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Emma: A Latter-day Tale
Emma's her name and matchmaking is her game! Quirky life coach Emma wants to help her first-ever client, a lonely nanny named Harriet. But all of her attempts at matchmaking result only in embarrassing miscues and blunders, leaving the pair disheartened and confused. This modern take on the Jane Austen classic shows that sometimes the greatest match is the one we make for ourselves.
256 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2013
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 140 reviews
August 9, 2013
This book is true to the spirit and story of Jane Austen's Emma. This book is set near Washington DC, rather than England. It is also set in the modern day. The characters are also members of the LDS faith.
Emma takes great joy in helping others achieve success in romance. She has just helped her relative and best friend find romance and marriage. Buoyed by this achievement she sets her sights on Harriet, or Harri, the new nanny in town. She finds the perfect young man for her, but as in the original, her best laid plans do not always bring about the predicted results. In fact, sometimes they bring misery!
I love Jane Austen's work. It is fun to read modern day retellings. They help to bring to life Jane Austen's work in a setting and situation that we are a little more familiar with. This is a book to read just because you want to enjoy a story.
This book is clean and appropriate for all ages. If you have a hard time with the language of Jane Austen's writing, but want to have a taste for one of her stories, you may want to read this book!
Emma takes great joy in helping others achieve success in romance. She has just helped her relative and best friend find romance and marriage. Buoyed by this achievement she sets her sights on Harriet, or Harri, the new nanny in town. She finds the perfect young man for her, but as in the original, her best laid plans do not always bring about the predicted results. In fact, sometimes they bring misery!
I love Jane Austen's work. It is fun to read modern day retellings. They help to bring to life Jane Austen's work in a setting and situation that we are a little more familiar with. This is a book to read just because you want to enjoy a story.
This book is clean and appropriate for all ages. If you have a hard time with the language of Jane Austen's writing, but want to have a taste for one of her stories, you may want to read this book!
July 24, 2013
I really enjoyed this modern LDS version of Emma. I thought this story was told in a fun way and I love the modern twists.
Emma, Emma, Emma. I was almost embarrassed for her at times because she was so focused on her life coaching and "helping" that she often made a mess of things--without meaning to, of course. What I also really liked is that Emma was this 6 foot tall woman with flaming red hair, that she insisted on calling auburn, who tried so hard to be a good person, yet wasn't perfect at all. Not at all. There were times when I wanted to snap at Emma to wake her up to see what was right in front of her, but...that's just a part of the story.
I really enjoyed the cast of characters who were all so different, yet they had similar threads that tied them together. I mean, we have a rising country music star, an elusive businessman (who also happens to be a new step cousin, I believe), a nanny, interesting neighbors, a father who can't cut the apron strings, and unique friends from church.
I found myself often groaning or smiling and really enjoying the story. So...if you're a fan of modern re-tellings of classic Austen stories, be sure to pick this one up.
Content: clean.
Emma, Emma, Emma. I was almost embarrassed for her at times because she was so focused on her life coaching and "helping" that she often made a mess of things--without meaning to, of course. What I also really liked is that Emma was this 6 foot tall woman with flaming red hair, that she insisted on calling auburn, who tried so hard to be a good person, yet wasn't perfect at all. Not at all. There were times when I wanted to snap at Emma to wake her up to see what was right in front of her, but...that's just a part of the story.
I really enjoyed the cast of characters who were all so different, yet they had similar threads that tied them together. I mean, we have a rising country music star, an elusive businessman (who also happens to be a new step cousin, I believe), a nanny, interesting neighbors, a father who can't cut the apron strings, and unique friends from church.
I found myself often groaning or smiling and really enjoying the story. So...if you're a fan of modern re-tellings of classic Austen stories, be sure to pick this one up.
Content: clean.
July 27, 2013
I thought this was a fun retelling of Jane Austen’s Emma. It sticks pretty closely to the format of the original, but does do its own thing. Especially towards the end. I liked when it changed things up a bit and became more unique. I think I liked Emma more in the original version, but she was still okay in this one and you still root for her to figure things out. I didn’t feel as much chemistry between her and Justin, but I still liked their relationship. Overall, it was a fun romantic comedy and would recommend to any Austen fans or for anyone that enjoys that genre.
Content: Clean, G.
Content: Clean, G.
June 15, 2013
... I saw this available on Netgalley and wondered if I should request it. First, while raised LDS, and still having the outward appearance of a good Mormon girl, I am personally struggling with religion. I generally have not cared for books with a highly religious theme, they turn me off. I was glad I gave this book a chance though, as though while it was very LDS in nature, it wasn't preachy at all, so I didn't feel sad or uncomfortable while reading it. I was just able to appreciate all the LDS references (and there were a LOT). I'm sure many a Mormon girl will enjoy this cute clean romance.
My second hesitation in requesting this book was I have not read "Emma" by Jane Austen. P&P is actually one of my all time favorites, but I just had not branched out into her other offerings. I had seen the movie that came out a few years ago, but didn't remember it enough. As I started reading, I did want to recognize the parallels to the original. I re-watched the movie before finishing the book. While I don't know how true to the book the movie was, this "latter day telling" did really follow the main storyline, although there were certainly plenty of original additions along the way.
I really enjoyed the small "Coach's Tip of the Day" that started each chapter. They were cute and clever, and a few of them profound. "The more you share your goals, the more likely you are to achieve them."
I wasn't sure about Emma's fascination with food. Harri had a weight problem previously, so it would have made a little more sense to see her obsessing about eating. There was just a lot of text about it, and I wasn't sure why ...
