the enjoyment?

2 - There are a number of books written by Jane Austin and I believe they are not connected in anyway in terms of story/characters, but nevertheless, what would be a good one to start with?

3 - Will I enjoy it? This is not something anyone can answer, having said that if anyone who has changed genre quite dramatically would have some knowledge of how this feels.

If anyone who could help me decide would like to comment then feel free, I'm certainly interested in your comments.

Thanks.

Hi, Ben. Good questions! Many men from all walks of life find they do like Jane Austen very much, though it helps to manage expectations. Her novels were extremely popular among British soldiers during WWI and WWII, even enjoyed by such manly men as Winston Churchill.

First, language. Her language is a little old-fashioned but it is more straightforward than that of many nineteenth-century and earlier authors, and once you get into the rhythm of it, it’s one of the great beauties of her books.

Her most popular book is Pride and Prejudice, so that might be a place to start. You are correct that each book is completely independent. (I recommend starting with Northanger Abbey, which is a spoof of the horror fiction of the era, to younger readers, but probably not for you. Persuasion is short but more appreciated by women than men, I think. Emma is for connoisseurs—the heroine is annoying and nothing happens, but it is very artful. Sense and Sensibility is probably too stylized for your comfort, and Mansfield Park is often disliked even by Austen fans because the heroine is not to modern tastes, though it is my personal favorite.)

Jane Austen is often regarded as a writer of romance, but that is not really true. Yes, her plots are structured around boy-meets-girl, but the emphasis is far more on social comedy. She is interested in revealing human nature in all its foibles and absurdities. So you should approach her expecting to laugh and to recognize people you know. Given the two genres you most like to read, this might be your biggest hurdle—with all the focus on character, there won’t be much you recognize as plot. She’s more of a “universe revealed in the small details” kind of writer.

I hope you do give it a try! Your brother has good taste. Please come back to this thread and let us know how it went for you.

Hi, Ben.
On language: I'm currently studying literature with the OU and my first text is Far From the Madding Crowd (Hardy, T. Falck, S.B. (ed), Oxford World Classics). From the start I found the language difficult, often reading a sentence many times to decipher the meaning. After a few chapters, however, my reading became more fluid as I got familiar with Hardy's style. It reminded me of when I first got stuck into Patrick O'Brian's Jack Aubrey series, who, although a relatively modern writer, used eighteenth-century writing style for those sea stories. Once again, I quickly became familiar with the language. As a writer myself, however, I have to take care not to let these old-fashioned forms creep into my novels. Enjoy Jane Austen.
Mike

Thanks both for responding, I have now found myself a copy of Pride and Prejudice, I'm at chapter 6 and I can honestly say I'm enjoying it very much, I'll let you know what I thought once I've completed it.

Once again thank you for responding.

Ben

Hello again,

So I did say I would report back once I'd finished the book, and whilst it took me some time to read, I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I was fascinated by the pace of life, the intriguing way in which people viewed others actions. The characters are well defined and yes you can still see the same traits today as of yesteryear (I'm likely to have 1 or 2 myself!).

A very enjoyable read and I look forward to watching the film now.

I have been advised that Emma should be the next book to read.

Thanks again for your comments, it is great to experience new finds.

Glad you liked it!

Ben wrote: "Hello again,

So I did say I would report back once I'd finished the book, and whilst it took me some time to read, I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I was fascinated by the pace of life, the intrigu..."

I studied Emma at A Level. I still have my much annotated version somewhere. I should revisit it really...Although Eng Lit, at the time, took enjoyment from what I read (every word was over analysed in my view), I do recall Emma being a good read, and quite funny. A film was released a good few years back now, but it's worth a watch as well.