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Obstinate heart: Jane Austen, a biography
Obstinate Heart Jane Austen A Biography
Hardcover
First published January 1, 1980
6 people are currently reading
198 people want to read
About the author
Valerie Grosvenor Myer
13 books2 followersValerie Winifred Grosvenor, later Myer, was born in Lower Soudley in the Forest of Dean on 13 April 1935 to parents who were second cousins. The family lived in a cottage that apparently had no electricity, sanitation or running water, which, according to Sue Limb who wrote her obituary, led her to remark later in life that "The organic life isn't all it's cracked up to be."
After education at East Dean Grammar School she left to train as a librarian in Gloucester. As a freelance she also wrote articles for the 'Forest of Dean Mercury', a newspaper that eventually employed her as a fully fledged reporter.
In 1958 she moved to the 'Dartford Chronicle' and also undertook editorial work for the women's magazines, 'Housewife' and 'Flair'.
Having met on a ferry in Brittany, she married Michael Myer in 1959 and he introduced her Grosvenor name into his own so as to distinguish himself from others with a simialr surname. He also encouraged her to further her education, which had to be curtailed when she was a teenager due to lack of family funds. As a consequence, with the help of the City Literary Institute, London, she won one of the last mature state scholarships to Newnham College, Cambridge, where she arrived, aged 28, in 1963.
Under the tutelage of Queenie Leavis she graduated with a first in 1966. While an undergraduate she had contributed theatrical reviews of Cambridge and East Anglia theatre for 'the Guardian' and after she graduated she began a career in teaching, editing, for 'The Times Educational Supplement' and 'The Teacher' and writing.
She taught at the Beijing Language Institute, which became the Beijing Languages and Cultures University, when she was caught up in the student protests of 1989. She later taught at a University in Sierra Leone and also in Sweden.
Her published works include a study of Margaret Drabble entitled 'Puritanism and Permissiveness' (1974), two biographies of Jane Austen (1980 and 1997), a biography of Harriette Wilson (1999). She was, indeed, an expert in 18th and 19th century literature and she also wrote biographies of Charlotte Bronte, Samuel Richardson and Laurence Sterne. Also included in her canon is a novel 'The Butterfly House' (1998), which was based on her experiences when teaching in China.
Her last major project was the co-editing of 'The Continuum Encyclopaedia of British Literature' (2003) into which, despite the onset of Parkinson's Disease, she put all her usual energy and enthusiasm.
Having suffered with Parkinson's Disease for 10 years she took her own life, after carefully explaining the situation to her husband, and died on 7 August 2007.
After education at East Dean Grammar School she left to train as a librarian in Gloucester. As a freelance she also wrote articles for the 'Forest of Dean Mercury', a newspaper that eventually employed her as a fully fledged reporter.
In 1958 she moved to the 'Dartford Chronicle' and also undertook editorial work for the women's magazines, 'Housewife' and 'Flair'.
Having met on a ferry in Brittany, she married Michael Myer in 1959 and he introduced her Grosvenor name into his own so as to distinguish himself from others with a simialr surname. He also encouraged her to further her education, which had to be curtailed when she was a teenager due to lack of family funds. As a consequence, with the help of the City Literary Institute, London, she won one of the last mature state scholarships to Newnham College, Cambridge, where she arrived, aged 28, in 1963.
Under the tutelage of Queenie Leavis she graduated with a first in 1966. While an undergraduate she had contributed theatrical reviews of Cambridge and East Anglia theatre for 'the Guardian' and after she graduated she began a career in teaching, editing, for 'The Times Educational Supplement' and 'The Teacher' and writing.
She taught at the Beijing Language Institute, which became the Beijing Languages and Cultures University, when she was caught up in the student protests of 1989. She later taught at a University in Sierra Leone and also in Sweden.
Her published works include a study of Margaret Drabble entitled 'Puritanism and Permissiveness' (1974), two biographies of Jane Austen (1980 and 1997), a biography of Harriette Wilson (1999). She was, indeed, an expert in 18th and 19th century literature and she also wrote biographies of Charlotte Bronte, Samuel Richardson and Laurence Sterne. Also included in her canon is a novel 'The Butterfly House' (1998), which was based on her experiences when teaching in China.
Her last major project was the co-editing of 'The Continuum Encyclopaedia of British Literature' (2003) into which, despite the onset of Parkinson's Disease, she put all her usual energy and enthusiasm.
