I haven't read Pride & Prejudice yet, but Emma's on my list; now I'm curious whether I'll like it. I really loved Jane Eyre as well. Have you read "Wide Sargasso Sea" by Jean Rhys? It's a post-colonial re-writing of JE focusing on Bertha and I found this other perspective on the story really interesting.
Also read Wuthering Heights for the first time this year and genuinely liked it. Yes, it's dark and the characters are indeed detestable, but I found her writing very captivating and liked how she structured the plot. I also found it quite interesting that the story was so scandalous for the time it was written in so that Charlotte B "had to" edit it to be less edgy. The edition I read had lots of historical context explanations and Charlotte's original foreword (which made me not like her at all).
How curious! Now I’m going to have to hunt down that original forward. Thank you for sharing. I haven’t read Wide Sargasso Sea yet, but it’s been on my list since last year to do so!
Don’t let me discourage you from Emma; I will be so interested to hear what you think- please do report back once you’ve read it. I may give it another try because I really want to watch the movie and I have a little quirk of refusing to watch a movie based on a book before I’ve read said book. I only got, maybe, 4 chapters in before I jumped ship.
Reading Jane Austen feels similar to knitting (or other hand projects) in that I feel myself settle into a rhythm while reading. It feels calming, but I also love that it requires a bit of focus to follow along and understand what’s happening in a particular scene. The humor feels a little more hard won than instantly gratifying, too. I reread her books pretty often and always have one saved on my Books app (not an ideal way to read, but necessary sometimes with a baby currently sleeping in our room). :)
I love Jane Austen's novels because they are funny and romantic (I've read them all). They have these still relevant themes about gender inequality and what it was like for women during time. I read most of them in high school and college on my own and have reread Pride and Prejudice 3 times.
I do love Jane Eyre even more than Pride and Prejudice. I first read Jane Eyre as a teenager as well...what a beautiful, heartbreaking story (I have reread it as well). It was very easy to empathize with Jane. However, I don't care for Wuthering Heights at all. It is overly dramatic for me, and I find the characters too detestable. I read Agnes Grey, too, but I haven't read all of the Bronte novels yet.
Yes, I know what you mean about Wuthering Heights. I find the characters detestable too, it is something my daughter, my mom and I argued about often when we read it! I couldn't stand how selfish and horrid they all were, it was so frustrating, and my mom and my daughter feel a lot more compassion for them and focus on the romance. I think it just comes down to preference though, I do always enjoy a dark story over a lighter one. I think Wuthering Heights really highlights the dark, destructive, consuming nature love/obsession can take sometimes. Incidentally, my grandma absolutely hates this one, and loves all Jane Austen books (which she re-reads every year). Definitely Jane Eyre is my absolute favorite, what a treat to read and like you said, a beautiful story. Thank you for writing in, love to read your thoughts! xx A
I haven't read Pride & Prejudice yet, but Emma's on my list; now I'm curious whether I'll like it. I really loved Jane Eyre as well. Have you read "Wide Sargasso Sea" by Jean Rhys? It's a post-colonial re-writing of JE focusing on Bertha and I found this other perspective on the story really interesting.
Also read Wuthering Heights for the first time this year and genuinely liked it. Yes, it's dark and the characters are indeed detestable, but I found her writing very captivating and liked how she structured the plot. I also found it quite interesting that the story was so scandalous for the time it was written in so that Charlotte B "had to" edit it to be less edgy. The edition I read had lots of historical context explanations and Charlotte's original foreword (which made me not like her at all).
How curious! Now I’m going to have to hunt down that original forward. Thank you for sharing. I haven’t read Wide Sargasso Sea yet, but it’s been on my list since last year to do so!
Don’t let me discourage you from Emma; I will be so interested to hear what you think- please do report back once you’ve read it. I may give it another try because I really want to watch the movie and I have a little quirk of refusing to watch a movie based on a book before I’ve read said book. I only got, maybe, 4 chapters in before I jumped ship.
Do you use a specific pumpkin pie recipe? I was looking through your archives and couldn’t find one :)
I usually use the Nora Cooks one!
Reading Jane Austen feels similar to knitting (or other hand projects) in that I feel myself settle into a rhythm while reading. It feels calming, but I also love that it requires a bit of focus to follow along and understand what’s happening in a particular scene. The humor feels a little more hard won than instantly gratifying, too. I reread her books pretty often and always have one saved on my Books app (not an ideal way to read, but necessary sometimes with a baby currently sleeping in our room). :)
What vegan chorizo do you recommend? I’ve seen the Trader Joe’s one but haven’t tried it.
Yes! I find the Trader Joe's one to be really nice in both texture and flavor. It's the one I use.
I love Jane Austen's novels because they are funny and romantic (I've read them all). They have these still relevant themes about gender inequality and what it was like for women during time. I read most of them in high school and college on my own and have reread Pride and Prejudice 3 times.
I do love Jane Eyre even more than Pride and Prejudice. I first read Jane Eyre as a teenager as well...what a beautiful, heartbreaking story (I have reread it as well). It was very easy to empathize with Jane. However, I don't care for Wuthering Heights at all. It is overly dramatic for me, and I find the characters too detestable. I read Agnes Grey, too, but I haven't read all of the Bronte novels yet.
Yes, I know what you mean about Wuthering Heights. I find the characters detestable too, it is something my daughter, my mom and I argued about often when we read it! I couldn't stand how selfish and horrid they all were, it was so frustrating, and my mom and my daughter feel a lot more compassion for them and focus on the romance. I think it just comes down to preference though, I do always enjoy a dark story over a lighter one. I think Wuthering Heights really highlights the dark, destructive, consuming nature love/obsession can take sometimes. Incidentally, my grandma absolutely hates this one, and loves all Jane Austen books (which she re-reads every year). Definitely Jane Eyre is my absolute favorite, what a treat to read and like you said, a beautiful story. Thank you for writing in, love to read your thoughts! xx A