I don't know if this book wants to be a textbook or literary review, but I do know that the author loves to wax soliloquy about now (this century) and then (Austen time). I wasn't looking for a report on all things Austen so I found this too staid and stuffy to connect with. I did find the author's notes about how to study Austen for tips on novel writing and human behavior interesting, but the information seemed murky given her penchant for loquaciousness. If you have a report due on the famous author then Reading Jane Austen would be a nice place to start, otherwise, it's rather tedious. I still love all things Austen, but I intend to do myself a favor and re-read one of her works rather than a tome about how I <i>should</i> read Austen.

Thank you for the chance to review this book, however, unfortunately, I was unable to read and review this title before it was archived.

This lovely book takes themes in Austen's novels and looks at them in detail. It reflects how these themes play out, not only in the books, but in her life.

Davidson is a professor at Columbia and has thought long and hard about Austen and these issues. Although this is true and there is great insight here, the themes are presented clearly and in a way that anyone can understand.

I really loved the insights this wonderful book gave me.

I love Jane Austen, I adore her. She was my introduction into English Literature, in many ways thereby setting me on the path I am on now. So I have a lot of emotions and experiences tied to Jane Austen and her books. When I started studying English Literature I found myself almost subconsciously avoiding writing about her though, partially because my academic interests lay elsewhere, but also because I was a little bit scared. Reading Jane Austen has helped me understand why, in part. Thanks to Cambridge University Press and Netgalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Jane Austen was the literary light of my life for many years. Her books are still ones I seek one when I need comfort or if I want to laugh, even if I feel like I need to relearn their lessons. But, as said above, I avoided her at university. Reading Davidson's preface I finally figured out why I did so. It's difficult to discuss, criticise, and analyse something you love. I managed to do so with Tolkien's work during my MA but there I also felt the pangs of anger whenever anyone made a, usually valid, criticism of or remark on his work. I knew myself well enough to know I would not be able to dig as deep with a book I loved, take it apart and consider it objectively, as I would with other books. Davidson considers the same issue, commenting that the students who love Jane Austen often have less to put forward in a discussion and take criticism personally. Reading Davidson's Reading Jane Austen showed me that that is most likely true, as I still got defensive at times, especially on Elizabeth's part. But Davidson loves Austen as much as her readers do, and this love and respect also shines through her analysis.

As an avid Janeite, there were a lot of things which Davidson discussed that I had thought of or considered before, but she casts them in a new light and unites them into a number of solid themes that allow you to see these books in a new light. Davidson shows connections between the different texts, ways in which Austen's style developed and improved, even how her personal life and letters illuminate the importance of certain aspects in her novels. The book is split into seven different chapters, each of which has its own theme which is discussed across Austen's work. Whether it's the importance of letter writing in Chapter 1, the importance to Austen of manners and morals in Chapters 3 and 4, or the way she highlighted the role of women in society in Chapter 7, Reading Jane Austen ranges widely, but always does so relevantly. Davidson illuminated some aspects of the book for me and, perhaps most crucially of all, she made me want to reread Jane Austen's books with a new eye.

Jenny Davidson's writing is what makes Reading Jane Austen fun. I know from experience that academic texts, or any non-fiction book that digs into a topic, are often very interesting, but not always fun. And sometimes they're not even interesting, which makes for the worst reading experience ever. Reading Jane Austen, in comparison, is a delight. Davidson writes with an easy and a friendliness that, to me, felt like I was sitting in a seminar at university, having a conversation with her. She quotes Austen at length, allowing her prose to illuminate Davidson's arguments. Some of the chapters, especially those looking at narration for example, can be heavy on academic lingo which might be off putting to those not used to it. However, she doesn't overuse it and explains it well when she does. The Further Reading section at the back is also fascinating for anyone interested in Jane Austen and I will be browsing through it soon for future reading.

I enjoyed Reading Jane Austen a lot more than I expected, considering it's non-fiction. However, Davidson takes her reader on a lovely stroll through some of the most important themes in Jane Austen's fiction, all the while providing them with new tools to analyse and appreciate Austen's books. I'd recommend this to anyone interested in learning more about Austen's fiction.

This took me a long time to finish. I do admire Jane Austen, and I admit not being a scholar of her work, and I feel that perhaps I would have enjoyed it better if I had studied more academic works on how she wrote. I would rather re-read her actual work. Not really for me.

A wonderful new book about Jane Austen and her novels. Reading Jane Austen is an approachable read that will entice new comers to go back and treasure what Janeites already consider scared. I loved that chapter on letter writing. Jenny Davidson conveyed both familiar and old subject matter in a way that was refreshing and new.

This reads like someone writing their dissertation and trying to both use all the big words they know all at once, as well as sound smarter than they actually are. Very dry and the type of book I dreaded when still in college. I spent so much time trying to slog through the too-wordy text that I don't feel like I actually got anything out of this book, and couldn't make it past the first chapter. Did not finish.

**Disclaimer: I received a free copy of this work from the publisher, via Netgalley, in exchange for my honest review

Let me begin by saying that I am not an Austen novice, nor am I unfamiliar with literary criticism. I majored in English in college, with a concentration in Literature, and while I did not study Austen's works in depth, I closely studied works written around the same time period and I have read all of her novels for pleasure multiple times. This book might be a decent starting place for in depth study of Austen, particularly as a secondary text for an introductory class on Austen, but I found very little new information to inform a reread of any of her works.

The majority of the text was tedious and dull, and I hope that the final print version is edited better than the electronic version provided by the publisher via Netgalley. It is clear that the author has a deep appreciation for Austen and has spent a great deal of time in study of Austen's life and work. I will also note that it has been 20 years since I spent time in serious study, reading lengthy critical essays. This book may be better in small chunks - reading a chapter at a time over a lengthy course of study - rather than trying to sift through all the information at once. Perhaps, this is a failing of the reader, not the writer, hence the 2-star, rather than 1-star rating.

One final criticism that I feel needs to be noted, and which keeps this from being a 3-star rating, is that this text is written in a fashion that goes against much of what I was taught in college. While the author lays out her thesis clearly in the beginning, she continues throughout the work to beat the reader over the head with statements such as "the effect will be discussed in greater depth in the next chapter". She also attempts to define and provide examples of free indirect style, and then proceeds to both contradict herself and provide an excuse for possibly being wrong "the detection of free indirect style is an art, in other words, not a science, and it will be up to the individual reader to decide whether it is a useful way of describing the language of consciousness in this particular passage" (loc 1948). Yes, some elements of literature and criticism are subjective, but if an author is going to state an opinion, they need to own it.