Jane Austen: The Complete Novels

Rating:
Summary: exquisite writing
Review: Jane Austen lovers might want to order a used copy of one of the out-of-print editions instead of this one, which appears to contain some errors, missing dialogue and so on. That said, it's handy to have all of Austen's exquisite writing in one volume. This marvelously articulate woman wrote with with razor-sharp perception, and the emotional states of her characters are fully detailed and examined. The reader will have to pay attention constantly while reading, or s/he will miss the richness of description, and maybe even some necessary subtle plot lines. These novels are meant to be read slowly and carefully, and savoured. Austen may be an acquired taste, but once you appreciate her, you will be hooked for life. I rarely re-read anything, but her works stand up to re-reading.

Rating:
Summary: Style and Substance
Review: Jane Austen represents the best of classic literature--she has a great reputation, and she's fun to read. These novels are romantic, funny and touching, and instead of raising their eyebrows because you're reading romantic fiction written by a woman, parents and teachers will be pleased by your quality selection. Austen created characters that are believable in both their strengths and foibles and her heroines are ultimately sympathetic, and some how very modern. It is easy for a woman in our times to relate to them. Try these--you'll like them.

Rating:
Summary: All of Austen's witty, charming novels in one volume.
Review: Jane Austen's piercingly accurate yet genteely witty observations on English society are as fresh and funny today as they were in Austen's own time. Here, collected in one volume, are all of her charming, vibrant and facinating characters from the arrogant yet lovable Mr. Darcy in "Pride and Prejudice" to the adorably misguided but well meaning Emma in "Emma" There are no clunkers in this collection. Each of these novels is a joy to read and re-read. Austen's prose and character development are superior and her plots never disappoint. Villains are punished, heroines and heroes eventually triumph and romances work themselves out in humorous yet realistic fashion.

Rating:
Summary: Every Home Should have One!
Review: Ol' Jane comes in for a bit of stick, these days, what with pre-feminist theory and post-modern analysis: she's been seized by the acadmeics on one hand, and the romance-seeks on the other. So people tend to presume she has little to offer the non-specialist late twentieth century reader in terms of identification and insight. Well, au contraire, as they say down my local wine-bar! Ms Austen is a bitingly acerbic social commentator: few escape her acid observations - good characters and villains alike. Okay, so her world is small, but hey - so is Jackie Collins', Toni Morrisons's or any dozen other contemporary novelists' milieu. We all write what we know and, in a greater sense, if the writing is up to it, communicate on a level far deeper and more globally profound than the mere contrivancies of the plot and setting. I know it'sa early nineteen century England but, hey, do people change that much over time and space? I think not; the human condition is universal and tediously constant. From strong Emma in the eponymous novel, to quietly sardonic Anne in Persuasion and on through the entire Bennett family, Austen's characters transcend their era and make me laugh, cry and giggle at thjeir wit and observations. So the next time you go to turn your nose up at Austen as either too highbrow, too romancy or just too dasn out of date, give the lady a second chance, eh pal? Nearly two hundred years on and she can still write the pants off most twentieth century novelists.

Rating:
Summary: To see the world in a grain of sand
Review: On vacation this summer we dined one night in a restaurant in Ciudad Acuna, Mexico. Hung upon the walls were several reproductions of paintings by the Mexican painter Frieda Kahlo. All except for one, as I recall, were the introspective above-the-chest self portraits for which she is known. The exception was a full-length portrait of herself with her husband, the Mexican muralist Diego Rivera, whose size, in comparison to his wife's, was massive. Rivera dwarfed Kahlo, just as his enormous murals, peopled by hundreds, dwarfed Kahlo's portraits of one. I suppose a person could read a good deal into that painting, but having read the Complete Novels of Jane Austen in June and July I was primed to see the painting as a categorization of artists and authors as either big picture types (Rivera, Dickens, Tolstoy), or small picture specialists (Kahlo, Austen). It would be tempting to see this as a male/female dichotomy, and as a general rule I suppose it is, but there are exceptions. George Eliot wrote Middlemarch, while William Blake was able to see the world in a grain of sand. So too could Jane Austen. From their confined, rural positions in the English society of the early 1800's her heroines experience the full gamut of thoughts and emotions life has to offer, each from a different perspective. And Austen's language is a joy, such a combination of thrift and wit, wisdom and poignancy. Highly recommended.

Rating:
Summary: Great...but missing something.
Review: The book size is very convenient and the fact that is a hardcover with a very inexpensive price, makes it very valuable. But as a fan of Jane Austen, I was a little dissapointed to find that Sandition was not included in this book. I think that besides P&P, Sandition is one of her best works, even though it was left unfinished, but as many others will agree with me, an unfinished Jane Austen novel is far better than no Jane Austen at all.

Rating:
Summary: Absolutely Fantastic
Review: The way she writes is just phenominal, I would give anything to write the way she does. And how well she relates the facts of her time peroid into her Novels is just fantastic! I loved it and will love it for a long time to come!

Rating:
Summary: There's a different edition that's better value
Review: There's a new edition of Jane Austen's complete novels that's better value than this one, you might want to take a look at it - the ISBN number is:

0954840119

(put this into the Amazon search box and it'll come up).


Rating:
Summary: Austen and Human Nature
Review: This collection of works, from one of our best loved authors, is a worthy addition to any bookshelf. Austen's heroines are more than young ladies embarking on the marriage market; they are young ladies who must learn how to live and love within the confines of their world. While the naive exploits of Catherine Morland and Marianne Dashwood provide amusement and astonishment to the reader, heroines such as Anne Elliot and Elizabeth Darcy often exhibit grace under pressure. All of her heroines suffer from their own faults and inexperience, but they are willing to learn and grow. Her heroines are not perfect but they are real. In the end, in true bildungsroman style, they are rewarded for their newly discovered maturity. Aside from her heroines, Austen is probably best known for her comic creations. Who can find much fault with Emma Woodhouse when introduced to the society in which she lives? Characters such as Miss Bates and Mr. Woodhouse illustrate Austen at her best because they demonstrate her astuteness regarding human nature. These characters invite both laughter and sneers of contempt, as we recognize those traits in the people around us. This understanding of human nature has allowed Austen's novels to remain popular nearly 200 years after her death.

Rating:
Summary: How can you live without it??
Review: This is the most lovely book ever. How did I ever get along before I started reading Jane Austen?