Jane Austen July 2025 discussion

A thread to discuss all your TBR plans . . .

I'll finalise my tbr when the prompts are announced, but I am hoping to get finish Love & Freindship & Mansfield Park by Austen and hope to read The Mysteries of Udplpho by Radcliffe that Catherine reads in Northanger Abbey!

I’m going to try to reread all six of her main novels this year and do a series of rankings (plot- leading lady- love interest etc…) to determine once and for all which one is truly my favorite. I think there may be a different book winner for each category!

I plan to read Emma and the group reads Pride and Prejudice and Lady Susan. I will also read Miss Austen and either Pride or Jane Fairfax. I am not 100% sure yet on the other readings and movies yet.

My library TBR list. I will choose some of these

Jane Austen's Table: Recipes Inspired by the Works of Jane Austen

Sanditon

Reading Austen in America

Not Just Jane: Rediscovering Seven Amazing Women Writers Who Transformed British Literature

Only a Novel: The Double Life of Jane Austen

The Sense and Sensibility Screenplay and Diaries: Bringing Jane Austen's Novel to Film

Jane Austen's Charlotte: Her Fragment of a Last Novel, Completed by Julia Barrett

The Pemberley Chronicles

Mansfield Park: An Annotated Edition

Jane Austen's Transatlantic Sister: The Life and Letters of Fanny Palmer Austen

Jane's Fame: How Jane Austen Conquered the World

Captain Wentworth's Persuasion: Jane Austen's Classic Retold Through His Eyes

Movie adaptation:
Mansfield Park (1986)

I'm now wishing I'd saved my Interlibrary loan request for Scottish Chiefs by Jane Porter for July instead of May.
I'll be reading Pride and Prejudice, possibly Lady Susa.
Either Pride or The Murder of Mr. Whickham if it becomes available at the library in time.
I'll rewatch the Lizzie Bennett diaries, reread Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters.
I think for nonfiction I'll read a book on Regency Fashion, and for a contemporary either something by Sir Walter Scott or Mysteries of Udolpho.
Granted I'm a whim reader and my library holds never end, so these are more like guidelines and subject to change.

I was given the Nokes JA bio, as they were removing it from the library list, by my favorite
librarian a couple 2 or 3 yrs ago. Alas, she's moved on to a bigger branch. I slow reread Tomlin
w a JASNA group over the winter. We all thought
she made too many wild speculations. A Janeite online friend, who knew Nokes, told me his book makes more wild speculations than Tomlin. So, I'll try to buckle down in July and read Nokes.

My current plan (although I reserve the right to choose other options)

Main 6 Novels
* Pride and Prejudice

Other Austen Work
* Lady Susan

Non-Fiction
* What Matters in Jane Austen -- John Mullan
* A Jane Austen Education -- William Deresiewicz

Retelling
* Longbourn -- Jo Baker

Contemporary
* Belinda --Maria Edgeworth

Direct Screen Adaptation
* Pride and Prejudice mini-series
* Sense and Sensibility mini-series
* Emma 2020

Modern Screen Adaptation
* Clueless

1. Jane Austen novel: Northanger Abbey (also finish the Hillsdale College free online course, "The Young Jane Austen: "Northanger Abbey") OR Pride and Prejudice
2. Other work by Jane Austen: Lady Susan, The Watsons, Sanditon (one of these 3)
3. Non-fiction work about Jane Austen or her time: Janet Todd's Jane Austen: Her Life, Her Times, Her Novels
4. Retelling OR historical fiction set in Jane Austen’s time: Emily Brontë's Wuthering Heights (set in 1801-02, but going back to 1771)
5. A contemporary of Jane Austen: Ann Radcliffe's The Castles of Athlin and Dunbayne
6. Direct screen adaptation: "Northanger Abbey" (with Felicity Jones and JJ Feild!)
7. Modern screen adaptation: re-watch of "Clueless" or "Lost in Austen", maybe even a dash of "Austenland" (with Keri Russell and JJ Feild!); I'm open to other suggestions for this prompt. :)

Slow reader here so I'm only planning on reading P&P and hopefully Gill Hornby's (who wrote Miss Austen) new book Godmersham Park (about Jane's friend/her brother's governess Anne Sharp) if I can get a copy from UK in time. As for TV/movies, I am super excited for the new Netflix Persuasion and also have to rewatch my fav movie of all time P&P (2005). Oh and finish season 2 of Sanditon!

