The Jane Austen Book Club

Book Description

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

8 Reviews

• 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.

  Is this helpful?

  material girl said on Jun 7, 2008 about the Paperback edition | 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.

  Is this helpful?

  Readingrat said on Mar 27, 2008 about the Paperback edition | Add your feedback

• Here complete texts of the works of Jane Austen:

  http://austen.letteraturaoperaomnia.org/

  Is this helpful?

  Letteratura OperaOmnia said on May 23, 2012 about the Paperback edition | 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 :/

  Is this helpful?

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

• 

  http://viuillegeix.wordpress.com/2010/06/16/the-jane-au…

  Is this helpful?

  Viu I Llegeix said on Aug 17, 2010 about the Paperback edition | Add your feedback

• 

  a very calm book. ordinary people, ordinary lives and suddenly you find yourself inside the story, as if you, also, were part of the club ^_^
  this is the magic of both Jane Austen and K.J. Fowler (it reminded me of Joyce's "The Dead", in this)

  Is this helpful?

  Chiara L'Onironauta said on Sep 8, 2009 about the Hardcover edition | Add your feedback

See all 8 comments

Book Details

• Rating:
  (152)
  • 5 stars
  • 4 stars
  • 3 stars
  • 2 stars
  • 1 star
• English Books
• Audio CD
• ISBN-10: 1593160275
• ISBN-13: 9781593160272
• Publisher: Listen & Live Audio
• Pub date: Mar 26, 2004
• Dimensions: 1032 mm x 774 mm x 194 mm Just how big is that?
• Also available as: Mass Market Paperback, Paperback and Hardcover
• In other languages: other languages 繁體書, 和書, Livres Français, Deutsche Bücher, Libros en Español, Libri Italiani

Improve data of this book

Groups with this in collection

• For Fans of Jane Austen and Those Inspired by Her (23)
• Totally Teen Fiction (64)
• The Collective (146)
• NY Times Notable Book Club (482)
• 50 Book Challenge! (866)

Prices Change currency & sellers

ISBN	Edition	List	Sale	Seller
9781593160272	Audio CD	$34.95	$29.88	bn.com
		$34.95	--	The Book Depository
Other editions →
+ 6 copies tradable: 1 in USA →