I was also a little skeptical of the creative ways of asking a girl out ... now I'm totally familiar with that for Prom or other high school dances, but does anyone do that AFTER high school, for regular dates, not a dance?
... and then there was the talk of Irish Spring. For some reason, it totally jumped out at me. It felt like product placement. I mean, I like Irish Spring, it's what my hubby uses ... but here instead of saying the name, I think a generality of "soap" would have felt less out of place.
It was a quick, easy and enjoyable read. A bit eye-rolling at times (as you think, seriously WHAT are you doing??) but I give it a thumbs up, especially for an LDS audience.
My second hesitation in requesting this book was I have not read "Emma" by Jane Austen. P&P is actually one of my all time favorites, but I just had not branched out into her other offerings. I had seen the movie that came out a few years ago, but didn't remember it enough. As I started reading, I did want to recognize the parallels to the original. I re-watched the movie before finishing the book. While I don't know how true to the book the movie was, this "latter day telling" did really follow the main storyline, although there were certainly plenty of original additions along the way.
I really enjoyed the small "Coach's Tip of the Day" that started each chapter. They were cute and clever, and a few of them profound. "The more you share your goals, the more likely you are to achieve them."
I wasn't sure about Emma's fascination with food. Harri had a weight problem previously, so it would have made a little more sense to see her obsessing about eating. There was just a lot of text about it, and I wasn't sure why ...
I was also a little skeptical of the creative ways of asking a girl out ... now I'm totally familiar with that for Prom or other high school dances, but does anyone do that AFTER high school, for regular dates, not a dance?
... and then there was the talk of Irish Spring. For some reason, it totally jumped out at me. It felt like product placement. I mean, I like Irish Spring, it's what my hubby uses ... but here instead of saying the name, I think a generality of "soap" would have felt less out of place.
It was a quick, easy and enjoyable read. A bit eye-rolling at times (as you think, seriously WHAT are you doing??) but I give it a thumbs up, especially for an LDS audience.
August 13, 2013
First off, let me say that Emma is one of those characters from Austen's repertoire of female leads that you either take to right away or find slightly off-putting with her need to "help" other people. I always seemed to find myself in that second category, but liked to see the development of her character over time and enjoyed seeing her taken down a peg by Mr. Knightley as she learned that maybe her ways are not always the best or seemingly correct all of the time. (We all learn that, right?) It's that humility moment though that makes me learn to like her, so I always stick with her.
Well, as an avid "Janeite," I've read or watched a lot of different variations of Austen's novels. I thought this Emma was cute and endearing, although slightly pushy at times in her desire to coach others--especially Harriet, or Harri as they call her. What I wasn't expecting was the strong Latter-day Saint cultural reference points for the novel. Okay, so the title states it pretty explicitly, but I somehow naively thought it would just be part of the cultural backdrop of the story. It actually played a pretty cultural forefont in the novel with single adult activities, missionaries, and a conversion and baptism in the story that I didn't see coming. I won't lie; it felt odd in an Austen tale. I was just thinking romantic tale, not religion.
The real highlight in the story had to be Justin, or our Mr. Knightley. He was SPOT ON in my book. I loved him from the get go and found myself scanning pages to find him. (Is that bad?) He was so well paired with Jamison's character Emma that I knew she'd written him just right, but you couldn't help but wish you could interview him and say, "What in the world do you see in her right at the beginning that we're not?!?" Over time, you start to see it and understand that he is just a little older than she is and sees the world differently--thank goodness. In short, I thought Justin was a cutey. Emma just had to grow up a bit.
I can't say that Emma still ranks up there on my chart of favorite characters, but I like that Austen gives us a character with some gumption to speak up! This Emma is no different, so good for her as well. If you're up for a more religious, squeaky clean sort of read, this is a version you might wander into.
Well, as an avid "Janeite," I've read or watched a lot of different variations of Austen's novels. I thought this Emma was cute and endearing, although slightly pushy at times in her desire to coach others--especially Harriet, or Harri as they call her. What I wasn't expecting was the strong Latter-day Saint cultural reference points for the novel. Okay, so the title states it pretty explicitly, but I somehow naively thought it would just be part of the cultural backdrop of the story. It actually played a pretty cultural forefont in the novel with single adult activities, missionaries, and a conversion and baptism in the story that I didn't see coming. I won't lie; it felt odd in an Austen tale. I was just thinking romantic tale, not religion.
The real highlight in the story had to be Justin, or our Mr. Knightley. He was SPOT ON in my book. I loved him from the get go and found myself scanning pages to find him. (Is that bad?) He was so well paired with Jamison's character Emma that I knew she'd written him just right, but you couldn't help but wish you could interview him and say, "What in the world do you see in her right at the beginning that we're not?!?" Over time, you start to see it and understand that he is just a little older than she is and sees the world differently--thank goodness. In short, I thought Justin was a cutey. Emma just had to grow up a bit.
I can't say that Emma still ranks up there on my chart of favorite characters, but I like that Austen gives us a character with some gumption to speak up! This Emma is no different, so good for her as well. If you're up for a more religious, squeaky clean sort of read, this is a version you might wander into.
May 6, 2023
I really liked Emma by Jane Austen and I dived into this version of Emma, hoping that the modern twist added something to the story. Unfortunately, it didn’t. At all. I actually ended up hating this.
I love Emma in the original version – she is selfish and self-absorbed and a bit stupid at times, but she is written so beautifully that I couldn’t dislike her. I saw myself in her (…even though that may not be a good thing…) and I adored reading about her struggles and her growth. This version of Emma just annoyed me. She is such a pain in my butt and I don’t think she shows any growth. She has no good qualities and I cannot fathom why Harri and Justin put up with her and that made the love-part of the story seem so much more unrealistic. Emma was just too unlovable though the story and she treats everybody like crap. Someone should tell her to stop herself and NOT apologize to her afterwards.
