Category: Miscellany

Jane Austen's 240th birthday!

12/16/2015

Sketch of Jane Austen

Today, December 16th, is Jane Austen's birthday! She was born in 1775, making 2015 her 240th birthday.

What other famous people does Jane Austen share a birthday with? Among others, Jane Austen shares a birthday with the following:

Catherine of Aragon (1485-1536)
Elizabeth Carter (1717-1806)
Leopold I of Belgium (1790-1865)
Noel Coward (1899-1973)
Margaret Mead (1901-1978)
Philip K. Dick (1928-1982)
Liv Ulmann (1938- )
Steven Bochco (1943- )

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The Secret of the Jane Austen Industry

3/30/2015

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What accounts for Jane Austen’s enduring appeal? A voice with a modern sensibility, says best-selling author Alexander McCall Smith in his piece, "The Secret of the Jane Austen Industry," recently published in The Wall Street Journal.

Secret of the Jane Austen Industry news article

"The poet W.H. Auden said of Sigmund Freud that he was no longer just a person but had become a climate of opinion. That is about as effusive a compliment as one can imagine, and there are very few thinkers or writers who merit it. But one who undoubtedly does is Jane Austen. She is not only a climate of opinion, she is a movement, a mood, a lifestyle, an attitude and, perhaps most tellingly of all, a fridge magnet.

"[. . .] Tolstoy, Dickens and Proust are all remembered, and still read, but they do not have countless fans throughout the world who reread their books each year, who eagerly await the latest television or movie adaptation, who attend conventions in period costume, and who no doubt dream about the heroes and heroines of their novels."

~ Alexander McCall Smith for The Wall Street Journal

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P&P audiobook a bestseller

9/30/2014

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Pride and Prejudice audiobook version cover

The 200th anniversary audiobook edition of Pride and Prejudice, narrated by Alison Larkin, has become an international bestseller and is also nominated for an Audie award.

Visit this link at http://alisonlarkin.com/pride-and-prejudice/ for an audio sample, reviews, and more.

You can also sign up for news and updates about the upcoming audiobook version of Emma, also narrated by Alison Larkin.

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Jane Austen Festival breaks record

9/15/2014

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A very fun article and photo about how the recent Jane Austen Festival in Bath has broken the world record for the largest gathering of people dressed in Regency costume.

Follow the link to read how many people it took to break the world record -- and who had held the previous world record! :)

http://www.theguardian.com/travel/2014/sep/15/-sp-jane-austen-festival-breaks-record-regency-costume

Click image for article and image source. Participants at the Jane Austen festival in Bath broke the world record for the largest gathering of people wearing Regency costume. Photograph: Owen Benson/PR

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Jane Austen's ring to stay in the UK

9/25/2013

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This week, the news broke that Jane Austen's ring will stay in the United Kingdom. Last year, singer Kelly Clarkson bought the ring at auction, but since then, Jane Austen's House Museum has been raising funds to buy back the ring.

More on this story can be found here at BBC News, at http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-hampshire-24209153 and at the House Museum site here at http://www.jane-austens-house-museum.org.uk/ .

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It's official! Jane Austen to grace UK currency

7/24/2013

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There had been rumors circulating, the official news broke today: Jane Austen will become the new face of the 10-pound note in British currency! She will replace Charles Darwin in 2017. The final choice was down to Mark Carney, who is the incoming Bank of England governor.

You can read more about the story here at BBC News, at http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-23424289 , including a video on the public's reaction to the announcement.

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Downton Arby's

2/10/2013

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Can't get enough of Downton Abbey? Then check out Downton Arby's!

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Words to live by

2/6/2013

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Happy Birthday, Jane!

12/16/2012

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Today, December 16, is Jane Austen's birthday! The excerpt reprinted below comes from a special birthday announcement, via email, from our JASNA President Iris Lutz:

Jane Austen was born 237 years ago today: December 16, 1775. As we celebrate her birthday, it's my pleasure to announce that the winter edition of Persuasions On-Line, Vol. 33, No.1 is now posted on the JASNA website as a gift to all her admire her work.

This edition includes selected presentations from the 2012 AGM held in Brooklyn, New York, on the theme of "Sex, Money, and Power in Jane Austen's Fiction." In addition, the Miscellany offers essays on a variety of fascinating topics, as well as Jane Austen bibliographies for 2008 and 2011.

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Shoplifting and Jane Austen's aunt

10/7/2012

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Mrs. Leigh-Perrot. Image @JASA

At our September meeting, Regional Coordinator Kim Higgins mentioned an interesting article online about Jane Austen's aunt, Jane Leigh-Perrot, who had been arrested for shoplifting in August 1799. The article was written by author Paul Emanuelli.

Despite her personal wealth, Jane Leigh-Perrot was arrested for "grand theft," accused of stealing white lace from a shop in Bath. The lace was valued at four times the five shillings that carried the death sentence at that time!

For more on this interesting case, please visit the article, "Law & Order and Jane Austen's Aunt" at the Jane Austen's World web site. The direct link is http://janeaustensworld.wordpress.com/2012/07/24/law-order-and-jane-austens-aunt-by-paul-emanuelli/.

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<<Previous

Jane Austen's 240th birthday!

The Secret of the Jane Austen Industry

P&P audiobook a bestseller

Jane Austen Festival breaks record

Jane Austen's ring to stay in the UK

It's official! Jane Austen to grace UK currency

Downton Arby's

Words to live by

Happy Birthday, Jane!

Shoplifting and Jane Austen's aunt

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