Jane Austen discussion

Has anyone noticed over the years, the changes done to Austen's novels? What has been your favorite?

Houses Collection



Portrait



Dresses
Amazon's Persuasion
Amazon's Sense and Sensibility

Chick Lit

Tanja, that is the coolest. How do you place the cover images in the thread post like you just did? I might add some if I find any of a different style.

I know what you mean about them changing. I think they do go with the trends -- probably a lot of the long-lived literature does -- covers are an interesting subject!

Click on (some html is ok) to the upper right corner of comments. It's an hmtl tag (i left out the pointed brackets) -< img src="link" height="120" width="100" >-

The thought came to me when I noticed the influence of the Twilight cover on other classics - Wuthering Heights and Romeo & Juliet. The Amazon dresses one is very fashion forward. I kind of like them. But that would be the glossy cover to have on my bookshelf.

What I REALLY want to hunt for is the leather bound books.

So...readers...does the Austen cover influence your purchase? Why do you think certain covers were chosen? If you could create your own Austen cover, what would you do?

I think I'd like to do a collage cover - it would look part scrapbook and part hope chest.

This is a really interesting discussion to start, thank you Tanja. You really DO have to judge a book by it's cover sometime don't you!
As to the Austen covers, my copies are all the Penguin Popular Classics (the brown coloured ones, not the icky green ones). There's a lot of nice covers that I do like, but all 6 MUST be the same!
What I did see in a shop that really annoyed me the other day though, was a copy of P&P with 2 girls on the cover - like the traditional choice for S&S... this really annoyed me, and it felt like whoever designed/chose the cover had no idea what the book is actually about. It seemed as though they saw a title similar to S&S and completely misinterpreted the it to also be about two sisters. How annoying!
Sorry about that rant, but this thread seemed the right place for it :)

Tanja wrote: "The thought came to me when I noticed the influence of the Twilight cover on other classics - Wuthering Heights and Romeo & Juliet. The Amazon dresses one is very fashion forward. I kind of like th..."

Oh, and what are these Twilight-inspired R&J and Wuthering Heights copies you mentioned?

Harriet, this is the perfect place for such a rant. In the old BBC mini-series for S&S, they eliminated the third sister. And the Amazon bookcover above has only TWO sisters' dresses.

Let me hunt for those bookcovers. It's startling. Hee.


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And here's the beloved P&P Twilight'd

Do you think book covers should change in order to attract new readers?

Oh my god! That's a little bit ridiculous!
They'd be quite nice covers if they weren't based on Tiwilight. And I'm a Twilight fan, so it's certainly not just anti-Twilight-ness that's making me think like that.
However, I suppose the good that could come from it is making the (probably, young) people that love Twilight and wouldn't normally read a classic, pick up one of these. And hopefully realise that as good as Twilight is, it's really nothing compared to the likes of Jane Austen's novels.
The thing with the P&P cover with 2 sisters, it wouldn't have bothered me as much if it had a picture of 5 sisters - as then it would kind of make more sense... but it's not just about 2 sisters. S&S DOES focus on 2 sisters so that's fair enough, but not P&P. Just, no. I can't remember what's on my cover, saying that actually... might have to check that now!

They are pretty covers, I admit. Not sure how I feel about it being Twilightified.

Imagine if the cover was a twitter feed :P

Gosh, can you imagine...
I think it's fair enough to change a cover to attract new readers - as I think the "classics" of literature should be experienced by everyone. But, there is a definitely a limit.
My copy of P&P is unfortunately in a different county at the moment, but I've looked it up on amazon - and it's got 3 women on it. It's not quite perfect, I admit, but it's still better than just two women, which implies that the two women ARE the "pride" and the "prejudice". (I'm still on that rant, sorry!) What I like about the non-green Penguin Popular Classics versions is that they use images taken from real portraits - it feels really traditional :)

I rather like the S&S cover on a recent edition; it's a painting by Gainsborough, "The Linley Sisters". You can look at it here:
http://www.canvaz.com/gallery/22022.htm

Ok, this is my attempt on adding a book cover in the thread. These are the Real Reads versions of Jane Austen. These are admirable middle elementary reader level versions of Austen. They don't dumb them down and they add good appendix at the end that kids can study further. The best I have seen of any abridgments of classic novels.

