England's Jane: The Story of Jane Austen: World Writers

Jane Austen published most of her books anonymously and was barely known or appreciated in her own lifetime. In the years after her untimely death at the age of forty-two, it seemed her slim list of publications might vanish into history. But the humor and wit of Austen's prose enticed readers, and her works have stood the test of time. Though written at the dawn of the nineteenth century, Austen's novels of social interaction and relationships reveal an insight into human nature that is as fresh today as it was two hundred years ago. She has emerged as one of the most respected writers of all time. Born into the British gentry in 1775, Jane was raised, along with her five brothers and her sister Cassandra, in the small village of Steventon. Austen loved to write from a young age and honed her appreciation for the nuances of human interaction as she grew. Nurtured by a close and loving family, her first book was published (anonymously) in 1811, when she was thirty-five. After moving to a cottage at Chawton with her sister and widowed mother, Austen entered a prolific period, writing or revising a total of six novels before her death in 1817. Though her life was cut short, many of her letters have survived. England's Jane: The Story of Jane Austen offers an intimate and endearing portrait of a funny, smart, and caring woman whose eye for detail and love for life continue to delight readers today.