The modern twist didn’t do anything for the story and it was such a small part of it. Facebook was shortly mentioned and they called each other on phones (except when there is a blackout – how convenient for the story!) but is seemed like random mentions and was not explored and used like I would have liked it to.
Nowhere in the blurp did it hint that religion was a big part of the story. I can’t remember that religion was an important part of the original Emma (and I would have remembered) but in this version it was too much. At least that’s how I felt. I’m not big on religion in books and especially when change in the characters has to do with divine intervention instead of personal growth.
Besides, any book that talks trash about Gone With the Wind loses one star per default. I loved both book and movie and the fact that Emma dislikes it just made me dislike her even more! This was definitely not a book for me.
I love Emma in the original version – she is selfish and self-absorbed and a bit stupid at times, but she is written so beautifully that I couldn’t dislike her. I saw myself in her (…even though that may not be a good thing…) and I adored reading about her struggles and her growth. This version of Emma just annoyed me. She is such a pain in my butt and I don’t think she shows any growth. She has no good qualities and I cannot fathom why Harri and Justin put up with her and that made the love-part of the story seem so much more unrealistic. Emma was just too unlovable though the story and she treats everybody like crap. Someone should tell her to stop herself and NOT apologize to her afterwards.
The modern twist didn’t do anything for the story and it was such a small part of it. Facebook was shortly mentioned and they called each other on phones (except when there is a blackout – how convenient for the story!) but is seemed like random mentions and was not explored and used like I would have liked it to.
Nowhere in the blurp did it hint that religion was a big part of the story. I can’t remember that religion was an important part of the original Emma (and I would have remembered) but in this version it was too much. At least that’s how I felt. I’m not big on religion in books and especially when change in the characters has to do with divine intervention instead of personal growth.
Besides, any book that talks trash about Gone With the Wind loses one star per default. I loved both book and movie and the fact that Emma dislikes it just made me dislike her even more! This was definitely not a book for me.
July 13, 2013
2.5 stars
I thought Emma: A Latter Day Tale sounded like a fun retelling of a Jane Austen book that I have read and loved previously. However I missed a big clue in the name. A latter day tale is hinting that this book is set within the mormon community which I wasn't expecting and put a different spin on the story.
Even thought I read most genres, the genre I always avoid is Christian Fiction (even though I am one) as this just isn't something I want to read about. It doesn't appeal to me and I don't want a book to preach at me.
And unfortunately I felt that Emma did just that. It was squeaky clean which was good for a Jane Austen book but I thought the retelling would be more relevant to todays world. It certainly doesn't sound like any world that I live in. For example a 17 year that that is worried that no one will marry her, I just can't make that ring true for me.
However the characters do resemble the JA characters faithfully and the story follows the same path as the original with a few twists. Such as Emma in this book is an aspiring life coach which I thought was a fun avenue for her take. Similar to the original Emma is likeable and infuriating all the same time, meddling but well intentioned and always misguided in her matchmaking skills.
Overall this book was ok but I feel that it should be labelled as Christian Fiction as that is what it is. I started the book feeling that I had been mislead by the synopsis and I never really recovered after that.
Thanks to NetGalley and Cedar Fort, Inc. for giving me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest, unbiased review.
I thought Emma: A Latter Day Tale sounded like a fun retelling of a Jane Austen book that I have read and loved previously. However I missed a big clue in the name. A latter day tale is hinting that this book is set within the mormon community which I wasn't expecting and put a different spin on the story.
Even thought I read most genres, the genre I always avoid is Christian Fiction (even though I am one) as this just isn't something I want to read about. It doesn't appeal to me and I don't want a book to preach at me.
And unfortunately I felt that Emma did just that. It was squeaky clean which was good for a Jane Austen book but I thought the retelling would be more relevant to todays world. It certainly doesn't sound like any world that I live in. For example a 17 year that that is worried that no one will marry her, I just can't make that ring true for me.
However the characters do resemble the JA characters faithfully and the story follows the same path as the original with a few twists. Such as Emma in this book is an aspiring life coach which I thought was a fun avenue for her take. Similar to the original Emma is likeable and infuriating all the same time, meddling but well intentioned and always misguided in her matchmaking skills.
Overall this book was ok but I feel that it should be labelled as Christian Fiction as that is what it is. I started the book feeling that I had been mislead by the synopsis and I never really recovered after that.
Thanks to NetGalley and Cedar Fort, Inc. for giving me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest, unbiased review.
August 18, 2013
Emma: A Latter - day Tale
By Rebecca H. Jamison
Summery courtesy of goodreads.com
Emma's her name and matchmaking is her game! Quirky life coach Emma wants to help her first-ever client, a lonely nanny named Harriet. But all of her attempts at matchmaking result only in embarrassing miscues and blunders, leaving the pair disheartened and confused. This modern take on the Jane Austen classic shows that sometimes the greatest match is the one we make for ourselves.
Review
I love Jane Austins book Emma,so reading this book was like visiting as old friend and discovering she's had a makeover, as Rebecca H. Jamison narrative is set in a modern setting.
Emma has a new found talent for matchmaking, she's successfully just helped her best friend find love and marriage. Thanks to this one success she thinks that she now has the relevant experience and credentials to help Harriet, (Harri), the new nanny in town.
After much convincing and badgering on her part,she finds the perfect young man for her, but as in the original, her best laid plans don't bring the predicted results.
