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The Jane Austen Book Club

A Novel

By Karen Joy Fowler

(149)

| Paperback | 9780452286535

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Book Description

The Extraordinary New York Times Bestseller

In California’s central valley, five women and one man join to discuss Jane Austen’s novels. Over the six months they get together, marriages are tested, affairs begin, unsuitable arrangements become suitable, and love happenContinue

The Extraordinary New York Times Bestseller

In California’s central valley, five women and one man join to discuss Jane Austen’s novels. Over the six months they get together, marriages are tested, affairs begin, unsuitable arrangements become suitable, and love happens. With her eye for the frailties of human behavior and her ear for the absurdities of social intercourse, Karen Joy Fowler has never been wittier nor her characters more appealing. The result is a delicious dissection of modern relationships.

Dedicated Austenites will delight in unearthing the echoes of Austen that run through the novel, but most readers will simply enjoy the vision and voice that, despite two centuries of separation, unite two great writers of brilliant social comedy.

Critics

  • An altogether bad idea

    The Jane Austen Book Club by Karen Joy Fowler 288pp, Penguin, £12.99 You can see where Karen Joy Fowler got the idea for this novel, because she shows you. Near the end of this book she includes excerpts from the "opinions" of family and friends that ... (read full critics)

    guardian.co.uk published on Sat, 25 Sep 2010

  • Don't pick this one for next month, ladies

    The Jane Austen Book Club by Karen Joy Fowler Viking £12.99, pp304 In America, this novel has been a huge hit and very well reviewed to boot. 'Exquisite,' raved one critic. 'That rare book that reminds us what reading is all about.' But I read this v ... (read full critics)

    guardian.co.uk published on Sat, 25 Sep 2010

7 Reviews

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  • 1 person find this helpful

    This is a story about 5 women and 1 man on how they get together to discuss Jane Austen's books and how their lives evolve.

    The idea about how great literature could affect our lives, is interesting. However, the book is written in the style of old ladies' nagging - lots of irrelevant details ... (continue)

    This is a story about 5 women and 1 man on how they get together to discuss Jane Austen's books and how their lives evolve.

    The idea about how great literature could affect our lives, is interesting. However, the book is written in the style of old ladies' nagging - lots of irrelevant details about side characters, just like how your grandma would tell you about the neighbor's son's colleague's cousin's aunt's daughter's lover's childhood. (Really, I couldn't care less about these side characters who have nothing to do with the main plot!)

    Unfortunately the plot isn't great either. The main charactors do evolve but it is not clear if the evolvement has anything to do with Jane Austen's "literature". ("Literature" is not the same as "books.") Inspite of the tedious conversion on how much they loved Austen, it seems that the only actual function of Jane Austen is that her "books" brought these characters together into a book club.

    I only had to finish the book because I paid 8 pounds for it. I definitely won't recommend this book to anyone.

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    material girl said on Jun 7, 2008 | Add your feedback

  • 1 person find this helpful

    The Jane Austen Book Club

    This book seems to draw mixed reviews however I found it funny and enjoyable. To be fair I must also say that I enjoyed the movie much more than the book. I found it easier to connect with the characters in the movie and preferred the resolutions developed for the movie over the ones in the book.

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    Readingrat said on Mar 27, 2008 | Add your feedback

  • One of the few exceptions: when movies are hundred times better than the books. I don't want ruin my love for Jane Austen and for the Jane Austen book club movie :/

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    ninnilovesmay said on Jan 22, 2012 about the Hardcover edition | Add your feedback

  • Sylvia was not a happy-ending sort of person herself. In book, yes, they were lovely. But in life everyone has the same ending, and the only question is who will get to it first

    E' il sogno di ogni Janeite partecipare ad un book-club durante il quale discutere sulla trama, sui personaggi, ... (continue)

    Sylvia was not a happy-ending sort of person herself. In book, yes, they were lovely. But in life everyone has the same ending, and the only question is who will get to it first

    E' il sogno di ogni Janeite partecipare ad un book-club durante il quale discutere sulla trama, sui personaggi, sui romanzi di Jane Austen. E così, nel romanzo di Karen Joy Fowler, ogni mese, cinque donne di età e di temperamento diverso e un uomo appassionato di science-fiction si riuniscono e di volta in volta stabiliscono su quale romanzo vertere la discussione. Se di discussione si può parlare, perché questa è una della pecche del romanzo della Fowlet: la quasi totale assenza dei romanzi di Jane Austen, che fungono da pretesto per approfondire il passato, il background dei componenti del book-club. Ciascun capitolo, infatti, richiama il romanzo corrispondente di Jane Austen in relazione, soprattutto, al componente del book-club che ne parla. In alcuni capitoli, però, il fil rouge che lega il romanzo alla storia del personaggio non sempre è evidente e riconoscibile in una prima lettura. Personalmente ho apprezzato due capitoli: il primo in cui si affronta il romanzo Northanger Abbey ; in questo caso la relazione si evince nella vicenda particolare che Grigg ha vissuto da adolescente che richiama le storie gotiche, oggetto di parodia della Austen nel romanzo su citato. Il secondo capitolo è quello in cui si affronta il romanzo Persuasion ; in questo caso si affronta il tema della seconda possibilità: come si dà una seconda possibilità alla storia d'amore tra Anne e Wentworth così Sylvia decide di dare una seconda chance al marito. La storia comunque nel complesso è piacevole e scritta in un inglese abbastanza comprensibile.

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    Annylisa84 said on May 13, 2011 | Add your feedback

  • Inscribed by the author, "For Becky, With appreciation for all your help, Yours, Karen" Also signed by the author under her name on the title page.

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    Becky said on Nov 10, 2008 about the Hardcover edition | Add your feedback

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9780452286535 Paperback $14.00 $11.97 bn.com
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