The Jane Austen Book Club (by Karen Joy Fowler)
Totally enjoyed this. (Or to put it another way, it was perfect, being much too short.)
I loved how the narrator of the book was (or seemed to be, maybe this is just my dumb theory) the collective book club voice. (I have a lot of affection for my own book club, and maybe that's part of my affection for the narrative conceit.) I also loved how the characters seemed to align with certain characters in Austen's works. (Allegra as Marianne being the most obvious, I think.) It's just charming, witty, well-written and entertaining, with awesome characters. Also multiple references to Buffy, so ten points for that.
I do think it is too short, though. I wanted more discussion of the books, more stories about the characters, more everything! Highly recommended.
I loved how the narrator of the book was (or seemed to be, maybe this is just my dumb theory) the collective book club voice. (I have a lot of affection for my own book club, and maybe that's part of my affection for the narrative conceit.) I also loved how the characters seemed to align with certain characters in Austen's works. (Allegra as Marianne being the most obvious, I think.) It's just charming, witty, well-written and entertaining, with awesome characters. Also multiple references to Buffy, so ten points for that.
I do think it is too short, though. I wanted more discussion of the books, more stories about the characters, more everything! Highly recommended.
2 Comments:
I think you already know I love this one, so I don't have much to add. I'm totally with you about the "we" narration, and I, too, loved it. I was also very fond of the little meta-textual bits, like how Fowler uses Grigg reading The Mysteries of Udolpho from Northanger Abbey as a little jab at people to go read all the books that she has people reading in JABC. This is the right way to break the fourth wall, I think: with a light touch and a smile.
I was a bit confused by the narrator... why does it start narrating in first person in bernadette's bits and no one elses? Is bernadette meant to be the narrator? If so, why?
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