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A review by cstefko
Jane Austen by Carol Shields
informative
reflective
medium-paced
4.5
This is the first Austen biography I've read that I can remember really focusing on the less positive aspects of Austen's family life. I feel like I actually got a true sense of what her day-to-day life was like, and it's very bittersweet. I don't think I'd ever read about Austen's time in London when she was doing corrections for the proofs of her first published novel, Sense and Sensibility. It was like a glimpse of another life she could have lived, and yet her family (her sister Cassandra, really) could barely let her enjoy even that glimpse. It's kind of tragic, honestly.
I also appreciated Shields' point that although Austen is perceived as a writer of marriage novels (and she is, to be fair), it would be just as accurate to say she was a writer of family dramas. You can't really separate the two themes in her work.
It's always interesting though to see which particular novels any given Austen biographer gravitates towards. Shields is an Emma proponent, for sure, and surprisingly tough on Persuasion.
Shields has some interesting recommendations in her notes section for other Austen criticism and biographies, so I'll be seeking some of them out (could be difficult with some of the publication dates, though). Also, I've somehow never taken it upon myself to read the much-cited memoir by Austen's nephew. Making that a priority for next year's Austen reading. I have a couple of other books already on my shelf that I need to get to first.
I definitely recommend this biography to anyone interested in learning more about Austen's personal life and the context in which she wrote her novels.
I also appreciated Shields' point that although Austen is perceived as a writer of marriage novels (and she is, to be fair), it would be just as accurate to say she was a writer of family dramas. You can't really separate the two themes in her work.
It's always interesting though to see which particular novels any given Austen biographer gravitates towards. Shields is an Emma proponent, for sure, and surprisingly tough on Persuasion.
Shields has some interesting recommendations in her notes section for other Austen criticism and biographies, so I'll be seeking some of them out (could be difficult with some of the publication dates, though). Also, I've somehow never taken it upon myself to read the much-cited memoir by Austen's nephew. Making that a priority for next year's Austen reading. I have a couple of other books already on my shelf that I need to get to first.
I definitely recommend this biography to anyone interested in learning more about Austen's personal life and the context in which she wrote her novels.