Five women and one man meet monthly in California to discuss Jane Austen's six novels, and their lives begin to echo the books
Six novels, six readers
In California's Central Valley, five women and one man form a book club devoted to Jane Austen. They will meet once a month, each hosting one of her six novels. Jocelyn, a brisk dog breeder who has never married, organizes the group. Her best friend Sylvia has just been left by her husband. There is also Sylvia's daughter, a romantic and reckless young woman; Bernadette, who has been married many times; Prudie, a young French teacher; and Grigg, the only man.
Who will enjoy it
Austen fans and anyone who enjoys sharp, warm, intelligent comedies of manners about friendship and love.
What you will get
A witty, warm comedy of manners about six California book club members whose lives begin to echo the Jane Austen novels they discuss.
The Jane Austen Book Club Facts: Pages, Genre and Setting
Genre
Literary Fiction · Book club · Friendship · California
Length
288 pages · ≈ 8 h
More about this book
Grigg is the odd one out. He has never read Austen and prefers science fiction, and Jocelyn invited him with a matchmaking plan in mind, though not for herself. Fowler structures the book around the six meetings, and each chapter focuses on one member, telling their backstory while the group argues over Emma, Persuasion and the rest. Gradually, the members' lives start to resemble the novels in small, funny and unexpected ways.
The narrator is the group itself, a collective voice that is wry, observant and occasionally unreliable, and the effect is charming. Fowler is a subtle writer: the comedy is quiet, the observations about marriage and loneliness are sharp, and she trusts readers to notice the parallels with Austen rather than spelling them out. The discussions of the novels are genuinely insightful and may send readers back to the books.
Readers expecting a romantic comedy may find it more reflective than they expected, but it rewards attention. An appendix includes summaries of the novels and responses from Austen's critics. It is also, fittingly, an ideal choice for a book club of your own. About 288 pages in the Plume paperback.
Persuasion
Emma
Pride and Prejudice
We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves
The Chosen
The Promise
Different Seasons
On Beauty
The Bean Trees
A Thousand Splendid Suns
The Kite Runner
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