So I think they fit the audience well and the cover art has a modern/yet classic feel to it. Better than Twilight art!

I still didn't know where to put that image code, but I did find what you meant. I will try again in a little while.

The book cover image came across! WTG!

I do like that choice for the middle elementary level reader. It's classic but a touch cartoonish(?) and well simple. It suits the audience.

J. that's a gorgeous cover. Paintings suit classics well imho.

Twilight I understand the choice but *sigh* why do I feel that it's been dumbed down for an extra buck?

Harriet, I understand what you mean about the 3 vs 2. I'd probably be just as picky when selecting a P&P to purchase. Atm, I only have it on my kindle.

J, I really like that cover. What is the version?
I'm not sure about the Real Reads version... Excuse my UK-ness, what sort of ages is the "middle elementary level reader"? I read P&P when I was 15 or 16 I think (I am only nearly 20 now though), it wasn't my first JA. And I much preferred the versions I bought to anything else. But I suppose they would attract a younger reader that wouldn't pick up a cover with a portrait extract on. I just shudder at the thought of a generation that ONLY knows the classics as being films not books.
I agree Tanja, the Twilight covers do come across as being dumbed down... it's a shame. I think I'm still on the fence on that one!

There is a trend to put classics into graphic novel form.

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Click on the picture to read the goodreads description. Pretty funny!

Harriet wrote: "J, I really like that cover. What is the version?
I'm not sure about the Real Reads version... Excuse my UK-ness, what sort of ages is the "middle elementary level reader"? I read P&P when I was 1..."

Harriet,

In our neighborhood school, the Real Reads could probably be picked up by 2rd or 3rd grader, maybe age 7-9. I don't favor this as a replacement to the original classic, but it is done smart enough to introduce a kid to a classic story line without scaring them off.

Yes, and I like that concept better than children only being linked to classics through the movies. Unfortunately, when I was young, "abridgments" could be pretty shallow and they really turned me off. At a very young age, I wouldn't read anything that said abridgment, because I knew they usually left out the good stuff!!

And I guess the biggest turnoff to me about the "Twilight-style" covers is that it reflects "cookie-cutter" mentality. "It will only be good if it looks like 'that'." It dumbs down creativity and exploring different ideas if nothing else.

Ok, I still can't figure out what to plug into that html code to get the larger image of the cover. What's the secret?

Because all I did with the one above was use that "add book" when you are making your comment.

I tried pasting in the URL that links to the large view of the cover that GoodReads has for a particular book, but it wouldn't show anything in my posted comment.

I did the same thing you did -- just put in the goodreads cover. I tried the html is ok link but couldn't figure it out, either.

Oh wow, 7-9 year olds, that's really good then. Nice healthy brainwashing :) If only all men had read Austen when they were 7-9 then there might be more Wentworths, Knightleys, Darcys etc out there!
I don't remember reading many abridgements when I was little, (maybe a few story versions of Shakespeare) but I certainly read a lot. But by the time I was 12/13 I was reading chick lit that I'd still read today... then at about 14/15 I finally managed to read my first classic outside of school - Mansfield Park, nonetheless! But if these sorts of covers could familiarise 7-9 year olds with classics, then I think they're a wonderful idea.

Have you read any of the classics in graphic novel form? I think they are targeted at getting teens to read classics. I've seen Moby Dick this way, too. Big surprise if you decide to try the book afterwards.

I haven't read any classics in graphic novel form, but then again I've never read anything in graphic novel form... I'm not sure what I'd think of them, but as long as it would convince a teen (gosh, I'm still a teen until the end of the month... I should have more faith in my own demographic) to pick up the actual novel after, then it's good. What do you like them, Jeannette?
I suppose it's similar to the Zombies/Seamonsters thing. My friend is nearly as big a bookworm as me, but is completely anti-classic. But she's said she wouldn't mind reading one of them, my only hope is that after she'll consider picking up the real thing. (By the way, her arguement against classics is that they're too predictable...)

EXAMPLE
-< img src="xxxx" height="120" width="100" >-

You can make height or width any size you want. 120 x 100 is alright.

src is the url location with the http: included. My example uses: http://www.wahooschools.org/pages/upl...

Remove the - and then you'll get...



If that doesn't help b/c I cannot put the EXACT code or GR turns it into an image...
http://www.mediacollege.com/internet/...

