Novels in a nutshell.
Sense and Sensibility (1811)
Girl falls for a cad, stands in rain, gets cold, almost dies. Her sister doesn’t say much.
Best quote: ‘Know your own happiness. You want for nothing but patience–or give it a more fascinating name, call it hope ’
Pride and Prejudice (1813)
Feisty girl dislikes sexy, proud man. There’s lots of tense dancing.
Best quote: ‘It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife’
Mansfield Park (1814)
Boring heroine pines after even more boring hero.
Best quote: ‘A large income is the best recipe for happiness I ever heard of ’
Emma (1815)
Matchmaking is tricky when your best friend is in love—with every man she meets.
Best quote: ‘If I loved you less, I might be able to talk about it more’
Northanger Abbey (1817)
Country girl thinks that men who live in big, scary abbeys must be murderers.
Best quote: ‘The person, be it gentleman or lady, who has not pleasure in a good novel, must be intolerably stupid ’
Persuasion (1817)
Woman turns down poor man’s proposal. Eight years later, he’s rich. Game on.
Best quote: ‘I hate to hear you talk about all women as if they were fine ladies instead of rational creatures. None of us want to be in calm waters all our lives ’
Jane Austen’s kitchen gardens
Bryan Kozlowski reveals Jane Austen's love for the kitchen garden.
Which Bennet sister are you?
The Bennet sisters in Pride and Prejudice are some of Jane Austen's most memorable creations - take our quiz and
