Thursday, December 16, 2010

Celebrating Austen's 235th Birthday--Share your Austen Epiphany


Since it's a party, I decided that we should have party games, right?

First, I thought about trying to automate my S&S bingo game that's currently under development, but the last programming class I took was BASIC in the 1980's, so that idea was a bust.

Then I thought about trying to implement a pin-the-tail-on-the-cad game, featuring Willoughby, Wickham, and William (aka Mr. Eliot), but since that also would require technical skills beyond my ken, that idea also was a bust.

So, for this birthday party post, I decided to go with "Austen Epiphanies." That is, I am soliciting fans not unlike yourself to share your story about what Austen means to you and how you came to be a devotee.

To get the ball rolling, I'll share my story.

Imagine a gawky thirteen-year old figure skater sporting a Dorothy Hamill haircut but without the grace, skills, or poise of Dorothy Hamill sitting on a bench in a humid locker room of a local ice rink in early June with her head buried in a book. The reigning queen of the rink enters the locker room and asks said gawky underling what she is reading.

"Pride and Prejudice."

"Isn't school out for the summer?"

Silence.

"Mine isn't. I have to finish this for English class."

"Oh, good luck with it. Better you than me."

And that, my friends, was the last time I lied about why I read Jane Austen. I have been cringing about that moment for the past 40 years, feeling that I let down the side. So it's time to come clean. I love to read Jane Austen's novels and have been doing so for decades; I no longer bother to keep track of how many times I've read each one...I ran out of fingers to count on a long time ago!

I've learned so much from Austen--like how to be polite to your mother even when she is embarrassing you to death, how to apologize to someone that you've embarrassed because of your "witty" remarks, how to hold your feelings inside of you when your heart is breaking, and how to proclaim your feelings and not be ashamed of loving dead leaves more than anyone else in the room.

I've learned that sometimes we get second chances to correct our mistakes, and sometimes we don't. I've learned that actions have consequences, and that London is a long way to go just to get a haircut.

I was reading Austen before VCRs were invented, and it was a special treat when my dad bought me a new copy of P&P with photos in it from the Lawrence Olivier/Greer Garson movie. I studied those photos and dreamed of the day when I could actually watch a movie version of my favorite novel. I did finally watch it after snagging a copy of a VHS tape at a video store roughly ten years later--imagine my shock when I discovered how Olivier, et al had managled Austen's perfect story. Luckily I already had a copy of the Elizabeth Garvie version of P&P that I watched regularly for the nine months I was pregnant with my first baby so I wasn't too devastated by the 1940's version.



We've come a long way since the days when I was literally the only person I knew who read Austen novels and longed to find someone who had read them too. And then...Al Gore invented the Internet and since then I've discovered legions of Janeites eager to talk about their favorite books, write sequels, what-ifs, and missing scenes, and celebrate the genius that is Austen via t-shirts, coffee mugs, homemade videos, quizzes, tea parties, games, and just plain chat.



Sometimes I feel a bit overwhelmed by the sheer magnitude of material related to Austen that is out there, but I've also been impressed by the really great work that Austenmania has inspired and the joy she continues to bring into our lives by giving focus to the talents of her fans.

Reading Austen's novels continues to be a key part of my reading life. Reading Austen lit crit continues to bring me great satisfaction and enriches my life. Celebrating Austen's contributions to our culture by reading fanfic, sequels, tributes, spinoffs, and mashups has added a new and sometimes quirky dimension to my life, and quirky is often just what the doctor ordered.

So, here's to you, Jane Austen and your fabulous fans! May you continue to inspire us to keep our chin up, smile in the rain, apologize when we overstep ourselves, do a good turn, write a letter to an old friend, retrench when necessary, and do the best with what we've got.



Feel free to share your own Austen Epiphany via a comment.

And, be sure to visit the other blogs participating in this Jane Austen Birthday Blog tour.