IGNORE the section Alt & Title Tags and below.

Jeannette wrote: "There is a trend to put classics into graphic novel form.

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Click on the picture to read the goodreads description. Pretty funny!"

Jeannette,

See, I would read this! It doesn't look dumbed down and something tells me it doesn't dumb down the story either. The cover is so clever, it has potential! ha ha I guess when it comes to classics, part of me is a purist, and part is a modernist!

Well, now I will look for this at the library today. My daughter and I read a lot of manga (the cutesy, romance kind -- no violence and just a little inuendo). I'll report back. It is probably, I assume, a bit abridged. The cover looks like a "teen" magazine.

Harriet wrote: "J, I really like that cover. What is the version?
I'm not sure about the Real Reads version... Excuse my UK-ness, what sort of ages is the "middle elementary level reader"? I read P&P when I was 1..."

"The Linley Sisters" the Dover thrift edition. I like the autumnal colors; also note that one sister is looking out at the landscape - Elinor was an artist - and the other one has some sheet music in her hands - Marianne was a musician.

J. wrote: "Harriet wrote: "J, I really like that cover. What is the version?
I'm not sure about the Real Reads version... Excuse my UK-ness, what sort of ages is the "middle elementary level reader"? I read P..."

Yeh, it's really well thought out. Much better than the versions I saw...

In the Marvel P&P comic book large portions of the dialogue are Jane Austen's word for word. The graphics are odd though. The hair styles don't look at all like Regency hair styles, for instance.

This conversation reminds me of the discussion of the covers on romance novels, which most, but not all readers hate. At least we don't have to put up with bosomy half clad women clutching bare chested men on Jane Austen's books. LOL!

Bill wrote: "This conversation reminds me of the discussion of the covers on romance novels, which most, but not all readers hate. At least we don't have to put up with bosomy half clad women clutching bare che..."

Think Mr. Collins without a shirt! *shudder*

Bill wrote: "In the Marvel P&P comic book large portions of the dialogue are Jane Austen's word for word. The graphics are odd though. The hair styles don't look at all like Regency hair styles, for instance."

As soon as I can find it, I'm going to read it.

Bill wrote: "This conversation reminds me of the discussion of the covers on romance novels, which most, but not all readers hate. At least we don't have to put up with bosomy half clad women clutching bare che..."

I think poor Austen would probably turn in her grave... Shame on those responsible if that ever happened!

Poor, Jane. Imagine the disappointed reader looking for the "romance" scenes?

Jeannette wrote: "Bill wrote: "In the Marvel P&P comic book large portions of the dialogue are Jane Austen's word for word. The graphics are odd though. The hair styles don't look at all like Regency hair styles, fo..."

I had to order the P&P comic book from Amazon.

Jeannette wrote: "Poor, Jane. Imagine the disappointed reader looking for the "romance" scenes? "

Especially since Jane is very stingy with hugs and kisses and the romantic climax at the end of her books is often very short and not physical at all.

Harriet wrote: "Bill wrote: "This conversation reminds me of the discussion of the covers on romance novels, which most, but not all readers hate. At least we don't have to put up with bosomy half clad women clutc..."

Gosh, can you imagine! Excuse the condescending tone here, but I can see a reader very, very confused as to how they got to a marriage proposal without any of the "romance" scenes! Ha! Oh dear...

Bill wrote: "Jeannette wrote: "Poor, Jane. Imagine the disappointed reader looking for the "romance" scenes? "

Especially since Jane is very stingy with hugs and kisses and the romantic climax at the end o..."

I have to mention how "racy" the current Austen film adaptations are compared to the books! Anne and Wentworth kiss on the sidewalk! Fanny actually touches Edmund's hand!

Anne and Wentworth certainly DO kiss! In public! Wooo-aaaah-those racy lovebirds.

Like the comic and film adaptions esp these book covers, it seems classics are slightly altering to appeal to another audience.

Which I won't say is entirely -that- bad. I've read some old English books that could put me to sleep trying to translate.

But then again, that original beauty somehow deteriorates.

Like the 1999 movie Mansfield Park, which sort of follows the original story, but is rated (USA) "PG-13 for brief violent images, sexual content and drug use." That is a lot more than kissing on the sidewalk!

