Category Archives: Miscellaneous

At first I wasn’t entirely convinced by the need for this book. It seemed to be jumping on the Austen band wagon. A bit like Pride and Prejudice and Zombies. However, having read it I am convinced it belongs in the library of all Austen fans.

It is split into 12 chapters ordered in the same sequence as a ball. That is, learning to dance, dressing for the ball, getting to and from a ball, etc.

The chapters are then further divided into a section on the novels, a section on Austen’s personal experience and some interesting historical detail.

For example, did you know James Austen improved his dancing as a method of securing a second wife or that gloves were always worn?

What Ms Fullerton does particularly well is to analyse the dance scenes in the novels.

For example, describing the assembly ball in Northanger Abbey

In fact, Jane Austen describes the crowd as a ‘mob’, requiring Catherine and her chaperone Mrs Allen to make their way through all its possible dangers (such risks as damaged finery and dresses ‘torn asunder’) with ‘necessary caution’ and ‘continued exertion of strength and ingenuity’. The rooms are so packed that Catherine cannot even get a proper view of them to search out handsome young men as potential partners. All she can see are the high feathers on the tops of ladies’ heads. The two women have to squeeze out for tea, get wearied by ‘being continually pressed by’ people and, worst of all, she finds no partner. She goes to a ball and she does not dance a single dance! The event is presented by Jane Austen with light irony as a form of ‘imprisonment’ and near-torture. Just as Gothic heroines in the fiction Catherine loves to read are locked away and ill-treated in dungeons, so Catherine is trapped and pressed by this assembly ball crowd.

This book is beautifully presented and the illustrations are lovely.

More reviews …

http://janeaustensworld.wordpress.com/2012/09/15/a-dance-with-jane-austen-by-susannah-fullerton-a-review/

http://austenprose.com/2012/10/13/a-dance-with-jane-austen-by-susannah-fullerton-a-review/

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Tagged as a dance with jane austen, susannah fullerton

February 8, 2013 · 9:30 pm

Frederica – Georgette Heyer

I like Georgette Heyer novels (here is one I read earlier and here). They’re fun and a quick read and obviously well-researched. However, sometimes that research can get in the way – all of those regency expressions can get annoying.

Here is what Georgette Heyer wrote to her publisher about Fredrica …

Where was I? Oh, yes! DRIP FOR THE TRADE! Here you are! This book, written in Miss Heyer’s lightest vein, is the story of the adventures in Regency London of the Merriville family: Frederica, riding the whirlwind and directing the storm; Harry, rusticated from Oxford, and embarking with enthusiasm on the more perilous amusements pursued by young gentleman of the ton; the divine Charis, too tenderhearted to discourage the advances of her numerous suiters; Jessamy, destined for the church, and wavering, in adolescent style, between excessive virtue and a natural exuberance of spirits; and Felix, a schoolboy with a passion for scientific experiment. In Frederica, Miss Heyer has created one of her most engaging heroines, and in the Marquis of Alverstoke, a bored cynic who becomes involved in all the imbroglios of a lively family, a hero whose sense of humour makes him an excellent foil for Frederica.

The Private World of Georgette Heyer – Jane Aiken Hodge

Lord Alverstoke is definitely a Mark 11 hero – Suave, well-dressed, rich and a famous whip. The Merrivilles are a distant connection and when Frederica asks him to help her launch Charis into the world of the ton he agrees to help because it will annoy his sisters. He is bored with his life – all of those people ‘toadying’ and find the Merriville’s refreshing. He rescues them all from many scrapes (some very contrived) and a long the way falls in love with Frederica (because she, of course, hasn’t tried to attract his attention).

This book is full of regency detail – clothes, carriages, social life, medical treatment, which make it an interesting read. I can’t think of anyone else who writes regency romances like Georgette Heyer.

I wouldn’t go so far as to say lovers of Austen will also like Heyer, but I am sure there is a substantial intersection.

More reviews …

http://austenprose.com/2010/08/29/frederica-by-georgette-heyer-–-a-review/

http://janeaustensworld.wordpress.com/2009/01/23/frederica-by-georgette-heyer-a-review/

http://bestfriends-books.blogspot.com.au/2011/02/book-review-frederica-by-georgette.html

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Filed under Miscellaneous, Regency Romance

Tagged as frederica, georgette heyer, heyer georgette

October 17, 2012 · 2:18 am

Jane Austen – The Unseen Portrait?

If you live in Australia, you can watch a documentary about this (possible) portrait of Jane Austen at SBS on demand (I only found it today so there isn’t much time left). It was very fascinating and well worth watching.

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October 11, 2012 · 1:52 am

Jane Austen Puzzle

I like doing jigsaw puzzles although as I get a bit obsessed 500 pieces is perfect for me.

I bought this one from the JASA regency fair, but you can get a similar one from here.

It is 500 pieces and the quotes (from various Austen novels) make it quite easy to do – it is much easier to match words that make sentences than different bits of pink or grey!

I found the edge the hardest bit to do – I like to put the edge together first – it had a pattern and it was difficult to work out which bit went where.

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August 29, 2012 · 2:22 am