This is what I have so far for my 2022 Jane Austen July TBR

Group reads: Pride and Prejudice, Lady Susan on LibriVox

Challenge #1: Pride and Prejudice and/or Emma

Challenge #2: Lady Susan on LibriVox

Challenge #3: Jane Austen and Her Country-House Comedy by W.H. Helm on LibriVox

Challenge #4: Longbourn by Jo Baker

Challenge #5: Lover's Vows by Elizabeth Inchbald on LibriVox

Challenge #6: Pride & Prejudice and/or Sense & Sensibility on Netflix

Challenge #7: Bridget Jones's Diary on Netflix and/or Elinor & Marianne Take Barton on YouTube

(A lot of my reading will be listening on LibriVox as I am traveling home for the month of July) :)

OK... On my first year of doing JAJ I gave myself too much to read and didn't complete all my challenges. The next year I read I think only one book. Then this year I've got 3 lined up (so some of the challenges). They are actually all retellings. The one that is set in the time period is 'The other Bennet sister' - I'm mad excited about this one but it is a HUGE book which could mean it may pose a problem for me... We'll see. Other than that I have 'Kamila knows best' a retelling of Emma which I borrowed from the library, and 'Heart of Stone' a fantasy retelling of P&P which I bought for myself to read for my first JAJ and I never got round to reading it.
Aside from these three books I also have 'Frankenstien' by Mary Shelsley to read on my kindle which again I tried to read on other JAJ and never got round to it. I will also be reading 'Lady Susan' this year on the readalong together with a re-read of 'Pride and Prejudice' my favourite Jane Austen novel. Hope I can keep up with my challenges this year... There's a lot there to keep me occupied

My Sisters and Epistles Themed JAJ plans:

1. Read one of Jane Austen’s six novels:
• Sense and Sensibility (Oxford World's Classics) 1811 with Intro and Notes by David Mullan 2017 (sisters)
2. Read something by Jane Austen that is not one of her main six novels:
• Jane Austen, Her Life and Letters, a Family Record Richard Austen-Leigh 1913 (epistles)
• Lady Susan Jane Austen (epistolary) Readalong July 18-24
• Juvenilia: “Love and Friendship,” “An Unfinished Novel in Letters: Lesley Castle,” “Collection of [fictional] Letters,” “The Three Sisters in four letters,” “The Beautiful Cassandra” (all epistolary and/or sisters), “The History of England,” and “Amelia Webster”
3. Read a non-fiction work about Jane Austen or her time:
• Criticism: “Jane Austen’s Juvenilia” G. K. Chesterton, “Realism: Jane Austen” Richard Burton, “On Sense and Sensibility” Ian Watt, and “From ‘Why We Read JA’” Lionel Trilling
4. Read a retelling of a Jane Austen book OR a work of historical fiction set in Jane Austen’s time:
• Retelling: The Other Bennet Sister Janice Hadlow 2020 (sisters)
• Historical Fiction: Miss Austen: A Novel of the Austen Sisters Gill Hornby 2020 (sisters)
5. Read a book by a contemporary of Jane Austen:
• Belinda Maria Edgeworth 1801
6. Watch a direct screen adaptation of a Jane Austen book:
• Rewatch the 1981, 1995, and 2008 adaptations of Sense and Sensibility (sisters)
7. Watch a modern screen adaptation of a Jane Austen book:
• Re-watch Love and Friendship and Bridget Jones’s Diary (both books are epistolary)

The Juvenilia and some of the criticism are from: Complete Works of Jane Austen (Illustrated) Delphi Classics, Kindle edition, 2014

The rest of the criticism is from: A Truth Universally Acknowledged: 33 Great Writers on Why We Read Jane Austen

Rachel wrote: "Other than that I have 'Kamila knows best' a retelling of Emma which I borrowed from the library."

I read that recently. I liked parts of it but not the whole package. I'm curious to see what you think.