Jeannette wrote: "I have to mention how "racy" the current Austen film adaptations are compared to the books! Anne and Wentworth kiss on the sidewalk! Fanny actually touches Edmund's hand!"

And Edward kisses Eleanor at the end of the 2008 S & S!

I love this discussion of book covers- I couldn't buy an edition of an Austen novel that had a horrible cover. And there are so many bad ones!!! Those Twlight-inspired covers are certainly shameless, but Austen and Bronte are in such a completely different realm from Meyer that it seems a little silly to link the too.
And those readers for kids-as one who recently graduated from children's/YA literature, I don't think kids need to be given a "teaser" early on to want to read great literature when they're ready. On the other hand, it would seem these books would assure kids they know the books, when all they know is a pared-down version of the plot- and so destroy the dramatic tension if they do get to the original works. Thoughts?
-I think it was Penguin Readers that put out a bunch of classics with cool, color pictures on the cover that really worked well...but I can't seem to find it now.
-The vintage classics ones can be really cute (http://www.amazon.com/Sense-Sensibili...)
-I really love this edition of Mansfield Park (http://www.amazon.com/Mansfield-Park-...)

Beautiful cover for Mansfield Park, Rachael. Dutiful and loyal Fanny :)

In regards to pared-down readers for young children, how many do you know who re-read? If they knew the original is 300+, would they read the original or stick to their water down one?

I've been thinking about the reader's-for-kids or abridged versions for kids and I think they have a place. When I was a kid (40+ years ago) I got my first taste of the classics this way, through abridged versions. When my daughter was younger (she's 15 now), she read a lot of junior version biographies. She read them because she was reading beyond her age-level, but wasn't mature enough to dip into a 300-page book. I used these kinds of bridge books to keep her reading interesting stories until she was ready to graduate to the real thing.

What I object to, and Rachael will probably agree, are the watered-down versions that are aimed at teen readers. By that age teens should be reading the real thing! I know that publishers and educators think they are giving young people a "taste" of the classics, but I don't think it always carries over. There is so much "junk" out there for YA lit that I am glad that my daughter doesn't want to read! We are still working on the classics; she's not quite the JA freak that I am! :)

Rachael wrote: "I love this discussion of book covers- I couldn't buy an edition of an Austen novel that had a horrible cover. And there are so many bad ones!!! Those Twlight-inspired covers are certainly shamele..."

As far as the retellings for kids, I think they become as important as you make them. If you present the younger version to the child or young adult and explain what it is and also talk about the original classic version, they will know where both fall in literature. I guess what I am saying is if they have a good teacher, family member or librarian to guide them, there shouldn't be confusion or one version shouldn't replace the other.

And I don't see the need to hold back on any version of a novel if they are interested in reading it. Kids may see movie versions of the classic too and get a mixed sense of the story, there is really no preventing it.

Jeanette, I also agree that by the time a tween/teen is ready,they should definitely be reading the original version of the book. My biggest issue is that they should be introduced to as wide a variety of classics possible. Not just The Scarlet Letter and Oliver Twist. You see what I mean? They should see a range of great books, not just the one book by certain authors, I think that is limiting to the student also.

I am always looking for a "list" of some sort as a starting point, things the school recommends. If I'm lucky, one book's enjoyment leads to another. So, we read Little Women and The Inheritance which fit in with reading The Moonstone. She also read some Twain, Jack London, and we did a nice survey of poetry. We listened to The Old Man and the Sea in the car "I wish the boy were here", but it must remain my husband's favorite.

It's always fun to see which books will interest my daughter. She is just finishing a lit class at the local community college (in Mythology, which she has always loved reading) and I am thinking of enrolling in the next one with her -- either Children's Lit or British Authors.

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I saw this edition in the City Lights bookstore in San Francisco (such a cool place!).

Joy wrote: "

I saw this edition in the City Lights bookstore in San Francisco (such a cool place!)."

Isn't that just the coolest cover? I have almost purchased this edition of "P&P" just for that cover. Fiscal restraint usually rears its ugly head though. I do like my Norton Critical Edition though, it has so many wonderful add-ons with her letters, criticism, and essays, etc. Thanks for sharing, Joy; and I wish you great 'joy' this evening too! Cheers! Chris

yes, me too! And since I don't need a third (or maybe a fourth or fifth) copy of P&P I didn't purchase it.

haha-I wish you joy as well :)