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sallyavena's review against another edition
3.0
Interesting insight into what a man learned from Austen. Nothing really new, life altering or earth shattering to someone who has loved Austen from day one. Did find his writing style kind of weird. It was a meshing of academic/literary (he's an English PhD I think), personal memoir and casual story line.
kanissa's review against another edition
2.0
Jane Austen is unequivocally my favorite author. I have read her novels countless times (except Northanger Abbey, really), not even including all the times I've watched and re-watched film adaptations. So this book sounded interesting - a look into what Austen's books can teach us.
I was unimpressed.
This book weaves together Austen's biography, summaries of the novels, textual analysis, and Mr Deresiewicz's autobiography. Unfortunately, only the bits analyzing Austen's work were really all that interesting for me. I've read the books so many times that a summary adds no value. I don't particularly care for the author's life story (especially when he comes off as a bit whiny and privileged - the bits about the Midwest and particularly Cleveland being a total backwater compared to New York City rubbed me the wrong way, being a life-long Clevelander). And there's nothing wrong with summarizing Austen's life, but for that I'd be better off reading an actual biography.
It basically boils down to "life lessons" covering such oh-so-earth-shattering topics as "Don't take things for granted" or "Love is about growing up". I can do without the self-help book, Mr Deresiewicz, thank you very much. In the end, none of these ended up being at all interesting or eye-opening for me.
This book did change me in one way, though. It made me want to revisit the world of literary analysis, which I hadn't done since high school.
I was unimpressed.
This book weaves together Austen's biography, summaries of the novels, textual analysis, and Mr Deresiewicz's autobiography. Unfortunately, only the bits analyzing Austen's work were really all that interesting for me. I've read the books so many times that a summary adds no value. I don't particularly care for the author's life story (especially when he comes off as a bit whiny and privileged - the bits about the Midwest and particularly Cleveland being a total backwater compared to New York City rubbed me the wrong way, being a life-long Clevelander). And there's nothing wrong with summarizing Austen's life, but for that I'd be better off reading an actual biography.
It basically boils down to "life lessons" covering such oh-so-earth-shattering topics as "Don't take things for granted" or "Love is about growing up". I can do without the self-help book, Mr Deresiewicz, thank you very much. In the end, none of these ended up being at all interesting or eye-opening for me.
This book did change me in one way, though. It made me want to revisit the world of literary analysis, which I hadn't done since high school.
ih8janeausten's review against another edition
The premise sounded good and the first few pages were enjoyable, but then for me it went down hill. Once he realized the "awesomeness of Austen," I knew I would not last long. If this was not a book that I checked out from the library, it would have been thrown across the room and left there. That's how much I didn't like it. This book reaffirmed the fact that Jane Austen and I do not mix.
brandifox's review against another edition
3.0
Want to read about an Ivy League New Yorker discovering that Jane Austen is more than he thought , as he learns how not to be a putz ... then this is the book for you. His insights are enjoyable even if his love for Austen can be over the top (which is a hard line for someone to cross for me). But it was worth my time for sure.
maryloulynninmi's review against another edition
5.0
Loved it
The author describes how each of Jane Austen's novels helped him in the process of becoming an adult and, ultimately, learning how to love. It is well written and a very interesting viewpoint of her novels. I may have to have a Jane Austen binge now!
The author describes how each of Jane Austen's novels helped him in the process of becoming an adult and, ultimately, learning how to love. It is well written and a very interesting viewpoint of her novels. I may have to have a Jane Austen binge now!
elizawuen's review against another edition
3.0
The last 30 pages or so are missing from my copy HAHA. Guess we’ll never know!
becca_g_powell's review against another edition
1.0
Wow. This book is made up of almost nothing but platitudes and cliches, although the author explicitly points out that Jane Austen would never have used such things. We are constantly reminded about the author's life as a Graduate Student at an Elite University as if all of the readers should be desperately impressed by his "educational success." The writing is painfully formulaic. I started highlighting each time he used the sentence structure "blah blah blah, I now saw/I now realized/Austen is telling us, is blah blah blah" but it started getting too cumbersome, with several instances per page. As an English Professor at an Elite University he should know better.
About a third of the book is a cliff notes summary of each novel, the next third is long explanations about the non-remarkable life events of the author at the time he read it ("my rich friends were jerks," "my dad just doesn't GET me"), and the final third was the worst - trivializing each book into a neat package of a Life Lesson that single handedly tells the author something obvious about his life (after reading Emma, he seems to have realized for the first time that maybe he shouldn't be a jerk to people.) I love Austen novels, but this book may have made me like them LESS.
About a third of the book is a cliff notes summary of each novel, the next third is long explanations about the non-remarkable life events of the author at the time he read it ("my rich friends were jerks," "my dad just doesn't GET me"), and the final third was the worst - trivializing each book into a neat package of a Life Lesson that single handedly tells the author something obvious about his life (after reading Emma, he seems to have realized for the first time that maybe he shouldn't be a jerk to people.) I love Austen novels, but this book may have made me like them LESS.
lifeand100books's review against another edition
5.0
People who have never read Jane Austen often wonder what we “Janeites” find so special about her works. Besides having incredible characters and amazing plot lines they teach us lessons about ourselves, life, love, and family. Deresiewicz takes each novel one by one and tells us what lesson he learned from them, and how it helped him mature into the man he is today.
