A review by fications_clari
Mansfield Park by Jane Austen

reflective 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? It's complicated

4.25

This may be a controversial opinion, but this is by far my favorite Austen book. Our main character, Fanny Price, is a shy Regency-era Cinderella--sweet, kind, and above all, principled. At a young age, her wealthier aunt and uncle adopt her as an act of charity, and henceforth neglect her and show her marked disrespect (which she bears pretty well, with the help of her beloved cousin Edmund). Years later, two outsiders by the name of Henry and Mary Crawford - a glamorous brother-sister duo from fashionable London - enter the grounds of Mansfield Park and proceed to bring chaos in their wake. Everyone is swept other the Crawfords' spell except Fanny, who watches with shyness and concern and does what she can, up until the point Henry Crawford targets her to trifle with. 

This book probably won't end the way you want it to--in many ways, I'd say it's a tragedy of a failed redemption. But it's a masterpiece of characters, and is probably the book that instilled in me from a young age that it's not my job to 'fix' anyone. I definitely recommend it, but make sure that you know that you're not getting Pride and Prejudice here. Mansfield Park and Fanny Price stand on their own, with a quieter and more refined strength. 
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