Our next reading group discussion is set for March 11, 2012 @ 1pm (see our 2012 Events page). The topic is Austen's novel Persuasion. 

LOCATION CHANGE:
Please note that our March discussion group will now be hosted by member Kathleen McCann. Our regional Secretary Janet Rohrbaugh was originally scheduled as host but is unable to do it in March, so Kathleen has graciously filled in. THANKS KATHLEEN! Please RSVP directly to Kathleen if you can come. For contact info, please see our Contacts page. 

DISCUSSION POINTS TO PONDER:
Our discussion leaders Kate Lozano and Jennifer Snoek-Brown have given us some words to ponder before we gather to share our thoughts of Persuasion:

One of the novel's major themes is remembrance, as well as reevaluating one's reactions, outlook, and/or character over time. So as you read -- or reread -- Persuasion, please keep the following in mind:

• If you are re-reading the novel, are your reactions different this time around? How do your thoughts compare to the first time, or the most recent time, you read Persuasion?
• If it's your first time reading Persuasion, what are your initial personal reactions? Does the novel make you think back on pivotal moments in your own life?

Here are some more online resources regarding Persuasion, for your own perusal and amusement:

• Study guide to Persuasion online, http://faculty.gvsu.edu/websterm/Austen.htm
• Map of locations -- actual and fictional -- in the world of Persuasion, http://www.jasna.org/info/images/map-pers-1200.jpg
• E-text version of Persuasion, including watercolor illustrations and tined line drawings from the 1090 edition,http://www.mollands.net/etexts/persuasion/index.html
• Persuasion resources on the JASNA Vermont site, http://janeausteninvermont.wordpress.com/persuasion/

Elsa Solender, former JASNA president, is the author of a new Jane Austen-related book, Jane Austen in Love: An Entertainment. The book is currently available as an Amazon Kindle e-book. Here is a description of the book from the JASNA Vermont region's site:

"Solender’s sub-title of “An Entertainment” clearly states what this book is about – a fanciful confection of Jane Austen in love, where we are given a birds-eye view of episodes in her childhood, intimate moments with her sister, her family, and friends; an imaginary take on her feelings for Tom Lefroy; her 1-day engagement to Harris Bigg-Wither; and the fateful meeting with the rumored and wished-for ‘Gentleman suitor of the seaside’ –  part real, part imaginary, and part straight from Austen’s own fiction, all beautifully woven together into this tribute to love in the life of Jane Austen."

There is an extensive interview with Solender on the JASNA Vermont region's site, plus an opportunity to enter a drawing to win a free download of the e-book. If you don't have a Kindle, then the winner will be sent a print copy of Chawton House Library's Dancing with Mr. Darcy.

The deadline to enter the giveaway is 11:59 pm, Sunday, March 4, 2012. Worldwide eligibility!

Tonight, Sunday, Feb. 19 marks the Season 2 finale of Downton Abbey. We're in for a 2-hour finale on PBS (!), so please check your local listings. 

And if you aren't able to catch the finale, you can also catch up online. The PBS Masterpiece website posts the episodes online for a limited time period after their original TV airing. There are lots more videos, excerpts, character guides, and interviews online, as well, for all things Downton Abbey!

Daydreaming of the Big Apple and the upcoming AGM in New York? You can get a taste of what's in store at the 2012 AGM, Sex, Money and Power in Jane Austen's Fiction, October 5-7, 2012, in this preview video, "New York at Jane Austen's Feet," provided by the JASNA New York Metropolitan Region. So charming! 

Click the image to view the preview video on the 2012 AGM website.

For more info, please visit our 2012 Events page.

Jane Austen is included in this slideshow of analyzing writers' personalities from their handwritten manuscripts. Their insights into Austen's personality?

"The slight right slant suggests a writer who is 'compliant' and 'outgoing.' The long lower loops on her letters indicate a 'strong physical drive,' and the defined left margin shows her to have a strong interest in her future, indicating one who is ambitious and 'socially oriented.' Kind of like a lady who would spend all her time writing novels about social events."


It's interesting to note that this handwriting analysis comes from Austen's "Plan of a Novel, according to hints from various sources," written in 1816. She wrote this satiric parody of incorporating "helpful" advice from others, after meeting with the Prince Regent's librarian, who had strongly hinted that she dedicate her forthcoming novel, Emma, to the Prince. 

The complete e-text of her "Plan of a Novel" can be found online here at Pemberley.com.

From your friendly web manager... thanks again for all the great feedback on our new web site! To celebrate the first month, January 2012, of our web site, here are some statistics:

• 1,411 page views*
  
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Via Janet Rohrbaugh and Kim Higgins... exciting news about upcoming theater performances of Persuasion at the Ainsworth House.

There will be a two stage performances of Persuasion, written by Jane Austen and adapted by Jennifer Le Blanc, at the Ainsworth House in SE Portland on Saturday, March 10th at 7pm and on Sunday, March 11th at 5pm. Expect to see fellow Janeites in attendance! A perfect combination of theater, Jane Austen, and the coming spring season.

Limited parlor seating. Reserve at:  info@cerimonhouse.org

Click here for directions to Ainsworth House: http://www.ainsworthhouse.net/custom.html  

For more info, please see http://www.cerimonhouse.org/ainsworth-austen/

Featuring: Dawn Lisell, Brenda Hubbard, Sascha Blocker, Gemma Whelan, Jennifer Le Blanc, Amanda Soden, Cassie Skauge, Gilberto Martin del Campo, David Bodin, Joel Morello, Paul Susi, Rollin Carlson, Kevin Yell (and more!). Directed by Randall Stuart, with sceneography by award-winning costume designer Sarah Gahagan.

Thanks to Janet Rohrbaugh, our Regional Secretary, for forwarding on the news about a new online Regency magazine called The Belletrist. The following comes direct from the magazine's Editori-in-Chief, Sarah Bernsdorff:

The Regency Society of America, a non-profit group dedicated to all aspects of the Regency, has come together to create The Belletrist Magazine.

The Belletrist, volunteer made, will be available for free on Issuu.com, quarterly. Articles covering history, decorum, and fashion, as well as activities for kids, will be open to any who wish to view it.

Though The Belletrist has been put together by the Regency Society of America, we welcome readers and volunteers no matter their organization, and would like to give to you the opportunity to subscribe to the magazine before our maiden publication March 2nd.

There are two ways to subscribe:

1. “Like” our Facebook page. By liking our page, not only will you get the link to the magazine as soon as it is available, but you will also get updates leading up to our publication and a list of merchants from across the continent that we have “Liked”.
2. Send an e-mail, subject line Subscribe, to our e-mail address thebelletristmagazine@yahoo.com. When the magazine is made available we will send you a link. Your e-mail will remain private and we will send no spam. Unsubscribing is easy and can be done at any time.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact the magazine.