I plan on reading Sense & Sensibility in July! S&S and Emma are the 2 Austen books I still haven't read yet :)

I'd like to do something different this year. I'm going to pick one of the novels and try to fill all the prompts with works that relate to that book.

I don't know how it will go but I'll try Persuasion.


1. Read one of Jane Austen’s six novels
The Annotated Persuasion by Jane Austen, David M. Shapard (Editor)

"...the complete text of Persuasion with hundreds of annotations on facing pages, including:

● Explanations of historical context
● Citations from Austen’s life, letters, and other writings
● Definitions and clarifications
● Literary comments and analysis
● Plentiful maps and illustrations
● An introduction, a bibliography, and a detailed chronology of events"

2. Read something by Jane Austen that is not one of her main six novels
The Watsons in Lady Susan, The Watsons, Sanditon

"The Watsons is an abandoned novel by Jane Austen, probably begun about 1803. There have been a number of arguments advanced why she did not complete it and other authors have since attempted that task. Even before the manuscript fragment was eventually published in 1871, a continuation based on it by Austen's niece Catherine Anne Hubback (see bellow) appeared in 1850."

3. Read a non-fiction work about Jane Austen or her time
Jane Austen's Sailor Brothers: Being the Adventures of Sir Francis Austen, G.C.B., Admiral of the Fleet and Rear-Admiral Charles Austen by John Henry Hubback

"Two of Jane Austen's brothers made successful careers in the Navy: Francis (1774–1865) rose to the rank of Admiral; Charles (1779–1852) to Rear-Admiral. Jane's naval heroes, most notably Captain Wentworth in Persuasion, as well as much of her knowledge of naval life and contemporary affairs during the Napoleonic Wars, owe much to the stories and letters of her brothers. Written by Francis Austen's grandson John Hubback and his daughter Edith, this double biography is informed by family tradition as well as research into contemporary documents. The Hubbacks, with their unique insight, suggest many family anecdotes and characteristics as possible sources for Jane's novels. Beyond its interest as a record of how her brothers' naval careers influenced her work, this book, first published in 1906, also remains of great interest to historians of the Navy in the first half of the nineteenth century."

4. Read a retelling of a Jane Austen book OR a work of historical fiction set in Jane Austen’s time
The Younger Sister by Catherine Anne Austen Hubback

"Catherine Anne Hubback (7 July 1818 – 25 February 1877) was an English novelist, and the eighth child and fourth daughter of Sir Francis Austen (1774–1865), and niece of English novelist Jane Austen. She began writing fiction to support herself and her three sons after her husband John Hubback was institutionalized. She had copies of some of her aunt's unfinished works and, in 1850, remembering Austen's proposed plot, she wrote The Younger Sister, a completion of Jane Austen's The Watsons."

and/or

By the Book by Julia Sonneborn

"An English professor struggling for tenure discovers that her ex-fiancé has just become the president of her college—and her new boss—in this whip-smart modern retelling of Jane Austen’s classic Persuasion."

5. Read a book by a contemporary of Jane Austen
Mr. Midshipman Easy by Frederick Marryat

"Captain Frederick Marryat (10 July 1792 – 9 August 1848) was a Royal Navy officer and a novelist. He is noted today as an early pioneer of nautical fiction, particularly for his semi-autobiographical novel Mr Midshipman Easy (1836). The novel is set during the Napoleonic Wars, in which Marryat himself served with distinction."

6. Watch a direct screen adaptation of a Jane Austen book

Persuasion (2022). The movie starring Dakota Johnson, Cosmo Jarvis and Henry Golding will premiere on Netflix on July 15, 2022.

7. Watch a modern screen adaptation of a Jane Austen book

Modern Persuasion (2021). A modern-day adaptation set in New York starring Alicia Witt. This movie had terrible reviews. I'm willing to give it a chance but my expectations are very low.

Still deciding on some of the challenges. Have requested What Matters in Jane Austen? (Mullan) and The Antiquary (Scott) via interlibrary loan, so barring some unforeseen mishap I will be reading those for challenges 3 and 5. Will also read at least one JA novel, just not sure which one yet.