I had two problems with this novel, firstly I hated that she used the original names from the Austin original- seriously Emma, Knightley, Harriet and Mrs Bates.
It would have been much more interesting and would have made the story more relevant if Rebecca H. Jamison had used different names, it made it all to predictable. Secondary I didn't
like the religious aspect it didn't fit in with the story, I felt it was a bit over done.
2.5 Stars
By Rebecca H. Jamison
Summery courtesy of goodreads.com
Emma's her name and matchmaking is her game! Quirky life coach Emma wants to help her first-ever client, a lonely nanny named Harriet. But all of her attempts at matchmaking result only in embarrassing miscues and blunders, leaving the pair disheartened and confused. This modern take on the Jane Austen classic shows that sometimes the greatest match is the one we make for ourselves.
Review
I love Jane Austins book Emma,so reading this book was like visiting as old friend and discovering she's had a makeover, as Rebecca H. Jamison narrative is set in a modern setting.
Emma has a new found talent for matchmaking, she's successfully just helped her best friend find love and marriage. Thanks to this one success she thinks that she now has the relevant experience and credentials to help Harriet, (Harri), the new nanny in town.
After much convincing and badgering on her part,she finds the perfect young man for her, but as in the original, her best laid plans don't bring the predicted results.
I had two problems with this novel, firstly I hated that she used the original names from the Austin original- seriously Emma, Knightley, Harriet and Mrs Bates.
It would have been much more interesting and would have made the story more relevant if Rebecca H. Jamison had used different names, it made it all to predictable. Secondary I didn't
like the religious aspect it didn't fit in with the story, I felt it was a bit over done.
2.5 Stars
August 5, 2013
This is an LDS fiction book and retelling of the classic, Emma (which I love, btw). Jane Austen is one of my very favorite's. I love modern day re-tellings of old classics.
One thing that I loved was knowing basically how the story would unfold but wondering how the author would go about it in the world of today. I guess that's what makes re-tellings great.
Modern day Emma was endearing even though her many mistakes. Her intentions are good but things just always seem to go wrong because Emma doesn't always take the most thought through approach. She is often blinded by what she wants instead of what others may be feeling and thinking. I was rooting for Emma to figure things out and make good with everyone.
I thought Justin was a good character but I didn't really connect with him. I could see his good qualities and patience with Emma, but I didn't feel that growing attraction from him. I don't think the sparks really flew at any point between Emma and Justin but it was a sweet relationship that finally came round. I just wanted to feel more of a connection to Justin and feel his attraction to Emma.
This book is squeeky clean and a very fun read. I loved the modern cross over of characters. I read through this book very quickly. It was interesting and kept my attention. I also loved the Virginia setting as I lived there for a short period of time. I love Virginia. :)
One thing that I loved was knowing basically how the story would unfold but wondering how the author would go about it in the world of today. I guess that's what makes re-tellings great.
Modern day Emma was endearing even though her many mistakes. Her intentions are good but things just always seem to go wrong because Emma doesn't always take the most thought through approach. She is often blinded by what she wants instead of what others may be feeling and thinking. I was rooting for Emma to figure things out and make good with everyone.
I thought Justin was a good character but I didn't really connect with him. I could see his good qualities and patience with Emma, but I didn't feel that growing attraction from him. I don't think the sparks really flew at any point between Emma and Justin but it was a sweet relationship that finally came round. I just wanted to feel more of a connection to Justin and feel his attraction to Emma.
This book is squeeky clean and a very fun read. I loved the modern cross over of characters. I read through this book very quickly. It was interesting and kept my attention. I also loved the Virginia setting as I lived there for a short period of time. I love Virginia. :)
August 2, 2013
4 STARS
I have never read Emma by Jane Austen so I can't compare the two stories together. This Emma A Latter-day Tale I liked. I liked the characters, At times I smiled, could not believe that one of the characters did that. It is a fun clean read with some good points in the story. It is a LDS Novel so their are church terms or names that some might not know. It also talks about Prayer, That we can be forgiven for our sins through Jesus Christ.
Emma wants to be a life coach. She does not plan to get married for along time. She does want to find a new best friend because hers got married. She has a crush on a guy she has yet to meet.
Emma wants to help people but she makes a lot of mistakes and hurts people, but asks to be forgiven and makes amends.
Emma tries to be a matchmaker with two people in her church but it backfires and does more damage. She keeps trying when I would just want to disappear after making some of her mistakes.
I really enjoyed reading Emma: A Latter-day Tale. This is the second book of Rebecca's that I have read and have enjoyed both of them. I look forward to reading another book by her in the future.
I was given this book and asked to give honest review of it when finished by NetGalley and Cedar Fort.
publication: August 13th 2013 by Bonneville Cedar Fort Inc. ISBN 9781462112609 256 pages
July 11, 2013
Keep in mind that I write this review without having finished reading Emma by Jane Austen and that I have only seen the movie so far. I’m getting around to reading it, perhaps just not yet.
This is the book that I picked up right after reading The Reluctant Blogger, so yes I was kind of aware of some Mormon things (because both of these feature a lot of LDS customs etc.). But I was also over it. Especially since the whole LDS scene didn’t add anything to the story, it felt a bit pointless to base this so heavily in this religious atmosphere. While watching the movie I never really liked Emma and reading this book didn’t give me a better opinion of her either. The contemporary backdrop made her even more annoying in my opinion, because she could have done other things. Women are emancipated now, they can have jobs and all that so they don’t need to keep themselves busy with “projects” anymore. I know Emma was a life coach, but somehow this didn’t feel at all like life coaching and more like taking over someone’s life and sort of making every decision for them. But I will admit that my annoyance with the book lay with the LDS thing for the most part. I didn’t really enjoy this book but the writing was okay and I liked the quotes at the beginning of every chapter.
