Books with author Deirdre Le Faye

Jane Austen is now one of the most popular novelists in the English language, and yet on the face of it one of the most unlikely candidates for such a title. Austen died at the age of 41 and left behind only six completed novels. Yet her works have never been out of print, and in this century, within the last three decades in particular, never a year passes without some fresh adaptation of her stories for stage, screen, or television. In this skillfully crafted biography, Deirdre Le Faye brings Austen's tantalizingly elusive image into a distinct and refreshing light.

This biography introduces the life of one of England's most popular writers. It gives an account of the main events of Jane Austen's life, emphasizing the importance of her family connections in developing the milieu from which she drew the inspiration for her novels. The illustrations, drawn from British Library manuscripts and many other sources, complement the text in conveying the people and places Jane knew and the social fabric of her world.

This volume sets out to illustrate in both words and pictures the physical world of the late-18th and early-19th centuries, as alluded to by Austen, so that readers can enjoy her novels with greater understanding and insight. Deidre Le Faye goes beyond the Hollywood fiction to explore the real physical and social environment that formed the backdrop to Austen's classics. Assisted by contemporary archive material, the author revisits the places familiar to Jane Austen in her lifetime, from the grand country houses to humble villager's cottages, from detailed information on the furnishings to the arrangements for the servants.

Jane Austen is now one of the most popular novelists in the English language, and yet on the face of it one of the most unlikely candidates for such a title. Austen died at the age of 41 and left behind only six completed novels. Yet her works have never been out of print, and in this century, within the last three decades in particular, never a year passes without some fresh adaptation of her stories for stage, screen, or television. In this skillfully crafted biography, Deirdre Le Faye brings Austen's tantalizingly elusive image into a distinct and refreshing light.