Jane Austen

Real Gold: Treasures of Auckland City Libraries: this online exhibition shows the range and depth of the library's collections, beginning with the donation of rare books and manuscripts by Sir George Grey in 1887 and developing over the years with further significant gifts and purchases. In this link find information about Northanger Abbey and Persuasion. Click on the back and forth arrows for a peek at other original novels. Belief Net: A Walk With Jane Austen When Sherry Huang finished... Read Full Story

Kimberley Nixon Character: Sophie Hutton, minister’s daughter, Dr. Harrison’s love interest, and mother figure to her siblings. She was thrust into the role at too young an age. Sophie reminds me of Fanny Knight, Jane Austen’s niece, who was the eldest of eleven children. When Fanny’s mother died, she served as mistress to her father’s household and took care of her ten younger siblings. Fanny bore nine children of her own. One can quite imagine that after Sophie Hutton marries her doctor... Read Full Story

Well Above Average blogger, Stella must be a huge Jane Austen fan --more than me and that says a lot since I have seen Pride & Prejudice at least 6 times in various presentations. Having created her own Jane Austen festival that includes the PBS screeners for Miss Austen Regrets, Sense & Sensibility, (fabulous story) Persuasion, ( one of the older versions and a bit choppy) Mansfield Park, ( quite good with Billie Piper in the lead role and quite different from the film version... Read Full Story

Episode one aired of the Masterpiece Classic presentation of Cranford last Sunday, and even though the main characters are all women, the supporting male cast is quite commendable. My favorite male performers were Simon Wood (Dr. Harrison) and Alistair Petrie (Major Gordon). I guess that you can assume that I am easily swayed by smart men who save lives and fight for England. Like Lydia Bennet, I am always partial to a handsome man in uniform! Both of these fine British actors have Jane... Read Full Story

If you know about Librivox and haven’t returned because you were unhappy with the recordings, give the site a second try. You will be pleasantly surprised by the quality of new recordings of several beloved novels. The audio recordings are free, and the site lists thousands of classics that are now in the public domain, including Jane Austen’s novels. It seems that people with good voices and who know how to read and take on the right inflection for each character have been busy rerecording... Read Full Story