This is the book that I picked up right after reading The Reluctant Blogger, so yes I was kind of aware of some Mormon things (because both of these feature a lot of LDS customs etc.). But I was also over it. Especially since the whole LDS scene didn’t add anything to the story, it felt a bit pointless to base this so heavily in this religious atmosphere. While watching the movie I never really liked Emma and reading this book didn’t give me a better opinion of her either. The contemporary backdrop made her even more annoying in my opinion, because she could have done other things. Women are emancipated now, they can have jobs and all that so they don’t need to keep themselves busy with “projects” anymore. I know Emma was a life coach, but somehow this didn’t feel at all like life coaching and more like taking over someone’s life and sort of making every decision for them. But I will admit that my annoyance with the book lay with the LDS thing for the most part. I didn’t really enjoy this book but the writing was okay and I liked the quotes at the beginning of every chapter.
December 1, 2014
When I first started reading this book I wasn't so sure I was going to like it because I thought I already knew what was going to happen and knew who the various characters were. However, once I got through the first few chapters I started to really enjoy it. Overall I thought it was a cute, well done, retelling of Emma.
May 16, 2016
Vienna, Virginia è una perfetta Highbury
Quando ho scelto di leggere questo libro pensavo di trovarmi davanti a un retelling moderno di Emma (tra l'altro, l'autrice ha scritto i retelling anche di altri romanzi austeniani).
Se fossi stata americana mi sarei resa conto subito che il titolo di questo romanzo conteneva delle chiare parole chiave. Latter Day non voleva dire "dei giorni nostri", bensì "degli Ultimi Giorni", come riferimento ai Santi degli Ultimi Giorni, ovvero alla religione mormone.
Ho cominciato a comprendere che si trattava di un romanzo "christian" e in particolare mormone – o, come si dice in America, dove si tende a ridurre tutto a una sigla, LDS, Latter Day Saints – quando ho tradotto la descrizione del libro dall'inglese, in quanto mi sono trovata davanti il termine "life coach". Cosa poteva voler dire? Ho capito che si trattava di una sorta di guida spirituale, un lavoro – o meglio, una missione – che si addice moltissimo a Emma, in effetti. E, naturalmente, Harriet era perfetta come sua prima "cliente".
[Perdonatemi se i vocaboli non sono precisi a descrivere il ruolo che ciascun membro ha nella loro comunità, ma non conosco bene questo culto.]
Insomma, mi sono resa conto che questo non poteva essere un libro adatto a un Gruppo di Lettura di Old Friends & New Fancies, perché non potevo imporre questa lettura a tutti i nostri lettori – che però sono liberissimi di leggerlo autonomamente, dato che si tratta di una buon retelling.
Dopo aver preso questa decisione, ho continuato a leggere il libro senza preconcetti, limitandomi a seguire la storia, senza approfondire l'ideologia dietro alla piccola comunità mormone di Vienna, in North Virginia.
E così mi sono resa conto che, in effetti, Vienna e i suoi abitanti funzionavano alla perfezione nella trasposizione in chiave moderna di Highbury.
Emma si trova a vivere col padre, un dottore in pensione che lavora ancora via web (non è chiaro se "dottore" significhi medico o sia un ruolo ben preciso nella comunità mormone; probabilmente entrambe le cose). La moglie è morta per un incidente d'auto su una strada ghiacciata quando Emma aveva sei anni, ragion per cui la ragazza non si è mai allontanata troppo da casa, e quando è venuto il momento di andare all'università, lo ha fatto restando a Vienna.
Questo, purtroppo, ha fatto sì che la ragazza non si applicasse fino in fondo negli studi e, ogni volta, proprio quando era in dirittura d'arrivo, ha tirato i remi in barca, rinunciando temporaneamente – almeno, così dice lei – a raggiungere l'obiettivo che si era prefissa inizialmente. Adesso, però, è decisa a diventare assistente spirituale (life coach) e, mentre segue un corso online, comincia a esercitare cercando di aiutare la giovanissima Harriet (che si fa chiamare Harri), una giovane tata con pochissima autostima.
Poiché sospetta che Phil Elton, un nuovo membro della comunità, sia alla ricerca di una fidanzata, dal momento che ha trovato un profilo che potrebbe essere il suo su un sito di appuntamenti online, Emma cerca di metterlo insieme alla sua amica, come ha fatto con Tanya, la sorella di sua madre, che ha cresciuto Emma e Isabella dalla morte di Mrs. Woodhouse. È stata Emma, infatti, a far sposare Tanya con Randall Weston.
Come potete vedere, i personaggi hanno molto in comune con gli originali, con delle piccole varianti che li rendono realistici. Tanya funziona meglio come zia che come istitutrice, in effetti (chi ha un'istitutrice ai giorni nostri?). Del resto, Vienna si trova a un tiro di schioppo da Washington, così come Highbury è vicinissima a Londra.
Justin Knightley è il ricco vicino di casa dei Woodhouse, e suo fratello ha sposato Isabella e si è trasferito a Washington. Tutto molto vicino all'originale, persino la tendenza di Knightley a rimproverare Emma e a spronarla a conseguire i propri obiettivi.
