Hello all! You will notice that this week’s History Bite is in fact a Literature Bite. While next week will be back to my regular History Bites, I wanted to share the next book coming up for my book club and give you the option to join us!
The #AnHistorianReads book club reads one book per quarter, and we alternate between fiction and non-fiction. It is an online book club, so you don’t need to worry about where you are physically located. You can find our Facebook group here if you would like to join! Please also share with any friends you may have who are readers, as well. We love to have new readers join us 🙂 So, what will we be reading? One of my favourite books….
Northanger Abbey by Miss Jane Austen herself! This is one of Austen’s lesser known works, but it is one of my favourite books. It is a novel about novels, and it is a satirical novel about novels, at that. Interestingly, Northanger Abbey was the first of Austen’s novels to be completed, but one of the last to be published. And I have to say, I think it is her cleverest. It takes place in Bath, my favourite city, and the heroine, Catherine Morland, is a lovable flibberty-gibbet.
During an eventful season at Bath, young, naïve Catherine Morland experiences the joys of fashionable society for the first time. She is delighted with her new acquaintances: flirtatious Isabella, who shares Catherine’s love of Gothic romance and horror, and sophisticated Henry and Eleanor Tilney, who invite her to their father’s mysterious house, Northanger Abbey. There, her imagination influenced by novels of sensation and intrigue, Catherine imagines terrible crimes committed by General Tilney. With its broad comedy and irrepressible heroine, this is the most youthful and and optimistic of Jane Austen’s works.
It is a light piece of classic literature that has something for everyone. We are starting the discussion on July 15th- the questions are posted periodically, and you can always come back and answer them later. Please send an invite to the group if you are interested, we would love to have you!
Have you read Northanger Abbey?Â
Cheers,
The Historian
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I loved Northanger Abbey. Such a fun story, and I loved a bit of the Gothic (pre-Gothic, I guess??) drama in it, too. This is a great book club read, especially for readers who are new to Jane.
While we’re talking about Jane … you HAVE to read THE JANE AUSTEN DIET. I was thinking of you the entire time I was reading it. It’s full of so much history, both cultural and, interestingly, food. I learned SO much about the Regency time period that I really found fascinating. Plus, the book is hilarious, especially if you’re familiar with Jane’s works. I think you would really like it. My review of it isn’t coming out until September, but I had to let you know about it beforehand because I think it’s a book you’ll really enjoy. 🙂