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madisondelaney13's review against another edition
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
chrisrin's review against another edition
4.0
I really enjoyed this book, this is the second time I have read it and I believe that each re-reading deepens my appreciation for the novel. If you enjoy Jane Austen you will enjoy this book, and if you haven't read Jane Austen before this is a worthy candidate to pick up.
katymaryreads's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
lerawr's review against another edition
emotional
funny
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
miki514's review against another edition
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
asmallgremlin's review against another edition
funny
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Mansfield Park is an interesting book to read in comparison to Austen’s other works. I’ve read Persuasion, Pride and Prejudice, half of Emma, and Northanger Abbey, and these are ostensibly romances at their core, with social & behavioural commentary embedded throughout. Mansfield Park is not a romance at its core - rather it is a book concerning the growing-up of Fanny Price - a young girl taken from her poor family at the age to ten to live with her rich uncle and aunt and cousins at the great Mansfield Park. In this book Austen focuses less on romance and more on the commentary of various aspects of the world she lived in - such as the state of religion & the church, the ethics of taking a child away from their family for ‘their own good’, morality, and the importance of good manners & knowing your place. Austen also discusses adultery, which is a rare theme for her books.
Fanny Price is an interesting and complex protagonist, at times infuriating and also deeply sympathetic. She is a character who has consistently been told she is lesser than, that she should be grateful for her good fortune in being placed with her aunt and uncle, her social position is very precarious, as she is technically lower in status than her cousins but she is raised alongside them. Fanny is viewed by others as mild, gentle, shy, quiet, while the reader gains an insight into her inner thoughts and feelings, she is a deeply moral & loving young woman with a good sense of propriety and wanting to please people. She believes that her good fortune could be very easily taken away from her, something which she is reminded about consistently by her aunt Mrs Norris (I hate her!). She has very few allies in Mansfield, save for her cousin Edmund and later the Baronet himself (sort of). Fanny is a fascinating depiction of a lonely young woman who does not know she needs company, since she has become used to solitude, and a character who overcomes people’s conceived notions of how she should behave to find her own happiness.
Aside from Fanny, the other characters are all excellently drawn. I enjoyed the rakish Henry Crawford and his kind but materialistic sister Mary. I liked Fanny’s frivolous cousins Julia and Mary, and I liked Edmund as a male hero to Fanny’s heroine. I disliked the Baronet and his wife, and I hated Mrs Norris.
This book was interesting and entertaining, and I enjoyed reading this very different Austen book.
Fanny Price is an interesting and complex protagonist, at times infuriating and also deeply sympathetic. She is a character who has consistently been told she is lesser than, that she should be grateful for her good fortune in being placed with her aunt and uncle, her social position is very precarious, as she is technically lower in status than her cousins but she is raised alongside them. Fanny is viewed by others as mild, gentle, shy, quiet, while the reader gains an insight into her inner thoughts and feelings, she is a deeply moral & loving young woman with a good sense of propriety and wanting to please people. She believes that her good fortune could be very easily taken away from her, something which she is reminded about consistently by her aunt Mrs Norris (I hate her!). She has very few allies in Mansfield, save for her cousin Edmund and later the Baronet himself (sort of). Fanny is a fascinating depiction of a lonely young woman who does not know she needs company, since she has become used to solitude, and a character who overcomes people’s conceived notions of how she should behave to find her own happiness.
Aside from Fanny, the other characters are all excellently drawn. I enjoyed the rakish Henry Crawford and his kind but materialistic sister Mary. I liked Fanny’s frivolous cousins Julia and Mary, and I liked Edmund as a male hero to Fanny’s heroine. I disliked the Baronet and his wife, and I hated Mrs Norris.
This book was interesting and entertaining, and I enjoyed reading this very different Austen book.
elizwiggs's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
relaxing
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
3.0
lucygwrites's review against another edition
4.0
I liked the poetic flow of this one but most of the action happened at the end. It would be three stars if I hadn’t found entertainment in the way it was written.