Zuzana wrote: "I'd like to do something different this year. I'm going to pick one of the novels and try to fill all the prompts with works that relate to that book.

I don't know how it will go but I'll try Pers..."

Thanks, Zuzana! I just downloaded The Younger Sister and Jane Austen's Sailor Brothers.

Zuzana wrote: "Modern Persuasion (2021). A modern-day adaptation set in New York starring Alicia Witt. This movie had terrible reviews. I'm willing to give it a chance but my expectations are very low.

reply | flag
."

While it's geared towards Millennials and I found myself too old for it, they did a good job with the themes of the story. It's more inspired by Jane Austen than an adaptation. The main character's favorite novel is... Persuasion and even her cat has an Austenesque name. The book plays a key role in the love story.

Lorri wrote: "Thanks, Zuzana! I just downloaded The Younger Sister and Jane Austen's Sailor Brothers."

I hope you'll enjoy them. I'm particularly looking forward to reading about Jane Austen's sailor brothers. I love maritime adventures set during the Age of Sail. I finished all of the Hornblower books and about half of the Aubrey/Maturin series. I'm bound to enjoy this book.

The other one - the continuation of The Watsons - is quite a mystery to me. I rarely enjoy Jane Austen fan fiction, yet this one intrigues me. Apparently Francis Austen's family had a copy of The Watsons manuscript and knew the outline of the plot (I guess either from the letters or maybe Jane told her brother Francis in person.) I don't expect Jane Austen's level of writing, but I'm curious what she had in mind for her characters when she started writing the book. And in that respect Hubback may deliver.

EDIT: The Younger Sister is available for free on the Project Gutenberg website.

QNPoohBear wrote: "While it's geared towards Millennials and I found myself too old for it, they did a good job with the themes of the story. It's more inspired by Jane Austen than an adaptation."

Thanks, QNPoohBear. It doesn't sound too bad. :) Another movie losely inspired by Persuasion is Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason (2004). According to Andrew Davies who co-wrote the script there were many more references to the book, but they were unfortunately cut. Anyway, the theme of second chances in love stayed.

1. Read a Jane Austen novel: My real-world JA book group is scheduled to reread P&P for its August meeting, so I suppose it will be that, my first time reading the Shapard annotated edition.

2. For a Jane Austen work other than a novel, I might reread my favorite of her juvenilia, “Catharine; or, the Bower,” or one of the volumes of her prayers such as Praying with Jane: 31 Days Through the Prayers of Jane Austen by Rachel Dodge.

3. Nonfiction about Jane Austen or her time: Have been wanting to read Janine Barchas’s book Matters of Fact in Jane Austen: History, Location, and Celebrity.

4. Retelling or historical fiction from JA’s time: My copy of The Emma Project by Sonali Dev just came in; the only question is whether I can wait till July to inhale it! (Shameless plug: if you’re looking for a historical fiction novel set in her time, you could try my relatively lighthearted adventure story, Coldharbour Gentlemen, which is set in the same neighborhood as The Watsons. Good reviews so far.)

5. Book by a contemporary of Jane Austen: Am starting group reads of Belinda by Maria Edgeworth in two different groups in June and July, so it will have to be that! Note about Belinda: if you read it, be sure to pick a modern edition based on the first or second editions of the book; for the third edition, published about a decade later, she was pressured to change the storyline and take out the interracial romance.

6. Watch a direct screen adaptation of a Jane Austen book: Given the focus on Lady Susan, maybe I’ll give Love and Friendship another go, though I less-than-loved it the first time.

7. Watch a modern screen adaptation of a Jane Austen book: Maybe it’s time to revisit Bridget Jones’s Diary; I haven’t seen that since it came out.

Thanks for derailing my morning into this much more pleasurable activity!

I plan to do the 2 group reads. The last time I read P&P was at school where I skimmed it, so I'm excited to read it properly for the first time with a lot more appreciation :-)

Just in time for Jane Austen in July, Netflix is releasing their latest adaptation of Persuasion with Dakota Johnson. Purists don't look! Read the novel and watch the 1995 version of Amanda Root.

Being a slow reader, I don't think I would be able to read any more than 2 books. so, I'll participate in the group read challenge and will read Pride and Prejudice and Lady Susan.