Having suffered with Parkinson's Disease for 10 years she took her own life, after carefully explaining the situation to her husband, and died on 7 August 2007.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 32 reviews
August 4, 2016
Valerie was a good friend of mine so my review may be a little biased. This book came out at around the same time as two others, David Nokes and Claire Tomalin and all three authors became part of our Jane Austen Group. Valerie's book may not have been as scholarly as Claire's but it may be for that reason that I enjoyed the book. It was well researched and I liked the fact that it used the letters so much. It did jump about a bit and sometimes showed Austen in a bit of a negative light but I did enjoy reading it very much.
August 17, 2018
Jane Austin is by far my favorite author, which is surprising since she isn't my typical genre of book. It still can remember my emotions the first time I read Pride and Prejudice. I was completely captured. Her humor and wit inspire me. So when I came across this biography, I was excited to learn all about this fantastic woman.
This book is about as complete of a biography as one can write about Jane Austin. She was born on December 16, 1775, lived in England her whole life and never travel from it, then died at 41 years old on July 18, 1817. She never married and lived a typical experience for a woman of her time. What the book covers is mostly her family life. She had Five active brothers, one brother with a severe disability, and an older sister who also never married.
The most interesting part of this book was the last few chapters when Jane Austen decides to try and publish her books anonymously. She is a poor woman in her late thirties and is thrilled by the small amount of money she is able to earn. She only publishes four of her books in her lifetime and earns a grand total of £600. It is ironic how many millions others have made off of her hard work, but at least she was somewhat famous in her last years.
Overall, this book, though, was hard to read. The first two chapter should just be deleted completely. Chapter one focuses on dirtying Jane Austin's reputation and picturing her as a bitter, disillusioned woman. I find that hard to believe even with the evidence presented. Throughout the rest of the book, acquaintances seek out her company and children love her. This doesn't happen to bitter people. Also, what a person writes in private letters and how they act publicly are two different things. Jane Austen's biting humor to her sister doesn't seem to be how everyone else remembers her, but the author of this biography is convinced that everyone was just white-washing Jane Austen's memory. I also know that Jane Austin's novel feels optimistic. If she was bitter, it should have filtered through her writing. I have a big problem with this image of Jane Austen.
The second chapter is just a dizzying list of names and relationships in a random order. The summary of Jane Austen's entire genealogy can be placed in the appendix. The stories in this chapter are then repeated in the rest of the book. From here, the book forces itself slowly into chronological order, but the writer suffers from lack of organization. Once you push through this slow beginning, things do pick up, but the strongest part of the book is the last few chapters.
I do recommend this book for hard Jane Austin fans, but the casual reader may find it slow. Either way, I am glad I read it and learned a lot about Jane Austen. It also encouraged me to keep writing!
This book is about as complete of a biography as one can write about Jane Austin. She was born on December 16, 1775, lived in England her whole life and never travel from it, then died at 41 years old on July 18, 1817. She never married and lived a typical experience for a woman of her time. What the book covers is mostly her family life. She had Five active brothers, one brother with a severe disability, and an older sister who also never married.
The most interesting part of this book was the last few chapters when Jane Austen decides to try and publish her books anonymously. She is a poor woman in her late thirties and is thrilled by the small amount of money she is able to earn. She only publishes four of her books in her lifetime and earns a grand total of £600. It is ironic how many millions others have made off of her hard work, but at least she was somewhat famous in her last years.
Overall, this book, though, was hard to read. The first two chapter should just be deleted completely. Chapter one focuses on dirtying Jane Austin's reputation and picturing her as a bitter, disillusioned woman. I find that hard to believe even with the evidence presented. Throughout the rest of the book, acquaintances seek out her company and children love her. This doesn't happen to bitter people. Also, what a person writes in private letters and how they act publicly are two different things. Jane Austen's biting humor to her sister doesn't seem to be how everyone else remembers her, but the author of this biography is convinced that everyone was just white-washing Jane Austen's memory. I also know that Jane Austin's novel feels optimistic. If she was bitter, it should have filtered through her writing. I have a big problem with this image of Jane Austen.