1. Adriana Zardini at Jane Austen Sociedad do Brasil
2. Laurel Ann at Austenprose
3. Vic Sanborn at Jane Austen World
4. Katherine Cox at November’s Autumn
5. Karen Wasylowski at Karen Wasylowski Blog
6. Laurie Viera Rigler at Jane Austen Addict Blog
7. Lynn Shepherd at Lynn Shepherd Blog
8. Jane Greensmith at Reading, Writing, Working, Playing
9. Jane Odiwe at Jane Austen Sequels
10. Alexa Adams at First Impressions
11. Regina Jeffers at Regina Jeffers Blog
12. Cindy Jones at First Draft
13. Janet Mullany at Risky Regencies
14. Maria Grazia at My Jane Austen Book Club
15. Meredith at Austenesque Reviews

Leave your comments along with an e-mail address to have lots of chances to win one of the wonderful gifts we are giving away in Austen's honor:

Books - 1 signed copy of…
1. Willoughby’s Return by Jane Odiwe
2. Confessions of a Jane Austen Addict by Laurie Viera Rigler
3. Rude Awakenings of a Jane Austen Addict by Laurie Viera Rigler
4. Murder at Mansfield Park by Lynn Shepherd
5. Intimations of Austen by Jane Greensmith
6. Darcy's Passions: Fitzwilliam Darcy's Story by Regina Jeffers
7. First Impressions. A Tale of Less Pride and Prejudice by Alexa Adams
8. Jane and the Damned by Janet Mullany
9. Bespelling Jane Austen by Janet Mullany

Other gifts:
1. Austen bag offered by Karen Wasylowski
2. DVD Pride & Prejudice 2005 offered by Regina Jeffers
3. Package of Bingley's Tea (flavor "Marianne's Wild Abandon") offered by Cindy Jones
4. DVD Jane Austen in Manhattan offered by Maria Grazia
5. 3 issues of Jane Austen Regency World offered by Maria Grazia

Entries for the giveaways will close on December 23. Winners will be announced on My Jane Austen Book Club.

Thanks for stopping by...and enjoy the tour.

70 comments:

  1. I enjoyed reading your epiphany and Austen progress so to speak. I don't have a lengthy history and it's not so interesting. I wish I could implement all those lessons you mentioned. The pin the tail on the cad game sounded like such fun.

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  2. I have too many to mention? LOL! I just love Jane Austen to pieces and I enjoyed reading yours! I too, LOVE the idea of the pin the tail on the cad, LOL!
    ~TattingChic ♥

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  3. Happy birthday Jane!!!

    This is a happy day for all your fans!

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  4. I too was hugely disappointed by the 1940s Lawrence Olivier Pride and Prejudice

    I shared my Austen epiphany a few months back in a blogpost, http://the-book-addict.blogspot.com/2010/05/books-you-thought-youd-hate-but-ended.html
    - yes, I thought I would hate it! And it was a man who persuaded me to read it! (How many men do you know who will happily read an Austen novel?)

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  5. I'm not here for prizes, I just wanted to say hi at the party - lovely post, Jane - I have that Laurence Olivier P&P book too!

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  6. I want to see that Laurence Olivier P&P picture book! I actually like that adaption, it might be because I saw it before reading the book and had no idea of its inaccuracies.

    Lovely post, Jane!

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  7. I've never seen the Olivier P&P and after your post I'll definitely skip it -- I've always been turned off by the idea of the antebellum costumes but if that's the least of it, I'm definitely better off.

    I didn't actually become a Janeite until I was in my late 20s but I am now making up for lost time! I joined JASNA and attended the AGM in Philadelphia last year, and now I'm a life member! Elizabeth Garvie was a speaker in Philadelphia and was just delightful.

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  8. So glad to find another person who disliked the 1940 P&P as much as I did. When I expressed my opinion on my blog, one person kept commenting how much she disagreed with me, stating the movie was a classic. I replied that while the film might be regarded as a classic by movie buffs, it deviated far and wide from Jane's story. Then she insisted the costumes were not civil war era, but from 1834. I knew enough to leave her to her delusions.

