Selected Letters, 1796-1817

by Jane Austen

Book Overview

In one of her personal letters, Jane Austen wrote "Little Matters they are to be sure, but highly important." In fact, letter-writing was something of an addiction for young women of Jane Austen's time and in her social position, and Austen's letters have a freedom and familiarity that only intimate writing can convey. Wiser than her critics, who were disappointed that her correspondence dwelt on gossip and the minutiae of everyday living, Austen...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0192814850
• ISBN13: 9780192814852
• Release Date: April 1985
• Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
• Length: 254 Pages
• Weight: 0.50 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 5.1" x 7.7"

Customer Reviews

Bits -and pieces- of ivory

This being my first experience with reading a series of actual letters, I found that I had to keep reminding myself to stop waiting for a plot, or character building, or any of the usual things one finds in a novel. Also, the book contains only selected letters, leaving a sense of large gaps of time. These things made it difficult for me to get really involved in the reading of this book; however, the editor gives very helpful tidbits at the beginning of each section: where and with whom Jane was staying, and to whom various references were made. Extensive footnotes also help with the latter. If the best mark of a book is that it makes the reader want more, then by all means this collection has done it's work: I definitely plan on learning more about Jane Austen's life and times.