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laila4343's review against another edition
3.0
The way the book is structured is intriguing. Each chapter uses an item from Austen's life (her brother's military hat, a portable laptop writing desk, a card of lace) as the jumping off point for an exploration of her life and writing. Some chapters worked better than others (I loved the royalty cheque one - so interesting to learn how her works were published and her delight at earning money.) Very detailed, well-researched, but non-fiction is not my first love and it seemed to take a long time to finish this one.
amibunk's review against another edition
4.0
I love how the author choses an item or personal belonging of Ms. Austen's, along with letters and known facts, and then, using text from Jane's own novels, extrapolates and derives further knowledge of her life. While Ms. Byrne's conclusions cannot be acknowledged as absolute fact, she weaves convincing arguments that feel true and intimate.
I found the book lovely, especially in smaller doses when the tone comes across as romantic and emotional rather than scholarly or bookish.
I found the book lovely, especially in smaller doses when the tone comes across as romantic and emotional rather than scholarly or bookish.
roomforastory's review against another edition
3.0
For the hardcore Jane Austen fan only, which I'm not sure if I am after this book. Everything you wanted to know (and a few things that maybe you didn't) about Jane Austen's life.
hawks_quill's review against another edition
3.0
This could have been a truly engaging, excellent book if it only had a better editor. The beginning chapters were the weakest and I considered giving up on this book several times, because it didn't seem to be about Jane Austen at all, but a loose collection of stories about people Jane Austen knew.
It eventually gets much more relevant and there are some interesting insights, although a few farfetched claims and several poorly written passages. On the whole, the most interesting chapters were about Austen's fondness for theater, her juvenilia notebooks, and her thoughts about publishing (and profiting from) her own works.
However, I am overall not happy with the methodology and structure of the book. Most of the "objects" described in the book were not actually owned or sometimes explicitly seen by Jane Austen. I was expecting a closely drawn object biography, using objects Austen owned and used to draw conclusions about her life. Instead, this was a loose collection of amusing stories for which Byrne shoe-horned in random objects that really had little to do with Jane Austen or her books. It seemed like a trendy afterthought to make the book more interesting than a serious historiographical endeavor.
My other complaints:
1) Because the book is not chronological in any way, a timeline is needed - and not just for Austen's life, but for her family members and social circle. Sometimes it was hard to keep track of which Elizas and Cassandras were still alive, who was in Bath and who was at sea, etc.
2) Byrne has a very strange and condescending attitude towards people with disabilities. Byrne devotes several long passages to two people Jane Austen knew who lived with disabilities, for reasons unclear - it had nothing to do with any of the objects or specific anecdotes being discussed. The language she uses to describe these people, like "poor little George," are bewildering in their offensiveness, because they are utterly unnecessary.
3) Byrne's preference for Mansfield Park comes through strongly, and most of the examples in the book are from Mansfield Park. She is clearly in the minority of people who favor MP, and might have added a few more relevant examples from the other books to make the book more appealing to most Austen readers.
It eventually gets much more relevant and there are some interesting insights, although a few farfetched claims and several poorly written passages. On the whole, the most interesting chapters were about Austen's fondness for theater, her juvenilia notebooks, and her thoughts about publishing (and profiting from) her own works.
However, I am overall not happy with the methodology and structure of the book. Most of the "objects" described in the book were not actually owned or sometimes explicitly seen by Jane Austen. I was expecting a closely drawn object biography, using objects Austen owned and used to draw conclusions about her life. Instead, this was a loose collection of amusing stories for which Byrne shoe-horned in random objects that really had little to do with Jane Austen or her books. It seemed like a trendy afterthought to make the book more interesting than a serious historiographical endeavor.
My other complaints:
1) Because the book is not chronological in any way, a timeline is needed - and not just for Austen's life, but for her family members and social circle. Sometimes it was hard to keep track of which Elizas and Cassandras were still alive, who was in Bath and who was at sea, etc.
2) Byrne has a very strange and condescending attitude towards people with disabilities. Byrne devotes several long passages to two people Jane Austen knew who lived with disabilities, for reasons unclear - it had nothing to do with any of the objects or specific anecdotes being discussed. The language she uses to describe these people, like "poor little George," are bewildering in their offensiveness, because they are utterly unnecessary.
3) Byrne's preference for Mansfield Park comes through strongly, and most of the examples in the book are from Mansfield Park. She is clearly in the minority of people who favor MP, and might have added a few more relevant examples from the other books to make the book more appealing to most Austen readers.
laura_skel's review against another edition
4.0
This is the first biography of Jane Austens life that I have read and I found it really interesting. Unlike other biographies it is not in chronological order instead it is divided in to chapters focusing on different aspects of Austens life. The author uses items connected to Austens life as a starting point for each chapter, each chapter focuses on different forces in her life and how they shaped her and moreover her writing.
If you have not read all of Austens six completed novels, a lot of this book will be lost on you as the author constantly refers to sections in the different books to show the relevance of what she is saying. She also regularly refers to Austens juvenilia writings and her uncompleted works.
Anyone looking for a straight forward chronological account of Austens life should look elsewhere, as this book skips forward and backward in her life from chapter to chapter. however if you just want to know more about Austen and are not worried about keeping dates straight in your head I highly recommend this book.
If you have not read all of Austens six completed novels, a lot of this book will be lost on you as the author constantly refers to sections in the different books to show the relevance of what she is saying. She also regularly refers to Austens juvenilia writings and her uncompleted works.
Anyone looking for a straight forward chronological account of Austens life should look elsewhere, as this book skips forward and backward in her life from chapter to chapter. however if you just want to know more about Austen and are not worried about keeping dates straight in your head I highly recommend this book.
hdavitz's review
informative
lighthearted
reflective
slow-paced
5.0
this book has so many details about jane austen's life i never knew. not just a recount of her life that paints her in a nice picture. analyzes clues from her letters and novels to provide insight about her as a person and her life. truly "a life in small things"