    Having said that, my epiphany came when I realized that I was researching Jane Austen's life and the Regency era 24/7. Obsessed much, Vic? Oh, yeah. Happy Birthday, Jane.

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  9. Happy birthda!! I love Jane Austen. Lovely tribute and enjoy life.

    jacinta.noppers@live.com.au

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  10. Happy Birthday, my dear Jane!

    isabel_ribeiro@hotmail.com

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  11. Jane Austen has inspired many of us to see the "classics" from a different point of view. Happy Birthday, Jane!

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  12. I have always loved to watch the movie adaptations of Jane's novels, but I think my devotion to her books was really reignited by my older daughter's interest in them. She went through a period when she didn't read much (to my horror!) and when she did start reading for pleasure again, she often chose classics, such as Pride and Prejudice. So I decided to follow suit and read the stories myself. I am now a truly devoted fan to reading the works of Jane Austen now.
    Margay

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  13. Enjoyed your post. I don't think I can pinpoint an epiphany, but world of Austen has inspired me to read and enjoy so many other novels of the Regency era. Georgette Heyer is a favorite. Thanks for the birthday celebration and blog tour.

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  15. I don't know about an epiphany, but I remember fondly reading Jane Austen in high school and feeling like I was the only one who appreciated her wit. It's been nice over the years to find other people who agree. arianne (dot) hartsell(at)gmail(dot)com

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  16. I totally agree with your opinion on the 40's version of P&P. Sigh. I don't think anyone involved with that movie read the book.

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  17. I love Jane Austen! Happy Birthday!

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  18. Happy Birthday, Jane Austen! And Happy Celebration to you, Jane G., and to all your readers. Thanks for joining!

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  19. Happy Birthday Jane! I became a fan of Jane after watching Pride and Prejudice 2005 and I never went back after! Now I've read all her books and absolutely adore them!
    ~Sara S.
    (irule8922@yahoo.com)

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  20. I remember asking one Christmas for my own copies of Jane Austen novels. I have to admit, I was a bit disappointed, when I opened the box and they were all paperback versions. Over the years, I have replaced them all with beautiful hard cover books. When I was a young mother, I got audio books so I could still enjoy Jane. I think Jane will always be a part of my life, so Jane! Happy Birthday!!

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  21. Hii Jane! Lovely post!

    Happy Birthday, dear Jane!

    Priscila Murlik

    priscila.smurlik@gmail.com

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  22. I spent my teenage years thinking I was the only fan of Jane...You cannot imagine my joy to discover other janeites!
    Happy Birthday miss Austen!

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  23. I entered the world of Austen with my first viewing of Pride and Prejudice with the absolutely gorgeous Laurence Olivier as Darcy, and that has been my perfect Darcy since. I was home from school with a cold and fell into a mad ten year old's crush on a much older man (I had no idea quite how much older at the time) Later I read the book and discovered how clever and witty Jane wrote and enjoyed P&P on a whole new level.

    Proud to be a part of this wonderful day.

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  24. Happy birthday, dearest Jane! I became an instant Janeite from the first time I read the opening sentence to Pride and Prejudice. Now I'm devoting my PhD to the Regency World.

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  25. Happy Birthday, Jane! You have given me so much through your writings... thank you.

    I'd love to join the giveaway--- if this is the right place to do it.

    My email address is cassie(at)literaryladies(dot)com

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  26. Happy Birthaday,Jane!
    I just love all your books!
    andrezza3tavares@hotmail.com

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  27. Lovely to read about your experiences of Jane Austen!

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  28. I have enjoyed reading your tribute to our lovely bithday girl, Jane. I started reading her works in 2000 - I am a late bloomer to say the least. I have since became all things Jane Austen and continue on a mission to seek out all and any information on this special author. Happy Birthday, dear Jane and a Merry Christmas too!!!

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  29. Happy Birthday to Jane!
    My first book I read was Pride and Prejudice when I was 15. I then saw the 1980's movie. I fell in love with all things Austen. My absolute favorite that turned my love into an obsession was the 1995 BBC production of Pride and Prejudice with Colin Firth. The rest is history.
    Terie
    lighthousem516@sbcglobal.net

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  30. Happy birthday, Jane!