William Deresiewicz was a much different person before he read Emma. He was arrogant, and felt like an outsider. What could Jane Austen possibly tell him about life that he didn’t already know? Apparently, it was a lot. The first of Austen’s works that he read, Emma, taught him to pay attention to the small things in life. What you had for breakfast yesterday, a story that your co-worker told today, etc. These are the things that make up our lives, and once we wake up to them we can appreciate the richness of our life. In Mansfield Park, Deresiewicz learned that just because you’re entertained, that doesn’t always mean that you’re happy. In short, money can buy a lot of things, including entertainment, but as we always hear it doesn’t buy happiness. Persuasion proved that honesty is the best trait in friendship. Passive acceptance doesn’t make a friendship stronger, it can tear it apart. Pride and Prejudice (my fav of course) showed him that too err is to be human. In essence, we have an entire life ahead of us to make mistakes and learn from them. If we all move through life without making any mistakes, there would be no way to learn from life experiences. It is these messages and more that Deresiewicz reveals in A Jane Austen Education.
The book is written in an eloquent manner that really expresses Deresiewicz’s affection for Austen and her works. This book is essentially a tribute to how life-changing Austen’s works can be for those who read it. As someone who has read all of Jane’s novels I can truly attest to the strength of the lessons in her novels. She finds a way to satirize social norms and lets us know it’s ok to be different. Deresiewicz is just one of the army of us out there that have had our lives changed by these six novels. His personal examples told as evidence of his change only strengthen the message and purpose of the book.
I’d also like to give props to whoever designed this cover. The book jacket is one of my favorites that I’ve ever seen and was the second reason I wanted to buy this book (Jane obviously being reason number one). In closing, this book has the ability to speak to anyone out there looking for help in learning life’s little lessons. Even if you’ve never read a novel by Austen prior to reading this, you will still understand everything Deresiewicz lays out. His eloquent style and relatable examples make this a must for everyone, regardless of your literary taste, sex, or age.
Kimberly (Reflections of a Book Addict)
http://wp.me/p18lIL-uA
William Deresiewicz was a much different person before he read Emma. He was arrogant, and felt like an outsider. What could Jane Austen possibly tell him about life that he didn’t already know? Apparently, it was a lot. The first of Austen’s works that he read, Emma, taught him to pay attention to the small things in life. What you had for breakfast yesterday, a story that your co-worker told today, etc. These are the things that make up our lives, and once we wake up to them we can appreciate the richness of our life. In Mansfield Park, Deresiewicz learned that just because you’re entertained, that doesn’t always mean that you’re happy. In short, money can buy a lot of things, including entertainment, but as we always hear it doesn’t buy happiness. Persuasion proved that honesty is the best trait in friendship. Passive acceptance doesn’t make a friendship stronger, it can tear it apart. Pride and Prejudice (my fav of course) showed him that too err is to be human. In essence, we have an entire life ahead of us to make mistakes and learn from them. If we all move through life without making any mistakes, there would be no way to learn from life experiences. It is these messages and more that Deresiewicz reveals in A Jane Austen Education.
The book is written in an eloquent manner that really expresses Deresiewicz’s affection for Austen and her works. This book is essentially a tribute to how life-changing Austen’s works can be for those who read it. As someone who has read all of Jane’s novels I can truly attest to the strength of the lessons in her novels. She finds a way to satirize social norms and lets us know it’s ok to be different. Deresiewicz is just one of the army of us out there that have had our lives changed by these six novels. His personal examples told as evidence of his change only strengthen the message and purpose of the book.
I’d also like to give props to whoever designed this cover. The book jacket is one of my favorites that I’ve ever seen and was the second reason I wanted to buy this book (Jane obviously being reason number one). In closing, this book has the ability to speak to anyone out there looking for help in learning life’s little lessons. Even if you’ve never read a novel by Austen prior to reading this, you will still understand everything Deresiewicz lays out. His eloquent style and relatable examples make this a must for everyone, regardless of your literary taste, sex, or age.
Kimberly (Reflections of a Book Addict)
http://wp.me/p18lIL-uA
staciek3's review against another edition
4.0
A lovely companion to Jane Austen's six novels, exploring some finer points many readers may have overlooked by reading them. I found it to be very insightful and I enjoyed the way the author related each lesson back to his own life. I'm glad I also learned a bit more along this author's journey. It's no surprise as to why Jane Austen is enjoyed to this day by so many.
sdpspiano's review against another edition
4.0
This is a great read to gain some perspective on Jane Austen's novels. Plus, I enjoyed reading the transformation of this author from struggling, self-centered college student to mature man.