At the moment TBR being decided between
- Pride and Prejudice
- Lady Susan
- Pride, Prejudice and Other Flavors
- Pandora - Susan Stokes Chapman
- The Other Bennet Sister
- Miss Austen - Gill Hornby
- Female Quixote - Charlotte Lennox
- The Real Jane Austen: A Life in Small Things

That’s quite a list, Rose! Female Quixote fairly quickly becomes tedious, I should warn you. Lively enough at first, though!

The Real Jane Austen: A Life in Small Things is one of my favorite books of Austen interpretation! And Pride, Prejudice, and Other Flavors one of my favorite modern revisionings of P&P! Have heard excellent things about The Other Bennet Sister, so I look forward to hearing what you have to say about it.

Great list you have there.

Abigail wrote: "The Real Jane Austen: A Life in Small Things is one of my favorite books .."

Mine too. It's my favorite biography because it discounts the demure country spinster nonsense and makes Jane more human. Sometimes she goes off on tangents and her interpretation of Mansfield Park is up for debate but when she sticks to JANE and Jane's life, it's very good. I read it just before going to Bath and Chawton for the Jane Austen Festival in 2013 and it was so fun to see the objects from the book in real life!

I really enjoyed Miss Austen.

Thanks for the update Abigail concerning the Female Quixote, do you think it’s best to look for something else. I’m still deciding what to go for the retelling prompt.

Thanks for the warning Abigail, I’ll have something else on standby! Still deciding on the retelling prompt though hence a longer list then normal.

Rose, it’s always tough to know what to suggest what to read among Austen’s contemporaries, if only for the purely mechanical reason that so many of them are long! With so many items in this challenge, adding an eighteenth century novel is a lot. Have you read Evelina by Fanny Burney? That’s relatively short and Austen may have gotten the title phrase “pride and prejudice” from it. If we were focusing on Northanger Abbey there’s a gothic spoof called Nightmare Abbey by Thomas Love Peacock which is very short. Moving a little earlier in the eighteenth century, there’s The Vicar of Wakefield which is a fast read. It’s a tough question!

For people looking for modern adaptations with a twist
there are two new gay Pride and prejudice adaptations: 2022 movie Fire Island and a Spotify podcast audio drama Gay Pride and Prejudice

EDIT: Perhaps we could set up a Recommendation thread?

My plans:
1. Northanger Abbey
2. Sanditon
3. Jane Austen at Home
4. What Kitty Did Next
5. American Cookery
6. Pride and Prejudice (1940)
7. Bride and Prejudice

Current Jane Austen July TBR
Challenge 1. Pride and Prejudice
Challenge 2. Lady Susan
Challenge 3. What matters in Jane Austen-
John Mullan
Challenge 4. The Heiress- Molly Greeley
Challenge 5. Songs of innocence and
experience- William Blake
Challenge 6. Pride and Prejudice (1995)
Challenge 7. Bride and Prejudice

Here is my TBR:
1. Pride and Prejudice
2. Lady Susan
3. What Matters in Jane Austen by John Mullan
4. Longbourn by Jo Baker
5. The Absentee by Maria Edgeworth
6. Pride and Prejudice (1980) - My love for Jane Austen began when I watched this adaptation on television in Germany in the early eighties.
7. Modern Persuasion (2020) - I watched this adaptation once before and I liked it.

I love Mullan’s book! And have just started my first Edgeworth novel (Belinda) and am really enjoying it. I hope you enjoy Longbourn more than I did, Gaby.

Hi all,

My current plans for the month include:

1. Pride and Prejudice

2. Lady Susan

3. Jane Austen by Carol Shields

4. The Other Bennet Sister by Janice Hadlow

5. Evelina by Fanny Burney

6. Pride and Prejudice 2005 film. (I have never seen this, so I’ll finally understand all the potato memes!)

7. Bride and Prejudice OR Pride and Prejudice: A Latter-Day Comedy OR The Lizzie Bennet Diaries. (Part of me says, “ Just watch The Lizzie Bennet Diaries, you know it’s the one you’re most interested in, but then another part of me says, “Erm… 7 1/2 hours? No.”)