    This is a great post--thank you for sharing your epiphany! I think we've all been there--hiding our reading, I mean. Thank goodness for the internet! If it weren't for the internet, I'd still feel like I was a lonely reader.

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  31. My first encounter with Jane Austen came when my parents having cried with joy while watching Emma Thompson's Sense & Sensibility in cinema and let me watch a VHS copy of the film with them when I was just 9 years old. I was quite taken with the costumes, music and manners. I also remember being very curious when my mom was reading some of the novels and trying to read them too but not getting beyond the first few chapters. For my 15th birthday I specially requested an audio book of Northanger Abbey and listening to those cassette tapes was my delight during my teen years. Reading all of Jane Austen's novels during high school (thanks to my father who was my teacher!) also served to bring me even closer to Miss Austen's life and novels. Now as a young adult my bookshelves are brimming with Jane Austen novels, biographies, fan lit, film adaptations and soundtracks! I still just can't get enough!
    Happy Birthday dearest Jane! You are loved! :)

    ~Miss Laurie
    Old-FashionedCharm.blogspot.com

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  32. I have never seen the Laurence Olivier one. My first P and P was the one from 1980 with David Rintoul. I was 17 when I saw it and hooked sinse. :) My favorite is the Colin Firth version though. Thanks for sharing! Happy birthday!

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  33. now, i'm curious about the P&P with Olivier. i fell in love with jane with reading P&P and then S&S soon after. didn't really get into the movie versions until i read bridgett jones diary and the emphasis on the darcy pond scene ;-D

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  34. Happy Birthday, Jane Austen!

    Thank you for introducing me to the wonderful world of English literature!


    Natallie Chagas
    natallienazareth.ac @ bol.com.br

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  35. I think I was about 12 when I first read P&P. I still have the Classic Penguin paperback which I read. I was lucky though because I had several friends who were also starting to read her books so I never felt that I was weird.
    I agree with you about the Olivier film.

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  37. Thank you Jane for all you wrote and for making us dream every day! Happy 235th birthday!
    (sweet_mavina@hotmail.it)

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  38. Happy 235th birthday, dear Jane!!

    Thank you for this very interesting read!
    graceismine@mail2christian.com

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  39. Happy Birthday Jane. This is a very beautiful appreciation!

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  40. Happy Birthday Jane! Thank you for your participation in the virtual celebration.

    I haven't seen the Laurence Olivier version. But I've heard so much about. I have to admit, based on what I've heard, I don't really know if I want to see it. *hides head* (Mainly due to the Lady Catherine character).

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  41. Happy birthday Jane Austen! A genius of literature!
    email: thalitacarvalho@ymail.com

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  42. Thanks for sharing Jane! Fun to hear of your experience!

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  43. I fell in love with the Hollywood version of P&P with Laurence Olivier {sigh} and Greer Garson! Being fairly young at the time, I didn't realize it was a book!! {gasp} I've continued that quest for all things Jane since I found her works at the library. Happy birthday, dear Jane!

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  44. Well, first I watched Pride and Prejudice in 2006, when I was 12 years old, now, I'm reading the book... And when I go to the library, I search her books... Happy Birthday, Jane!

    ariane_teodoro_godoi@hotmail.com

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  45. I often feel overwhelmed too. How do you pick out the good Austen-inspired fiction from the bad. There is just so much. Thank you for your post.

    Happy birthday Jane!

    fall.of.autumn(at)gmail.com

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  46. I first discoverd Jane Austen when I was ten, and a friend lent me the 1995 version of P&P. I loved it (of course!). And since then Jane Austen has hands down been my favorite author.
    Happy Birthday, Jane! Thank you for the wonderful novels you gave us.

    hmuth468@students.bju.edu

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  47. Happy Birthday Jane, and my thanks to all who continue to pass on her legacy. Your efforts are appreciated more than you know.