The second chapter is just a dizzying list of names and relationships in a random order. The summary of Jane Austen's entire genealogy can be placed in the appendix. The stories in this chapter are then repeated in the rest of the book. From here, the book forces itself slowly into chronological order, but the writer suffers from lack of organization. Once you push through this slow beginning, things do pick up, but the strongest part of the book is the last few chapters.
I do recommend this book for hard Jane Austin fans, but the casual reader may find it slow. Either way, I am glad I read it and learned a lot about Jane Austen. It also encouraged me to keep writing!
February 14, 2024
Książka pozwala lepiej zrozumieć Jane Austen i jej twórczość. Bardzo dokładna, ale w niektórych przypadkach aż zbyt dokładna. Brakowało mi więcej anegdot o Jane i jej życiu interesujących mnie osobiście — coś więcej O NIEJ, a nie np. o jej sąsiadach.
September 25, 2018
One of the most readable biographies of Jane Austen I have ever read. No white-washing. Drawn from correspondence with and between family members, acquaintances, and friends it includes the facts, history, and events of the day, but primarily concentrates on who Jane was as a person. I thoroughly enjoyed it.
January 21, 2018
I expected to find Jane Austen- An Obstinate Heart, a dry and discontinuous read. What I did not count on was that the lives of these two women, Cassandra- two years older and Jane, neither married, living as poor relations of much more wealthy, worldly brothers and other relatives would be so intimate. It is because I know Jane already. Unlike, every other historical woman, I have her words. I do not have to take anyone else's word about who she was or what she did. I have admired every clause and every comma. I have been barely able to breathe watching the PBC version of Pride and Prejudice. I have cringed over and over again when Emma spoke sharply to Miss Bates on Box Hill. I have marveled at Fanny and the plays that she and Edward, two cousins acted out in their copious leisure.
Jane had 6 brothers, the oldest, James, was a reverend, who had the living of his father. The next a man with a disability about whom we know nothing. Edward was adopted at 16 into family to be a rich man> Henry was a lawyer, business man and finally a clergy. The last two, Frank and Charles and became admirals in the Napoleonic wars. Five married and outlived their wives whose creativity was fecundity. Jane had strong relations with her many nieces and nephews.. Jane's favorites was Franny, who grew up in Edward's privileged household and who may have looked down on Jane's poverty.
Jane and her sister had little formal education. They went to two years of something like finishing school. Yet two of fernbrothers went to Oxford. Jane kept abreast of the novelist of the time and seemed to have access to books about serious topics. Family gatherings were enlivened by theater acted out by the siblings.
Jane writes all about love and marriage. Certainly her young life was filled with small balls, much dancing and matching. Although, Jane may probably had other offers, we know of one proposal. It was an offer from a rich man. Jane, said, "yes" in the evening, but no in the morning. She could not live with a man who was not her equal and whom she did not love even if it meant being a spinster. I am sure it was a scandal.
Jane spoke of her books as her babies. Sense and Sensibility came out in 1811, anonymously, paid for by her brother. Pride and Prejudice was a best seller. Emma and Mansfield Park were a little more serious. She received acclaim. She spoke of her work: as working on a little bit of ivory with so fine a brush which produces little effect after much labour.
Sadly, Jane died at 41, most likely of Addison's disease. Her two last novels, Northanger Abby and Persuasion were published posthumously. Her estate of 561 pounds went to her sister.
Jane had 6 brothers, the oldest, James, was a reverend, who had the living of his father. The next a man with a disability about whom we know nothing. Edward was adopted at 16 into family to be a rich man> Henry was a lawyer, business man and finally a clergy. The last two, Frank and Charles and became admirals in the Napoleonic wars. Five married and outlived their wives whose creativity was fecundity. Jane had strong relations with her many nieces and nephews.. Jane's favorites was Franny, who grew up in Edward's privileged household and who may have looked down on Jane's poverty.
Jane and her sister had little formal education. They went to two years of something like finishing school. Yet two of fernbrothers went to Oxford. Jane kept abreast of the novelist of the time and seemed to have access to books about serious topics. Family gatherings were enlivened by theater acted out by the siblings.
Jane writes all about love and marriage. Certainly her young life was filled with small balls, much dancing and matching. Although, Jane may probably had other offers, we know of one proposal. It was an offer from a rich man. Jane, said, "yes" in the evening, but no in the morning. She could not live with a man who was not her equal and whom she did not love even if it meant being a spinster. I am sure it was a scandal.
