I really loved The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, so I’m always on the hunt for books about book clubs – bonus marks if they take place in a small English community. This book checked all the boxes.
This book follows a group of people who live in a small English village that just so happened to be the home of one Jane Austen. Each of the characters is brought into the group because of Austen in one way or another, and they all combine around a desire to preserve some of the Austen history in their area.
It’s an interesting cast of characters – we have a young man who works the land and does odd jobs around town, a young teacher/widow, a doctor and, unbelievably, a movie star – among others. As the story progresses we get to know the back story of each character and learn how they fit into the narrative and what they’ve been through that has brought them to their current circumstance. Each character has a trauma that is haunting them, each has difficult aspects to their life, and they’re all searching – for meaning, for connection, for security or for healing.
I wanted to love this book as much as Guernsey. I tried to. But it just didn’t quite make it for me. I enjoyed it, and I wanted to know what would happen, but I didn’t have the strong emotional connection to the characters I experienced with Guernsey. It might be a “me” thing, but for whatever reason it wasn’t one that hit my favourites.
It did have some great book-related content, and I enjoyed the character development and revelations. The story is also satisfyingly constructed, and moves along at a pretty good pace. It was an easy and fairly quick read, and will definitely appeal to any book lover who’s looking for an easy read that is centred on bookish folks and themes. (The narration was probably the biggest plus for me – the audiobook is read by Richard Armitage, and he does a fantastic job!) Not one I’m likely to re-visit, but a fine reading experience and one that’s worth picking up if it hits your particular interests! It just didn’t leave me running off to pick up more by this author or wanting to go back to the beginning and read it again.
Just after the Second World War, in the small English village of Chawton, an unusual but like-minded group of people band together to attempt something remarkable.
One hundred and fifty years ago, Chawton was the final home of Jane Austen, one of England’s finest novelists. Now it’s home to a few distant relatives and their diminishing estate. With the last bit of Austen’s legacy threatened, a group of disparate individuals come together to preserve both Jane Austen’s home and her legacy. These people—a laborer, a young widow, the local doctor, and a movie star, among others—could not be more different and yet they are united in their love for the works and words of Austen. As each of them endures their own quiet struggle with loss and trauma, some from the recent war, others from more distant tragedies, they rally together to create the Jane Austen Society.
A powerful and moving novel that explores the tragedies and triumphs of life, both large and small, and the universal humanity in us all, Natalie Jenner’s The Jane Austen Society is destined to resonate with readers for years to come. – Goodreads
Book Title: The Jane Austen Society
Author: Natalie Jenner
Series: Yes – Jane Austen Society #1
Edition: Audiobook
Published By: St. Martin’s Griffin/Audible
Released: May 26, 2020
Genre: Fiction, Literary, Historical, Romance, Cosy
Pages: 336
Date Read: July 28-29, 2022
Rating: 5/10
Average Goodreads Rating: 3.74/5 (38,719 ratings)