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  48. Happy Birthday dear Jane Austen. :)

    dlsmilad at yahoo dot com

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  49. My own epiphany? I think it took place when I was walking through my college campus, around the same time that I was rereading Persuasion for a Romantic Lit course, and began to have a conversation with Anne Elliot in my head. I think I've been insane for Jane ever since! Great post.

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  50. I read Pride and Prejudice sometime before I was fifteen, and then as a sophomore in high school, I played Jane in Helen Jerome's adaption. That was almost fifty years ago. I've been reading and even teaching Austen ever since.

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  51. I had stumbled across Georgette Heyer in a bookstore at fifteen and fell in love with her feisty and witty Regency heroines and dashing heroes. At seventeen, or so, I decided to read the "classics" in ABC order by author. A--Austen. What a surprise! I'd found the original of which Heyer were all copies!! ~ Pamela Aidan

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  52. I don't know when I acquired Persuasion, but I read it every year at least once. Then, while watching my Elizabeth Garvie P&P I looked something up online and found a whole new world! An Austen world.

    mhuether@hotmail.com

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  53. When I was in first year university (150 years ago), Emma was on my reading list. I had somehow acquired the idea that Jane Austen was deadly, so I read Emma first to get it out of the way. I loved it so much that I digressed from my reading list to read all the rest of her works. After that, I think I forgot about Jane while I read through George Eliot, Dickens, Trollope, Mrs Gaskell, the Brontes - basically all the 19th century literature I could find that is still readily in print. I think it was probably the 1980 P&P with Elizabeth Garvie that brought me back to Jane, and now I find that Jane is the best one to reread and reread.

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  54. Lovely blog Jane.

    I've learned so much from Austen--like how to be polite to your mother even when she is embarrassing you to death, how to apologize to someone that you've embarrassed because of your "witty" remarks, how to hold your feelings inside of you when your heart is breaking, and how to proclaim your feelings and not be ashamed of loving dead leaves more than anyone else in the room.

    This passage gave me goosebumps. Thanks for sharing.

    I came to Austen with the 1980 P&P and read the novels after. It's been a glorious journey.

    Happy Birthday, Jane

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  55. I didn't read Emma or Pride and Prejudice when they were assigned in my senior year AP Lit class (and did very poorly on the paper about them) but read them for fun two weeks later (poor decision, I know). I read both of them more quickly than I've ever read any other classic novel - Pride & Prejudice particularly inspired a whole new love of everything Jane Austen, and everything having to do with the time period. Thank you Jane Austen for being a literary inspiration!

    enleidy@msn.com

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  56. Well, my darling mother a Janeite from her youth presented me with a beautiful hardbound edition of Pride & Prejudice when I was twelve yrs old for my birthday.

    I started to read it that night and knew one day Darcy would find me and I would be as fortunate as Elizabeth. That was my inital epiphany as a Janeite...

    I have had many an illumination during my life when I could reference back to one of her glorious novels...

    Now, I am happy to say that Darcy finally found me and I am much more fortunate that Elizabeth for my Darcy has the writing skills of Captain Wentworth!!

    I am one happy Lizzie as I finally marry in my 46th year next December on the 16th!!(Of course)

    Thought I was to be a maid like our darling Jane but she saw to it from Heaven I am sure that I was to be a Lizzie...

    Thank you Jane and a happiest of birthdays to you!

    Sofia


    alwayscatholicblog@gmail.com

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  57. I grew up reading Dickens and Bronte, but didn't discover Jane Austen until my family sat down to watch the 1995 mini-series. Obviously, I was hooked! 15-years-old at the time, raging with hormones, and Colin was sooo attractive in period costume. ;)
    The following summer, I dragged my boyfriend along to the theatre, where Emma Thomspon's "Sense and Sensibility" was playing.
    I think he slept through it, but was a pretty good sport and asked questions afterwards.