Per quanto riguarda il personaggio di Miss Bates, in questo caso è un membro molto stimato della comunità e non è una "Miss", ma una vedova, Barbara Bates. Naturalmente, come l'originale, ha la tendenza a parlare un po' troppo, spesso partendo per la tangente. Jane Fairfax non è sua nipote bensì sua figlia – un motivo in più per cantarne le lodi. Il nome che le ha attribuito la Jamison è Jena Farley, e la ragazza abita in Tennessee, a Nashville, dove è una cantante country piuttosto affermata, soprattutto perché, oltre a essere molto brava, è stata presa sotto l'ala protettrice di una coppia di cantanti molto famosi, Reggie Van Camp e Veronica Dixon. Reggie, in particolare, ha cantato numerosi duetti con Jena, dal momento che la sua voce si sposa meglio di quella della moglie Veronica con la propria. Ecco che la nostra Emma inizia a fare supposizioni maliziose sulla vera natura di questa scelta.
Emma è un po' invidiosa di Jena non tanto perché è diventata una famosa cantante, bensì per la sua capacità di conseguire tutti gli obiettivi che si prefigge, al contrario di lei.
Quando Jena torna a far visita alla madre a Vienna, è spesso fermata dai fan, che chiedono autografi e foto con la loro beniamina. È chiaro che la ragazza voglia sfuggire ai paparazzi, anche se non è chiaro il motivo per cui voglia tenere nascosta una sua possibile storia d'amore. Emma sospetta che ci sia qualcosa d'illecito, dal momento che Jena è continuamente col telefono in mano a scambiare messaggi con un interlocutore misterioso.
Hank Weston (ovvero Frank Churchill) non va a fare visita al padre perché la madre – da cui Randall Weston ha divorziato molto tempo prima – ha problemi di salute. Ma, col ritorno di Jena Farley, anche lui arriva a Vienna...
Ci sono numerosi riferimenti a internet, a facebook e a smartphone piuttosto recenti, ma la comunità resta sempre piuttosto ristretta, ricreando una Highbury contemporanea e credibile, cosa che McCall Smith non è riuscito a fare nel suo modern retelling, che sembra sospeso in un periodo storico indefinito.
Naturalmente non vi racconto come la Jamison ha "tradotto" i vari episodi del romanzo originale, sappiate però che spesso essi hanno un risvolto religioso, caratteristico del culto mormone.
Il racconto è reso in prima persona dalla voce di Emma, e ogni capitolo si apre con il "consiglio del giorno" dell'aspirante assistente spirituale. Un consiglio che scaturisce da quel che accadrà nel corso del capitolo.
Un buon retelling, che vi consiglio di leggere se volete trovare una Highbury credibile in chiave moderna, ma di cui sconsiglierei forse la traduzione, dal momento che considero i libri christian nient'altro che "conduct books", libri che indirizzano le signore e le signorine "perbene" a una vita morigerata, cristiana, decorosa. Dei libri forse un po' troppo moralisti per i miei gusti, che ci riportano indietro agli anni '50, o, addirittura, ai tempi di Jane Austen.
Potete leggere la recensione completa QUI:
http://ildiariodellelizzies.blogspot....
Quando ho scelto di leggere questo libro pensavo di trovarmi davanti a un retelling moderno di Emma (tra l'altro, l'autrice ha scritto i retelling anche di altri romanzi austeniani).
Se fossi stata americana mi sarei resa conto subito che il titolo di questo romanzo conteneva delle chiare parole chiave. Latter Day non voleva dire "dei giorni nostri", bensì "degli Ultimi Giorni", come riferimento ai Santi degli Ultimi Giorni, ovvero alla religione mormone.
Ho cominciato a comprendere che si trattava di un romanzo "christian" e in particolare mormone – o, come si dice in America, dove si tende a ridurre tutto a una sigla, LDS, Latter Day Saints – quando ho tradotto la descrizione del libro dall'inglese, in quanto mi sono trovata davanti il termine "life coach". Cosa poteva voler dire? Ho capito che si trattava di una sorta di guida spirituale, un lavoro – o meglio, una missione – che si addice moltissimo a Emma, in effetti. E, naturalmente, Harriet era perfetta come sua prima "cliente".
[Perdonatemi se i vocaboli non sono precisi a descrivere il ruolo che ciascun membro ha nella loro comunità, ma non conosco bene questo culto.]
Insomma, mi sono resa conto che questo non poteva essere un libro adatto a un Gruppo di Lettura di Old Friends & New Fancies, perché non potevo imporre questa lettura a tutti i nostri lettori – che però sono liberissimi di leggerlo autonomamente, dato che si tratta di una buon retelling.
Dopo aver preso questa decisione, ho continuato a leggere il libro senza preconcetti, limitandomi a seguire la storia, senza approfondire l'ideologia dietro alla piccola comunità mormone di Vienna, in North Virginia.
E così mi sono resa conto che, in effetti, Vienna e i suoi abitanti funzionavano alla perfezione nella trasposizione in chiave moderna di Highbury.
Emma si trova a vivere col padre, un dottore in pensione che lavora ancora via web (non è chiaro se "dottore" significhi medico o sia un ruolo ben preciso nella comunità mormone; probabilmente entrambe le cose). La moglie è morta per un incidente d'auto su una strada ghiacciata quando Emma aveva sei anni, ragion per cui la ragazza non si è mai allontanata troppo da casa, e quando è venuto il momento di andare all'università, lo ha fatto restando a Vienna.
Questo, purtroppo, ha fatto sì che la ragazza non si applicasse fino in fondo negli studi e, ogni volta, proprio quando era in dirittura d'arrivo, ha tirato i remi in barca, rinunciando temporaneamente – almeno, così dice lei – a raggiungere l'obiettivo che si era prefissa inizialmente. Adesso, però, è decisa a diventare assistente spirituale (life coach) e, mentre segue un corso online, comincia a esercitare cercando di aiutare la giovanissima Harriet (che si fa chiamare Harri), una giovane tata con pochissima autostima.
