The List-Lover’s Guide to Jane Austen is a quick, easy reference guide for all things Jane Austen. When you enter a JA trivia quiz, you can quickly become an expert by looking up the books Jane read, her #1 pet peeve, the people in her social circle, the balls she attended, who broke her heart and the hearts she broke, etc.
Joan Strasbaugh has created the first-ever list-only biography! Written mostly in 140 characters or less, this volume is jam-packed with information presented as lists or charts.
- The flowers in her garden
- Her royal ancestors
- Particulars about her wardrobe
- What she did for fun
- Characters in her book
- Where she traveled
- The items she possessed
- Where she worshipped
- Where she lived and shopped
- Contemporary descriptions of her features
The lists go on and on. (Click here for a view inside the book). The book provides a comprehensive overview of her life. Nieces and nephews born after she died are not listed, and places her friends or family may have traveled (but there’s no evidence she did) are not included. The lists do include friends’ and relatives’ firsthand accounts and reminiscences from neighbors and people who crossed her path.
Four out of five Regency tea cups
My impressions of this book are positive. Any time I need to review a fact, I can turn to it and quickly find the information. The cover is attractive but I found the print a bit hard to read. This book will be helpful to Janeites, teachers, students, authors, and anyone interested in the Regency era. I give it 4 out of 5 Regency teacups.
About the Author
Joan Strasbaugh has been a proud Janeite for half of her life. She now works as the senior editor of Abbeville Press in New York, and notably organized the Jane Austen in the 21st Century Humanities Festival at the University of Wisconsin. She is currently spearheading the A former publisher at Jones Books, Strasbaugh also holds a membership to the Jane Austen Society of North America.
The biggest surprise in putting this book together was discovering the sheer number of social contacts, places visited, and characters in her books. Her social circle was enormous and her travels many, mirrored in her novels by the sixty plus characters and forty plus locations in Sense and Sensibility, for starters.
About the contest: (NOTE: Contest closed! The winners are – Cara D. , Anne F., Tess G., Lilyane S., and Alison M. Congratulations all and thank you for participating in this contest. The winners were drawn with random number generator. (Long discussions between two individuals were not included.) One of you entered the first day of the contest, and someone entered on the last day. Amazing.
Sourcebooks has agreed to give out 5 copies of the book. Yes, 5! To enter the contest, please share what information you’d like to know about Jane Austen. Contest ends June 9th at midnight!
List Lover’s Guide to Jane Austen by Joan Strasbaugh, released this month.
June 4th, 2013, ISBN 9781402282034, Trade Paperback
$12.99 U.S. / £8.99 UK
Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.
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