The World of Jane Austen

by Nigel Nicolson, Stephen Colover (Photographer)

Nicolson follows the the footsteps of Austin through southern England, identifing how she drew on them for the settings of her novels.

Genres: Jane Austen, Nonfiction, History, Biography, Regency, British Literature, Biography Memoir

184 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1991

Reviews

[Sophia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love the way this one made me feel immersed in Jane's world without drowning me in tediousness. There are maps, modern day pictures of the homes and places Jane has been, pictures of her family and others of her acquaintance, organized chapters that zero in on certain aspects of her life and legacy. The bibliography is impressive too in offering avenues of further research.

The pages are glossed and the photos and illustrations are sharp. Nice quick reference or lazy day perusal addition to an Austen lover's library.

[Vanessa · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved the information and pictures of places Jane Austen lived or visited and more about family and friends of hers. This book when originally published got people behind the idea of saving Chawton Cottage were Jane spent the last years of her life. It is now a museum in her honor. Chawton Estate (her brother Edward (Formerly Austen) Knight owned) is now a center for Women Writers of Jane Austen's period of life and beyond. It is called Chawton House Library for the study of early English Women's writing. women writers pre-1830.

[Amy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Loved the photos and illustrations. A little less keen on the text. I've read Nigel Nicholson's text before (some of the sections of his mother's Portrait of a Marriage are his) and did not know he studied Miss Austen. The book was first published in 1991. I'm not sure if it's because the book is nearly 30 years old or if Mr. Nicholson's gender was an issue, but he seemed to have some outdated, slightly pedantic and perhaps even sexist thinking about Miss Austen.

[Kirk · Rating 3 out of 5]

The photos are a delight. The text is entirely less so
for me. Too many overreach statements...

[Lisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting book to read if you like history and architecture and England!

[Wren · Rating 5 out of 5]

Now I want to go on holiday to England and travel from Devon to Kent with stops at Lyme, Bath, and London. It was great to read about the landscapes, estates, castles, churches, and cathedrals of Austen’s era, places she lived and visited. She often creates make believe dwellings that are composite characters of sorts. It’s informative to see photographs, paintings, drawings and sketches of the places that were central or even peripheral to her life.

[Mrunmai Kulkarni · Rating 5 out of 5]

What do I say...amazing. Jane Austen is one of my favorite authors, and to get a glimpse into her world was a very - to use her own words - highly agreeable experience. The book made me start reading Northanger Abbey.

[Madalsa Madalsa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Being an avid reader of Jane Austen I found myself very connected to this wonderful book. It appeared more or less like a doorway in Austen's world, and I must say that the photographs coupled with the writing made the content of this book appear so 3Dimensional.

[Zuzana · Rating 3 out of 5]

My read for the 2023 Jane Austen July.

A nice summary of Jane Austen's life and description of places she lived. Nice photos. The text was a bit simplistic and the commentary was in places weirdly condescending.

[Joy · Rating 4 out of 5]

A nice companion book I read alongside Jane Austen at Home by Lucy Worsley. This included a great variety of pictures and descriptions of the homes, villages, cities, and countryside that Jane Austen would have frequented during her lifetime.

[Kristin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting book about the places Jane Austen would have visited that may have influenced the places she created in her novels.

[Natalie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read mostly for the explanation of photos and drawings of the different homes from Jane Austen’s life. A good pictorial history.

[JFN · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a useful book in that it traces the movements of Jane Austen throughout her life. If you know Austen, you know how greatly her living situation and environs impacted her -- not just in terms of what she wrote, but how and when she wrote. Interesting stuff. I feel like I know Jane better from reading this book.

The author makes good use of excerpts from Austen's letters and incorporates passages from her works to show the tremendous impression landscape made on our gal. And this is no small thing. Jane was intimately familiar with the rolling hills, country roads, farmland and villages of southern England, and she loved them. She is essentially OF them, and this book goes a long way toward illustrating that. The photography in this book is quite good. Lots o' pix of places Jane lived and stayed and visited, which is quite illuminating. Her world wasn't by any means a large one (she never left the island and, if I recall, never ventured further north than Staffordshire), but she really got around within and knew very well her own small milieu.

On the downside, this book is in desperate need of a map. I'm dying for a map of England that pinpoints the places Jane lived and stayed as well as the locations of her fictional homes in relation to one another -- Steventon, Godmersham, Bath, Southampton, Chawton, Pemberley, Hartfield, Mansfield Park, Barton Cottage, Norland, Kellynch Hall, etc., etc. How dope would that be? I could gaze at that map all day. Perhaps such a thing exists and I've yet to come across it, but even so, it's presence would vastly improve this book.

Also, I get the feeling the author of this book takes some interpretive liberties. If you've read more thorough or up-to-date biographies of Austen, you'll see what I mean. From everything else I've read, I gather that Jane was sharp -- and sharp tongued. Witty. Biting. Critical, though quietly and perhaps guardedly so. Nicolson's treatment of Austen glosses over this, painting more a picture of little more than a quiet lady who enjoyed a good long walk, and for that, I'm not sure I can forgive him.

Read this book, but only as a supplement to other works about Austen. Enjoyable. Informative. Three-and-a-half stars.

Oh, and our girl died 192 years ago this week, July 18, 1817. :(

[Nell · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoy "reading around the subject" of Jane Austen's life and times. This book makes it easier to visualize where she lived and what her life was like. I also dip into the Stephanie Barron series, which spotlights places Jane lived and visited (and this book was cited by Barron as one of her sources). When I win the lotto, I'll take the Jane Austen tour of England. What more to say except that this book was written for readers like me who want to learn more of the context of this period of British history.

[aisha · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lots of pictures of houses and estates that Jane Austen was familiar with in her lifetime. It is speculated that many of them were the inspirations for the houses described in her novels. Very interesting.

[Brian · Rating 3 out of 5]

To tell the truth, I never did finish this book. I couldn't. The Nicholson family has always provided a solid read...but this one never was able to draw me in and hold my attention. I expect that I will try again. It may just not be the right time.