Jane spoke of her books as her babies. Sense and Sensibility came out in 1811, anonymously, paid for by her brother. Pride and Prejudice was a best seller. Emma and Mansfield Park were a little more serious. She received acclaim. She spoke of her work: as working on a little bit of ivory with so fine a brush which produces little effect after much labour.
Sadly, Jane died at 41, most likely of Addison's disease. Her two last novels, Northanger Abby and Persuasion were published posthumously. Her estate of 561 pounds went to her sister.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 14, 2024
I found it a bit difficult to get into at the beginning with all the family tree info with the repeating of names through several generations. Being a fan of Jane Austin, I persevered and learned a lot about Jane Austin and the difficulties she faced in life along with trying to get her books published. I would recommend this book for Jane Austin fans, but the casual reader may find it a difficult read.
January 19, 2019
Cumbersome read. Fulk of minute details of lace and family calendars, yet this biography does provide important tidbits to a Jane Austen student. Too bad the prose is tedious and the overall organization is odd. Still, I'm glad I read it.
Read
August 28, 2022Czytana przed laty. Odnalazłam ją tutaj na fali niedawnego powrotu do oglądania ekranizacji książek Jane Austen, który miał źródło w Netflixowych Perswazjach 😊, które mimo krytyki bardzo mi się spodobały.
May 15, 2018
WAY to many names to keep up with, so I lost track at times when reading. Also wish the author would have talked more about the process Jane went through when writing her novels.
July 30, 2018
Informative, but I wish there was more regarding Austen's writing process, how she came up with her ideas and characters, etc.
April 26, 2020
Well written and diverse.
July 31, 2021
Ein sehr informatives Buch. Es wird gespoilert, war mir aber egal. Ich wollte mehr über Jane Austen erfahren und ich finde sie immer noch unsympathisch, was nichts mit ihrem Können zu tun hat ….
May 22, 2023
My ADHD said no 🫠 could not get through the outline of the Austen social circle and marriages, wanted to yeet myself across the room (as my second grader would say)
July 19, 2025
Not my cup and either it wasn't very funny or I didn't get the humor within the first 50 pages.
In the hope someone else will like it more I left it at the little free library in the mall.
In the hope someone else will like it more I left it at the little free library in the mall.
August 19, 2017
Of the four Jane Austen biographies I've read this year, this was my favorite one. I was turned off by the cheesy title and struggled to really delve into it, but once I did, I realized how wonderfully comprehensive it was. With other biographies, I learn about specific details or incidents, but with this book I read a detailed chronology of Jane Austen's life, complete with connections to world incidents and family relations. Myer did a wonderful job attempting to use passages from Jane's letters to help explain her sentiments and feelings over certain things. She was the first author to suggest that although Jane might have been wary and a little afraid of childbirth, she could have still wanted children rather than just scorned them because she was indifferent. Jane could have been dismissing something she'd never have, or showing sour grapes.
At times in other biographies, I was confused by Jane's existing letters because they portray a snide, sometimes outrightly rude or sarcastic person, but Myer helped explain Jane's feelings at the time of the writing and her feelings over the subject of the letters. This helped me to understand Jane better and see her as a kind person with typical human faults in a tough situation with no promise of improvement. Life as a poor gentlewoman in Jane's day was not fun, and it made sense that she expressed restlessness and discontent and at times a little jealousy as she grew older. She had to watch fortune after fortune be entailed away or passed over her particular branch of family, leaving her almost penniless save for her own proceeds from book-writing at the time of her death.
This book helped me grow to love Jane Austen the person as well as appreciate the era in which she lived. Myer has to be English herself to be able to explain with such detail and understanding the standards, practices, and beliefs of the day.
At times in other biographies, I was confused by Jane's existing letters because they portray a snide, sometimes outrightly rude or sarcastic person, but Myer helped explain Jane's feelings at the time of the writing and her feelings over the subject of the letters. This helped me to understand Jane better and see her as a kind person with typical human faults in a tough situation with no promise of improvement. Life as a poor gentlewoman in Jane's day was not fun, and it made sense that she expressed restlessness and discontent and at times a little jealousy as she grew older. She had to watch fortune after fortune be entailed away or passed over her particular branch of family, leaving her almost penniless save for her own proceeds from book-writing at the time of her death.