Poiché sospetta che Phil Elton, un nuovo membro della comunità, sia alla ricerca di una fidanzata, dal momento che ha trovato un profilo che potrebbe essere il suo su un sito di appuntamenti online, Emma cerca di metterlo insieme alla sua amica, come ha fatto con Tanya, la sorella di sua madre, che ha cresciuto Emma e Isabella dalla morte di Mrs. Woodhouse. È stata Emma, infatti, a far sposare Tanya con Randall Weston.
Come potete vedere, i personaggi hanno molto in comune con gli originali, con delle piccole varianti che li rendono realistici. Tanya funziona meglio come zia che come istitutrice, in effetti (chi ha un'istitutrice ai giorni nostri?). Del resto, Vienna si trova a un tiro di schioppo da Washington, così come Highbury è vicinissima a Londra.
Justin Knightley è il ricco vicino di casa dei Woodhouse, e suo fratello ha sposato Isabella e si è trasferito a Washington. Tutto molto vicino all'originale, persino la tendenza di Knightley a rimproverare Emma e a spronarla a conseguire i propri obiettivi.
Per quanto riguarda il personaggio di Miss Bates, in questo caso è un membro molto stimato della comunità e non è una "Miss", ma una vedova, Barbara Bates. Naturalmente, come l'originale, ha la tendenza a parlare un po' troppo, spesso partendo per la tangente. Jane Fairfax non è sua nipote bensì sua figlia – un motivo in più per cantarne le lodi. Il nome che le ha attribuito la Jamison è Jena Farley, e la ragazza abita in Tennessee, a Nashville, dove è una cantante country piuttosto affermata, soprattutto perché, oltre a essere molto brava, è stata presa sotto l'ala protettrice di una coppia di cantanti molto famosi, Reggie Van Camp e Veronica Dixon. Reggie, in particolare, ha cantato numerosi duetti con Jena, dal momento che la sua voce si sposa meglio di quella della moglie Veronica con la propria. Ecco che la nostra Emma inizia a fare supposizioni maliziose sulla vera natura di questa scelta.
Emma è un po' invidiosa di Jena non tanto perché è diventata una famosa cantante, bensì per la sua capacità di conseguire tutti gli obiettivi che si prefigge, al contrario di lei.
Quando Jena torna a far visita alla madre a Vienna, è spesso fermata dai fan, che chiedono autografi e foto con la loro beniamina. È chiaro che la ragazza voglia sfuggire ai paparazzi, anche se non è chiaro il motivo per cui voglia tenere nascosta una sua possibile storia d'amore. Emma sospetta che ci sia qualcosa d'illecito, dal momento che Jena è continuamente col telefono in mano a scambiare messaggi con un interlocutore misterioso.
Hank Weston (ovvero Frank Churchill) non va a fare visita al padre perché la madre – da cui Randall Weston ha divorziato molto tempo prima – ha problemi di salute. Ma, col ritorno di Jena Farley, anche lui arriva a Vienna...
Ci sono numerosi riferimenti a internet, a facebook e a smartphone piuttosto recenti, ma la comunità resta sempre piuttosto ristretta, ricreando una Highbury contemporanea e credibile, cosa che McCall Smith non è riuscito a fare nel suo modern retelling, che sembra sospeso in un periodo storico indefinito.
Naturalmente non vi racconto come la Jamison ha "tradotto" i vari episodi del romanzo originale, sappiate però che spesso essi hanno un risvolto religioso, caratteristico del culto mormone.
Il racconto è reso in prima persona dalla voce di Emma, e ogni capitolo si apre con il "consiglio del giorno" dell'aspirante assistente spirituale. Un consiglio che scaturisce da quel che accadrà nel corso del capitolo.
Un buon retelling, che vi consiglio di leggere se volete trovare una Highbury credibile in chiave moderna, ma di cui sconsiglierei forse la traduzione, dal momento che considero i libri christian nient'altro che "conduct books", libri che indirizzano le signore e le signorine "perbene" a una vita morigerata, cristiana, decorosa. Dei libri forse un po' troppo moralisti per i miei gusti, che ci riportano indietro agli anni '50, o, addirittura, ai tempi di Jane Austen.
Potete leggere la recensione completa QUI:
http://ildiariodellelizzies.blogspot....
October 19, 2024
To be completely honest, the only Jane Austen book I have read was Pride and Prejudice (which I loved!). I'm not sure whether my dislike of this book can be attributed to the original plot/characters in general or just the writing style. It read like a fanfic, which, to be fair, it kind of is.
So, here's my brutally honest opinion of the book...
The characters made me want to shake them... There was a part when a character called Emma "so witty," and (while stiffling ironic laughter) my first thought was, "Really? When?" It seemed like her whole story arc was learning to stop making dumb decisions... Was she supposed to be witty? There wasn't really much evidence of that quality through anything plot-related.
The dialogue was painful. The characters were unlikable. The ending was horrendously cringe-worthy. Stomping all over her best friend's feelings with little forethought or remorse, the protagonist's behavior was the epitome of asking forgiveness rather than permission...
Anyway, I could write a novel about not loving this one; it might be more enjoyable to fans of the original, but without that context, it just made for one painful read.
So, here's my brutally honest opinion of the book...
The characters made me want to shake them... There was a part when a character called Emma "so witty," and (while stiffling ironic laughter) my first thought was, "Really? When?" It seemed like her whole story arc was learning to stop making dumb decisions... Was she supposed to be witty? There wasn't really much evidence of that quality through anything plot-related.
