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A review by lora_h
Jane Austen, the Secret Radical by Helena Kelly
5.0
This book was given to me for Christmas, & as soon as I saw the title, I said, 'Not a very well kept secret.' The gift giver pointed out that when Jane Austen is mentioned, many people think Colin Firth in a wet shirt.
Fair enough. And once I started reading, it became evident how little I knew about her radicalism.
Helena Kelly analyses Austen's 6 published novels by submerging them in their historical era (both when first printed & when originally written), explaining Austen's meticulous language choices, & setting forth the social/legal (are you a treasonous writer?)/moral barriers Austen faced not simply as an early 19th century author, but as a female author.
Considering what information it covers, this book is incredibly reader friendly. Kelly writes complex 19th century societal issues with such clarity, they become the most fascinating & easy to read aspects of the book. She expects her reader to know the novels' plots & characters, giving the barest of synopses, but any of her readers can find plenty of online sources for Austen's plots.
The only criticism I have for Kelly is her fascination with Austen's word choice. No doubt that Austen is a master wordsmith, but Kelly recites how many times certain words are used in one novel as compared to how many times the same word is used in the other 5. By this, I mean she says, word X appears 245 times in novel A as compared to 7 times in novel B. Frequently, after giving these numbers, Kelly then asks why Austen made those decisions instead of others - radical, you think? Hmm? Hmm? Hmm?????? I periodically had to remind myself this was scholastic debate, not conspiracy theory. (And to be clear, nothing Kelly suggests is in the least bit unhinged.)
Kelly did use plot in Pride & Prejudice (& to a much lesser extent in Emma) to further illustrate her perspective on just how radical Austen was. This gave me a broader appreciation of both novels (& a little bit of horror at Mr Knightly's character). I would've loved her to address the plot of all Austen's novels.
The last sentence of Kelly's book is, Read them again. Many of her readers will be inspired to do just that.
Fair enough. And once I started reading, it became evident how little I knew about her radicalism.
Helena Kelly analyses Austen's 6 published novels by submerging them in their historical era (both when first printed & when originally written), explaining Austen's meticulous language choices, & setting forth the social/legal (are you a treasonous writer?)/moral barriers Austen faced not simply as an early 19th century author, but as a female author.
Considering what information it covers, this book is incredibly reader friendly. Kelly writes complex 19th century societal issues with such clarity, they become the most fascinating & easy to read aspects of the book. She expects her reader to know the novels' plots & characters, giving the barest of synopses, but any of her readers can find plenty of online sources for Austen's plots.
The only criticism I have for Kelly is her fascination with Austen's word choice. No doubt that Austen is a master wordsmith, but Kelly recites how many times certain words are used in one novel as compared to how many times the same word is used in the other 5. By this, I mean she says, word X appears 245 times in novel A as compared to 7 times in novel B. Frequently, after giving these numbers, Kelly then asks why Austen made those decisions instead of others - radical, you think? Hmm? Hmm? Hmm?????? I periodically had to remind myself this was scholastic debate, not conspiracy theory. (And to be clear, nothing Kelly suggests is in the least bit unhinged.)
Kelly did use plot in Pride & Prejudice (& to a much lesser extent in Emma) to further illustrate her perspective on just how radical Austen was. This gave me a broader appreciation of both novels (& a little bit of horror at Mr Knightly's character). I would've loved her to address the plot of all Austen's novels.
The last sentence of Kelly's book is, Read them again. Many of her readers will be inspired to do just that.