Although most people struggle through classic literature like they are reading a different language, there are a few authors that transcend. And as the title of this post would indicate, Jane Austen is one of those authors. People are still buying artfully covered copies of Pride and Prejudice and re-reading Northanger Abbey and Emma to their heart’s content. And of course, the raging debate on which on-screen version of Pride and Prejudice is superior. I do believe that Austen’s popularity is due in part to modern adaptations that highlight her eternal relevance. So, I have decided to share the 3 best modern Jane Austen adaptions today for you to enjoy!
I think that there are a few reasons that Austen’s books continue to hold sway with modern readers. For one thing, she was writing for herself and it shows. (Dickens was essentially getting paid by the word, and it could not be more obvious… Edit, sir.) Her love for her characters and plots shines through and that makes you want to keep reading. She has also has quite relatable characters- we’ve all met a flibberty-gibbet like Lydia Bennet, but have all of us met a bizarrely tortured Mr. Rochester? I’m hoping not….
For the obvious sake, I am going to skip the standard movie and television adaptations of Austen’s works. While I do love the 2007 Northanger Abbey and the 2005 Pride and Prejudice (I saw it before the 1995 version and the score clinches it for me…), I thought that everyone most likely has either already seen them or at the very least know where to find them if they would like to. I am also skipping (most) of the book adaptations- there are some fantastic chick lit series that I can recommend if you are interested, but I wanted to focus on the more creative adaptations currently out there.
And no, I will not encourage anyone to read the Austen Project books. Curtis Sittenfeld’s Eligible was awful, Joanna Trollope’s Sense and Sensibility lacked any sort of emotion or excitement, and I entirely gave up on Alexander McCall Smith’s Emma. (I couldn’t bring myself to read the Northanger Abbey retelling. Perhaps in the future if I can find it at the library, but I don’t want to risk ruining my favourite book…)
Lost in Austen: Create Your Own Jane Austen Adventure, Emma Campbell Webster
So, this is in fact a book, but it is rather a different sort of book. Yes, you can choose your own Austen-themed adventure now! I am not going to lie, a lot of my go-throughs ended in scandal and ruin. I’m not sure what that says about me, but when it’s only a book, it’s grand. What I enjoy about this is that depending on what you choose, you will end up roughly a different novel. (What that means is that Mr. Collins won’t propose to Catherine Morland in Bath…) If I can find a friend who is willing to participate, I’m going to have someone who hasn’t read any Austen sit down and read/ play this, and see just where they end up. Also, this book does not observe the social niceties you may expect from Regency society. Take a wrong turn, and the book will bluntly tell you that you screwed up and have no hope. It might not be particularly Austenly (what is the adjectivial form of Austen??) but it is entertaining!
Yes, there also is a 4 part mini-series, Lost in Austen. Also a very entertaining adaptation where a young women from the 2010s finds herself in Elizabeth Bennett’s life. Watch it if you haven’t already seen it!
The Lizzie Bennet Diaries/ Emma Approved
If you haven’t heard of these two Youtube adaptations, I don’t know what rock you’ve been living under. However, they are both incredibly delightful, clever, and well worth a re-watch (or three)! For anyone who doesn’t know what these are, they are multi-instalment, modern adaptations of Pride and Prejudice and Emma, respectively. In The Lizzie Bennet Diaries, Lizzie hosts a vlog with each episode featuring different characters. There are 100 episodes of 5-15 minutes, and you move from the start to the end of the novel. It’s a great modern take on P&P, and although it is adapted, you will still recognise every character! And if you are wondering why she is vlogging, she is a graduate student in mass communications.
Emma Adapted was created by the same team, and follows Emma Woodhouse and her lifestyle company. (Yes, even in 2013, lifestyle sites and companies were all the rage.) I enjoyed that Emma Approved is more tongue-in-cheek than TLBD; Emma specifically says that she is filming herself because she knows she will be infamous throughout the series. I thought that EA also did a better job of masking things. Although you know what will happen if you know Emma, I still found some twists and turns interesting and surprising. And even interestingly, it was revived for eight episodes in the fall of 2018 where fans could vote for the direction it would go in. (Sadly, it failed to reach the needed 1,000 Patreon backers, but it is at least a bit more.) Here is hoping for more Pemberley Digital adaptations!
Marrying Mr. Darcy
Okay, this is a bit of a cheat as I don’t have it yet, but I have ordered it for my upcoming birthday- a Jane Austen card game! I was drawn to this particular game because it doesn’t require any Austen specific knowledge, meaning that you can play it with anyone. (Although from reading reviews, I think it is more fun if you are familiar with it…) Each character starts with a dowry and a special ability, and there are two stages to the game: the courtship stage and the proposal stage. (And yes, certain heroines want to marry certain suitors. Obviously.) It can be played by 2-6 players at a time, and only takes 60-90 minutes to play. There are also two different expansion packs now, the Emma expansion and Undead expansion. Swap out your heroines and suitors, and you’ve got yourself a different game. As soon as it arrives and I’ve found someone(s) to play it with me, I will post a full review. In either case, it is a fun take on Austen!
Sidenote: Has anyone played Polite Society, the other Austen themed card game? I’m hesitant to buy it without knowing anyone who has played it. Let me know in the comments!
What is your favourite modern Jane Austen adaptation?
Cheers,
The Historian
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Woman!!! I damn near spit out my tea when I saw you diss Curtis Sittenfeld’s ELIGIBLE!!! I adored that retelling of P&P; I think it’s a brilliantly re-imagined and modernized version of the classic story. We’re going to have to agree to disagree here 🙂 because I’m putting that forward as one of my favorite Austen adaptations to date.
For one of my LEAST favorite Austen adaptations — well, I guess it’s not an adaptation so much as a “continuation” — DEATH COMES TO PEMBERLEY. I thought it was just awful. I saved reading it until I was on vacation in the English countryside, and it completely fell flat for me. Ugh.
Have you seen the movie Austenland? Admittedly, it’s not very good; however, it’s something that I always seem to watch when it’s on TV. I adore Keri Russell, so perhaps out of loyalty I keep trying to watch it and hope it will be better. It does have some funny moments to it, but overall it didn’t live up to what I was hoping for. I’ve seen LOST IN AUSTEN in bits and pieces, and I liked that one. I need to watch the YouTube adaptations!! I’ve never heard of them! Pretty excited about that now. 🙂 Thanks for the recommendations!
I’ve just found this now!! And Death Came To Pemberley also fell short for me. I think part of the issue for Eligible and DCTP is that they were both talked up SO MUCH before I read them that I was expecting these AMAZING books. (I wonder if people realise that hyping things that much can actually derail a book?)
I actually love Austenland- it is Austen fan fiction at its best, and it doesn’t pretend to be anything different. (I hadn’t heard much about it prior to reading it, so no expectations haha). Lost in Austen was also fun, same fan fiction-y deal!