The dialogue was painful. The characters were unlikable. The ending was horrendously cringe-worthy. Stomping all over her best friend's feelings with little forethought or remorse, the protagonist's behavior was the epitome of asking forgiveness rather than permission...
Anyway, I could write a novel about not loving this one; it might be more enjoyable to fans of the original, but without that context, it just made for one painful read.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 2, 2019
I love Jane Austen. I love her to rediculous amounts. I pick up every remake of her work I find.
I didn't realize when I picked this up that it was written for the LDS religion. Not that I cared, Mormons are just people too.
So I have also watched Clueless at least 20 times. I feel like this rendition of Emma is a mix of that version of Emma and the original.
That is still a good thing. This Emma like Cher is obessed with beauty and calories. But she is still the fragile perfectly flawed girl who falls down hard and finds her way back up.
I loved reading how this story would go about all of the major plot points of the story and I think it did it really well. I still wish Justin would have said "badly done Emma, badly done" but obviously that wouldn't actually work in a modern setting.
I didn't realize when I picked this up that it was written for the LDS religion. Not that I cared, Mormons are just people too.
So I have also watched Clueless at least 20 times. I feel like this rendition of Emma is a mix of that version of Emma and the original.
That is still a good thing. This Emma like Cher is obessed with beauty and calories. But she is still the fragile perfectly flawed girl who falls down hard and finds her way back up.
I loved reading how this story would go about all of the major plot points of the story and I think it did it really well. I still wish Justin would have said "badly done Emma, badly done" but obviously that wouldn't actually work in a modern setting.
July 5, 2022
I needed a clean and easy read after Firekeeper’s Daughter and this was perfect!
I think the author did a great job of modernizing Emma. The main character starts off flawed and meddlesome but learns her lesson and changes.
This has religious elements in it and is a clean romance so no swearing and no sex scenes. If you don’t like that then don’t read this.
Knightley is one of my favorite Austen heroes and I loved this modernized version of him. I kept picturing him as the Knightley from Emma Approved 😁
I think the author did a great job of modernizing Emma. The main character starts off flawed and meddlesome but learns her lesson and changes.
This has religious elements in it and is a clean romance so no swearing and no sex scenes. If you don’t like that then don’t read this.
Knightley is one of my favorite Austen heroes and I loved this modernized version of him. I kept picturing him as the Knightley from Emma Approved 😁
March 23, 2018
A retelling of Jane Austen's Emma, set in the LDS singles scene outside of DC. This plot was pretty silly and superficial, especially for the first three quarters of the book; so much meddling, so much drama. Do I blame that on the author, the genre, or on Jane Austen's original plot? Even still, I actually kind of enjoyed the ending. I'm a sucker for a little character development, and the romance was kind of sweet.
February 19, 2020
Having seen the movie in the past, I realized I had never read the original book. I love the story, but the extreme wordiness got to me and I ended up skipping a lot to get to the sweet ending. Sorry if I offend lovers of the original. 😊 I just finished reading this modern version, Emma, a Latter-Day Tale, by Rebecca H Jamison, and it definitely gets to the point much faster, without all the verbiage. Makes me realize how shallow the story is. Cute, but shallow, which is the point of the story!
January 2, 2021
My first book by this author. I enjoyed the storyline. Emma tries her hand at matchmaking it does not turn out the way she thinks it should. She has taken up courses on several different subjects and never finished them. She is tired of being the person who never accomplished anything in life so she takes on a new course to be a life coach will she finally finish anything. She has a best friend Justin who has faith in her. A new guy she thinks is into her she sure is into him.
February 9, 2024
It was cute. I felt like Emma was a little too selfish in the beginning. I know she is supposed to be, but it was difficult to want to keep reading. But I pushed through and like how she changed. I felt like the hoax with Hank went too far as well. And poor Harri! If a man called me every single day, I would think he loved me too. I felt like every scheme was just a little too much, I guess. However, I absolutely loved Justin! He was perfect!
January 18, 2020
I am a fan of the original book Emma so I was excited to read this version to see how it would be. I must admit I found it not as much to my liking for the first half. It took me longer to really get into it. Once I did, I found that I enjoyed it much more. I did enjoy the church aspect and how the story seemed to improve the more I read. In the end I found that although very different of course from the original, it was a very enjoyable read and I liked it much more than I thought I would!
October 24, 2019
The first time I read this I probably would have only given it three stars, but I've read a lot of Austen adaptations since then, and I appreciate the author's attention to detail, and her creative adaptation of the original novel.
December 15, 2019
I read this book for the first time years ago and all I remember of the experience is crying and feeling my Heavenly Father's love for me. I'm happy to report that this experience was just as wonderful! Who knew Jane Austen could bring you closer to God?
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February 8, 2021This was a fun, fast Emma retelling. I've never been a big fan of this story but this one was the exception. Mr. Knightley is always super sweet in almost all adaptations.
Glad I picked it up and now I want to watch the mini series on BBC
Glad I picked it up and now I want to watch the mini series on BBC
February 23, 2018
Fun Emma rewrite.
March 1, 2018
fun book
March 7, 2018
Reminded me too much of Clueless the movie (which I loved back in the day) with a little LDS touch
March 18, 2018
3.2018. Edith Brown book. A cute fastread.
March 22, 2018
I think Rebecca H. Jamison did a fabulous job taking the original Jane Austen's Emma story and characters and applying them in an updated LDS setting. Fun read!
March 27, 2018
Cute, clean, and fun. Still prefer the original, but it was a nice clean romantic read.
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