This book helped me grow to love Jane Austen the person as well as appreciate the era in which she lived. Myer has to be English herself to be able to explain with such detail and understanding the standards, practices, and beliefs of the day.
December 11, 2016
I REALLY struggled to finish this book. Nothing but my love for Jane Austen and the fact that I was reading it for a book challenge made me finish. To be fair, I have only read one other biography, so it is possible I just don't like the style biographies are written in or don't understand the limitations of putting one together.
I had a really hard time maintaining any sort of linear train of thought. It felt so disjointed and I really had a hard time keeping all the different people and place straight. It was like I was continually getting snippets of people's conversations and then the conversation changed without explaining what was going on or why a certain statement was important. I kept feeling that I needed to have more background about Jane Austen and her family before I read this book, and then it would have made more sense or made many sections which seemed meaningless, more meaningful.
It was just really terrible I am sad to say.
I had a really hard time maintaining any sort of linear train of thought. It felt so disjointed and I really had a hard time keeping all the different people and place straight. It was like I was continually getting snippets of people's conversations and then the conversation changed without explaining what was going on or why a certain statement was important. I kept feeling that I needed to have more background about Jane Austen and her family before I read this book, and then it would have made more sense or made many sections which seemed meaningless, more meaningful.
It was just really terrible I am sad to say.
January 6, 2016
This biography gives a good impression of Jane Austen's quite hard life and dispels her characterization as an always calm, sweet-minded and even prude dainty lady. Instead it paints her as witty, deeply religious and funny but also having a sharp tongue, being quite unforgiving, and annoyed with relatives. Only the last two chapters really discuss her literary work and unfortunately barely mention which writers influenced her most. For a book that lists and compares prices and incomes so often it doesn't provide any contemporary sums and fails the (non-British) reader in giving any sense of scale. Most impressive are the hardships the mostly poor family underwent, how absurdly many children women had on average, the ridiculous medical practices, and how unappreciated Jane Austen was in her lifetime.
August 4, 2011
As biographies go I felt this effort was mediocre. I do approve the portrayal of Jane Austen as more than a quiet spinster untroubled by her situation in life. Instead she is depicted as feisty, tart, and sometimes not very calm. She seems not to have been content with the plight of women and their helplessness in a man's world. The pride she took in her writing and the positive reception of her books and its monetary reward meant that to a small extent she was making her own way or at the very least contributing to her own maintenance and independence.
June 28, 2015
This book was nice because it talks about Jane Austen's life and times, but she tends to be very negative and to take a pessimistic view of things that i feel are unwarranted because she is not looking at the bigger picture. I don't believe anyone's life is a picture-perfect, but this author seems to think that every thing that Jane writes is caustic and snappy. Sheesh. Despite this though, it is nice to get a peek into Jane Austen's world and family life.
She had such an awesome family!!!
She had such an awesome family!!!
April 11, 2013
The format, switching back and forth between time periods, was difficult to get used to initially. There were also a lot of characters to keep straight. I wonder how much more complete a biography of Jane would be had her sister not destroyed a lot of correspondence between them. Still, I enjoy reading all things Jane so I'm glad I picked this one up.
September 9, 2010
Interesting read of the life and history of Jane Austen, one of my favorite authors. I had to gloss over some of it as Ms. Myer tended to mention many titled people who were "so wholly unconnected" with Jane Austen. I did enjoy learning a little more about that time period.
July 26, 2011
Nobody usually remembers this Austen - and sad to say, there's a good reason for that. Quite confusing, messy, too many characters and too many "change of hearts". Finally the right couple ends up together, but why?
Beats me.
Beats me.
November 21, 2012
A very detailed and informative read about Jane Austen's life. I thoroughly enjoyed it, though occasionally I got a little bogged down in the length of the author's sentences (not a help when one is reading at midnight) and confused about who was who among the myriads of friends and relations.
September 23, 2007
I read it cover to cover in two days (it would have been one if children had not interupted)
January 29, 2010
It was good, but I can't help feeling that Margaret Lane would have done a better job in clarity and readability. Three and a half stars.
April 13, 2010
snore.
October 8, 2015
Very nice biography. Learned a lot about JA!
November 24, 2011
I skimmed huge chunks towards the end. I feel sorry for Austen. I wish she got a happy ending. :(
March 13, 2015
This was a book I started last Christmas and just finish in January. Somewhere between I liked it and it was ok.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 32 reviews