One of the releases I’ve most anticipated this year is the new book A Jane Austen Year: Celebrating 250 years of Jane Austen by Jane Austen’s House and the brilliant new A Jane Austen Year Podcast of the same name.
After spending so much time researching and writing my seasonal, month-by-month “A Year in Jane Austen’s World” blog series last year, I knew it was right down my alley. I am happy to report that the information included in this book covers a variety of intriguing topics, recipes, illustrations, and specially commissioned photos. It feels like taking a tour of Jane Austen’s House Museum each month of the year. It is well worth the read!
“Arranged chronologically across the calendar year, this uniquely intimate insight into Jane Austen’s world offers reproductions of her letters, the objects she held dear, the story of how her first novel Pride and Prejudice came to be published and the routines of her everyday life at this idyllic Hampshire cottage. Experience life as Austen did herself, as both the notable writer she was, and also the daughter, sister and friend she remained to those closest to her.”
Published by Pitkin, A Jane Austen Year releases March 11, 2025. I was grateful to receive a digital copy in order to review it before its release.
ORDER YOUR COPY HERE
My Review
First of all, this book makes a beautiful addition to your shelves or coffee table if you’re a book collector or if you like to display your Jane Austen books as part of your home, office, or library decor. I also appreciate that it was put together by the people who work at Jane Austen’s House Museum. Many of the photos and insights come directly from Chawton Cottage, where Jane Austen spent the latter years of her life and writing career, and its collections.
As I read through each month’s offerings in A Jane Austen Year, I enjoyed seeing photographs of Jane Austen’s House Museum during every season and reading through the excerpts from Jane Austen’s letters and novels that pertained to that particular month. Of special note are the recipes for meals, vinegars, and salves, sheet music Jane might have played or heard, costume designs for theater productions of the time, gardening notes and illustrations, photos from the collections held at JAHM, as well as snippets from the film adaptations.
Overall, this is a wonderful book to peruse. I look forward to spending a lot more time with it this year. The photographs are stunning and I can’t wait to delve in deeper with the information provided. Now that I’ve read through the entire book, I plan to go through it month by month for the remainder of the year.
Book Excerpt
“This book is written from Jane Austen’s House in Chawton – one of the most important places in the history of English literature and the development of the novel.
“Here, in this inspiring Hampshire cottage, Jane Austen lived for the last eight years of her life. Here, her genius flourished and she wrote, revised and had published all six of her globally beloved novels: Sense and Sensibility, Pride and Prejudice, Mansfield Park, Emma, Northanger Abbey and Persuasion.
“Today, Jane Austen’s House is a cherished museum with an unparalleled collection of Austen treasures, including items of furniture, paintings and household objects. Visitors can discover Jane’s personal letters and first editions of her novels, items of jewellery, portraits of her friends and family, and the tiny writing table at which she wrote.
“This book brings together some of the precious fragments of Jane Austen’s life story, along with world events that shaped her life and understanding, extracts from her novels and letters, and a range of extraordinary objects held here in the museum’s collection. Dip into it as you will, or go through month by month and enjoy a full year of Jane Austen: her life and writings, people and objects she knew and, of course, her beautiful, inspiring home.”
Book Description
This beautifully illustrated book charts the life of one of the world’s most beloved authors through the letters, objects, and manuscripts that shaped her life.
Published in partnership with the curators of Jane Austen’s House, the enchanting Hampshire cottage where Jane Austen’s genius flourished that now attracts thousands of visitors every year.
Arranged over the course of a calendar year, from snowy scenes in January to festive recipes in December, specially commissioned photography of Austen’s home and possessions are brought together with extracts from her books, reproductions of her letters, and stories of her life throughout the seasons. Highlights include the first time Austen read a published copy of Pride and Prejudice to an enraptured audience in her drawing room, affectionate letters to her sister Cassandra reproduced in full and an exquisite miniature portrait of Tom Lefroy, the man she nearly married.
Read this book for a unique and intimate insight into Austen’s world. Dip into it as you will, or visit each month, and enjoy a full year of Austen—her life, works and letters, people and objects she knew, and of course her idyllic, inspiring home.
A Jane Austen Year Podcast
Jane Austen’s House has also released a delightful new podcast to accompany the book. There is a new installment each month! You can listen in HERE.
The A Jane Austen Year podcast is a seasonal journey through Jane Austen’s novels, the story of her life and the world she lived in. It is created and recorded at Jane Austen’s House in Chawton, Hampshire – “the most treasured Austen site in the world.”
For those who haven’t listened yet, I must say that I find this podcast absolutely delightful! It is chock-full of wonderful information about Jane Austen, her writing, her family, her world, and Chawton Cottage. The music, narration, and production make this podcast one of the most soothing and gentle podcasts I’ve heard in a long time. I can’t wait for the next installment!
Podcast Details
A Jane Austen Year transports you to Jane Austen’s House in Chawton, the idyllic Hampshire cottage where Jane Austen lived and wrote her globally beloved novels – now a beloved museum.
Each month, join us on a seasonal journey through Jane Austen’s novels, the story of her life and the world she lived in. Discover scenes, letters, recipes, and objects from the museum collection, bound together with readings and sounds recorded in the House itself.
Each episode is recorded by the people who work at Jane Austen’s House, caring for this special place and protecting it for future generations. January, for example, is voiced by: Lizzie Dunford, Jenny Durrant, Jessica Halmshaw, Amelia Harvell,Sophie Reynolds, Rebecca Wood – with a guest appearance by Dominic Gerrard.
I highly recommend both the book and the podcast. If I could travel to Chawton again this summer, that would be the pinnacle of my Jane Austen year, but these new productions are an absolute gift from Jane Austen’s House Museum. I’m sure it’s been a massive undertaking, and I am grateful!
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