    Throughout high-school, I wrote Jane Austen fan-fiction before realizing that other people were actually making money selling them!
    And now, I paint Regency Cat portraits and am working on my cat adaptation of "Pride and Prejudice"... because why not? Cats are cuter than zombies after all. ;)

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  58. Thank you for the question and the post. I have to admit that I was one of the 'late bloomers' as well. A 'freind' lent me her copy of the VHS tapes of 1995 P&P. I was a young mom, and stole moments to watch them while the girls were sleeping. By the second-to-last tape, I had my husband watching with me. About once a year now, we all sit around and watch the dvd's together, wondering what's going to happen next. Will Lizzy fall for Wickham, or will she finally see his true nature?!?
    Shortly after watching P&P, my mom gave me a gift of four JA novels, and I remember trying to read Emma on the treadmill (as that was the only 'me' time I had with three toddlers running around). That didn't work out so well.
    Later, I read P&P, S&S and Persuasion, as well as re-read Emma. Persuasion is my absolute favorite! I have tried for YEARS (it seems) to get our girls to read the books. Still to no avail.
    Believe it or not, I have made it a personal goal to finish Mysteries of Udolpho before reading Northanger Abbey. I only have 5 chapters left.

    Jane Austen has filled a hole, in my estimation, that has been left from interacting with Society. Getting lost in the world of Jane Austen, be it her books or spin-offs of one kind or another, has helped to restore my faith in humanity (and led me to make witty comments to insipid questions). If only we could live in a world that was filled with civility once again, where manners were appreciated. (However, I like being able to go to the supermarket and get a chicken that I didn't have to pluck myself!)

    I love being lost in the land of Jane Austen; however, my family will just roll their eyes when they see the book cover that I have planted in front of face!
    Thanks for letting me share! ;)

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  59. Thank you for the question and the post. I have to admit that I was one of the 'late bloomers' as well. A 'freind' lent me her copy of the VHS tapes of 1995 P&P. I was a young mom, and stole moments to watch them while the girls were sleeping. By the second-to-last tape, I had my husband watching with me. About once a year now, we all sit around and watch the dvd's together, wondering what's going to happen next. Will Lizzy fall for Wickham, or will she finally see his true nature?!?
    Shortly after watching P&P, my mom gave me a gift of four JA novels, and I remember trying to read Emma on the treadmill (as that was the only 'me' time I had with three toddlers running around). That didn't work out so well.
    Later, I read P&P, S&S and Persuasion, as well as re-read Emma. Persuasion is my absolute favorite! I have tried for YEARS (it seems) to get our girls to read the books. Still to no avail.
    Believe it or not, I have made it a personal goal to finish Mysteries of Udolpho before reading Northanger Abbey. I only have 5 chapters left.

    Jane Austen has filled a hole, in my estimation, that has been left from interacting with Society. Getting lost in the world of Jane Austen, be it her books or spin-offs of one kind or another, has helped to restore my faith in humanity (and led me to make witty comments to insipid questions). If only we could live in a world that was filled with civility once again, where manners were appreciated. (However, I like being able to go to the supermarket and get a chicken that I didn't have to pluck myself!)

    I love being lost in the land of Jane Austen; however, my family will just roll their eyes when they see the book cover that I have planted in front of face!
    Thanks for letting me share! ;)

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  60. Happy Birthday Jane your books still make me smile no matter how many times I have read them, or watch the movies adapted from them some are better then others I might add. I am happy to call myself a Janeite.

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  61. A fanatical Janeite here. I have been reading Jane Austen since I was nine years old. (That is quite a while considering I am now almost 52!) I was introduced to her by two little old British ladies, retired librarians, in the village of Kelsale where we lived for three years when I was a child. My father was in the Air Force and we were stationed in England for three years during the Vietnam War. I was not very happy to move across the world where I had no friends and everything was so very strange. These two ladies, however, had two things that made them irresistible to me. They had two hunter jumpers and a Welsh pony and they had an actual library in their home. They handed me a leather bound copy of Pride and Prejudice and after I read it I knew what I wanted to do. It has been a long road with many detours, but these last few years I have been pursuing a career as a historical romance writer and it is all Jane's fault! Thank you, Jane!