Jennifer wrote: "7. Bride and Prejudice OR Pride and Prejudice: A Latter-Day Comedy OR The Lizzie Bennet Diaries. (Part of me says, “ Just watch The Lizzie Bennet Diaries, you know it’s the one you’re most interested in, but then another part of me says, “Erm… 7 1/2 hours? No.”)"

The LBD is fun but only if you watch Lydia's videos too.

QNPoohBear wrote: "The LBD is fun but only if you watch Lydia's videos too, "

Thanks for the insight. Actually, this makes me lean even more toward watching LBD, just for the hilarity that I know will be Lydia.

“Have you seen any pleasant men? Have you had any flirting? I was in great hopes that one of you would have got a husband before you came back. Jane will be quite an old maid soon, I declare. She is almost three-and-twenty!”

Jennifer wrote: "Q
Thanks for the insight. Actually, this makes me lean even more toward watching LBD, just for the hilarity that I know will be Lydia..."

The modern story added more depth to Lydia's character and gave her an actual motivation for being the wild child she is. Her videos are great and really added to the story. I liked her a lot even though I'm way more Lizzie and nothing like Lydia. I liked Cousin Mary a lot too. And Kitty, can't forget Kitty.

The modern adaptation is different enough that you don't feel like they're trying too hard to update the novel. Oh and if you want to find out how Wickham was found, you have to watch Sanditon! Sanditon is incomplete like the novel fragment.

I've just noticed Gill Hornby has a new book, Godmersham Park, which is being released tomorrow! Is anyone planning to read this during JAJ? I'd love to get Katie's thoughts on it before I purchase. Miss Austen is on my TBR along with these...
Mansfield Park
Unequal Affections
Fair Stands the Wind
The Real Jane Austen: A Life in Small Things

@Zuzanna - I would love to see a recommendation thread!

@Lisa I plan to read Godmersham Park, it is ordered and arriving on Saturday. Miss Austen is a lovely read.

for next year or the year after's challenge, Miss Austen is being adapted into a TV series by PBS/Masterpiece.
https://deadline.com/2022/06/masterpi...

Gaby wrote: "Here is my TBR:
1. Pride and Prejudice
2. Lady Susan
3. What Matters in Jane Austen by John Mullan
4. Longbourn by Jo Baker
5. The Absentee by Maria Edgeworth
6. Pride and Prejudice (1980) - My lov..."

I'm hoping to read Longbourn as well. :)

Jennifer wrote: "Hi all,

My current plans for the month include:

1. Pride and Prejudice

2. Lady Susan

3. Jane Austen by Carol Shields

4. The Other Bennet Sister by Janice Hadlow

5. Evelina by Fanny Burney

6..."

I really want to read The Other Bennet Sister this year. :)

Originally, my plan was to keep my TBR short after the hosts' announcements. However, it just kept on growing and here's what it looks like at the moment:

1. JA main novel:
Pride and Prejudice or
Northanger Abbey

2. Not a main novel:
The History of England

3. Non-fiction:
Elegant Etiquette in the Nineteenth Century or
Fashion in the Time of Jane Austen

4. Retelling: The Jane Austen Project or
Unequal Affections: A Pride and Prejudice Retelling

Historical: Love and Fury: A Novel of Mary Wollstonecraft or
Daughters of Night

5. JA contemporary:
Zofloya or
Childe Harold's Pilgrimage or
A Vindication of the Rights of Woman

6. Direct adaptation: Love and Friendship or the new Persuasion

7. Modern screen adaptation: Austenland

Lorraine wrote: "@Lisa I plan to read Godmersham Park, it is ordered and arriving on Saturday. Miss Austen is a lovely read."

That's wonderful! You will have to let us know if you enjoy it!

My copy of Godmersham Park received today. Excitement is definitely growing

I hope to complete 4 or 5 challenges this year:

1. JA main novel: Pride and Prejudice
2. Not a main novel: Lady Susan
3. Non-fiction about JA: Jane Austen at Home (optional for me - not sure I'll have enough time to read it now)
6. Direct adaptation: Pride & Prejudice BBC series
7. Modern screen adaptation: Clueless and/or Bridget Jones's Diary