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  62. I became a fan early my sophomore year of high school when handed a shabby copy of Pride and Prejudice. I must say I continue to like it better than any other Austen title. Love your blog!

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  63. Olá a todos os fãs da Jane Austen, no mundo.
    Eu comecei a conhecer pouco a pouco, através do filme Razão e Sensibilidade do diretor Ang Lee e a mini-série Orgulho e Preconceito com o ator Colin Firth cujos capítulos passaram (de uma vez) num domingo, na TV a cabo. Achei a mini-série maravilhosa e só então fui ler os respectivos livros. Mas, ainda não era fã.
    Um dia liguei a TV a cabo e comecei a assistir a um filme (não sabia o nome)e do meio para o final, eu tinha certeza absoluta que a história era da mesma autora...
    Só então me tornei fã de Jane Austen porque as histórias realmente me chamaram a atenção.
    Essas histórias de amor começam sutilmente, sem dar muito crédito de que irá realmente avançar, só com o desenrolar, já quase no final, os personagens descobrem que é realmente aquele grande amor que mudará para sempre as suas vidas...
    Todas essas histórias de amor enchem os nossos corações e nos trazem uma luz de esperança onde todos os casais viverão um grande amor que transmitirão aos seus filhos que se tornarão bons cidadãos que transformarão o mundo num lugar melhor para viver...

    Ah! o filme que vi na TV, depois descobri, era Persuasão... com Ciaram Hinds como Capitão Wentworth...

    Suzana Nozomi Tachibana
    emaildasuzana@yahoo.com.br

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  64. I actually enjoyed the Greer Garson and Lawrence Olivier version of P&P. I watched that movie a long time ago when I was around 13, I think. I'd read the book when I was twelve. I wasn't disappointed in the movie mainly becasue Garson was a fantastic Elizabeth and Olivier was quite a good-looking Darcy!:D

    Having said that, I was very young when I discovered a huge, old tattered copy of P&P in my mother's book self. I'd read a short abridged extract from it when I was around 8 or 9 years old, and was eager to read the real thing. I fell in love with it instantly, and have read it so many, many times! Besides P&P I've read Emma and Persuasion and enjoyed them both as well. I have yet to read the other three, although I watched the Emma Thompson version of Sense & Sensibility and know that I'm going to love this as well!

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  65. I saw the 1995 version of P&P. That was my discovery of Austen. Then I found out the movie was based on a novel, I picked up one and then devoured the rest of her books. I cannot get enough of Jane Austen. It has been a love affair ever since.

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  66. I'm loving this tour of happy birthdays for our dearest Jane!
    The first Jane Austen movie for me was the 1995 version of P&P and since then, I could not stop reading and seeing everything about her and her work.

    Love you, Jane.

    Best wishes from Spain,

    Belén
    otroscuentos@hotmail.es

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  67. I first got to know Jane Austen through reading Pride and Prejudice, the abridged version which my mum took it home from school (she was a science teacher). I was about 12 years old at that time and I enjoyed reading the story (it's like a fairy tale in my eyes) but it has no immediate effect other than that.

    A few years later when I was depressed, my best friend lend me a 3-in-1 novel but I admit I only read Pride and Prejudice was drawn to the story again. Still it did not make me become an addict like now.

    I attribute this phenomena to the P&P 2005 movie which made me want to watch the 1995 BBC miniseries which I've heard so much about and ITV's Jane Austen Season in March 2007. That definitely got me hook to the Austen genre ever since then. And I'm proud to say that I love Austen's oeuvres. Thanks mum for introducing JA to me.

    evangelineace2020(at)yahoo(dot)com

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  68. Happy birthday Jane!
    lovely post! Thanks for joining us in this big event!

    Adriana Zardini

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  69. Happy Birthday, Jane! While I didn't like the Olivier production as much as the others, I didn't dislike it.
    marlenebreakfield(at)yahoo(dot)com

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  70. I have already that kind of information. Thank you!
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