Chawton might be a sleepy little village town, but don't let that fool you. Its people are full of ambition, fame, and determination. And the one common thread that pulls a whole cast of them together is none other than Jane Austen. In Natalie Jenner's debut, a cast of disparate individuals band together to form the Jane Austen Society as a way to connect over the triumphs and to recuperate from the tragedies of life. A beautiful, poignant, and necessary study in loss, legacy, and literature, The Jane Austen Society is an eye-opening, breathtaking and heartrending read.
Natalie Jenner was born in England, raised in Canada, and graduated from the University of Toronto with degrees in English literature and law. She worked for decades in the legal industry and also founded the independent bookstore Archetype Books in Oakville, Ontario, where she lives with her family and two rescue dogs. You can find Natalie Jenner at her website, nataliejenner.com.
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. In the early 1800s, Chawton was the final home of Jane Austen, one of England's finest novelists. By the 1940s, little remains of her legacy but a few distant relatives and their diminishing estate, including the cottage where Austen wrote or revised her books. With the winds of change blowing through the country in the postwar days and the cottage's future now in the hands of fate, a group of disparate individuals fight to preserve both Austen's home and her legacy for the world. These people--a farmer, a young war widow, the village doctor, an employee of Sotheby's, a Hollywood star, a local solicitor, the anticipated heiress to the estate, and a precocious house-girl--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 the loss and trauma of war and other tragedies, they find solace, connection, and hope in rallying together to create the Jane Austen Society. A charming and moving novel that explores the tragedies and triumphs of life, both large and small, and the universal humanity within us all, Natalie Jenner's The Jane Austen Society is destined to resonate with readers for years to come.
This novel has a whole cast of characters, and at first it can feel a bit overwhelming figuring out who's who, and who interacts with who. Jenner does a fabulous job keeping all the characters and their motivations crystal clear, and distinct from one another. The characters were all reflections of Austen's beloved characters, and the buildup to that is so subtle. Of course, all the characters are their own person, with their own motivations and pasts. Yet, all the characters fall victim to the same flaws and mishaps as Austen's characters did. Take Dr. Gray for instance, who is like Mr. Darcy (Pride and Prejudice) and Mr. Knightley (Emma). At first, he is so clearly himself with his own struggles and past, but every time he interacts with Adeline Lewis Grover, we see the parallels between his character and Austen's famed men. In the same respect, the tension between Frances Knight and Andrew Forrester is more or less exactly the tension between Anne Elliot and Wentworth (Persuasion). It wasn't until closer to the end that I was able to pin that tension to Persuasion, because Jenner so masterfully cemented her characters as her own before showing readers how they fall victim to the same flaws. In my opinion, it's representative of how Austen's characters are so timeless, that people (no matter where they're from or who they are or what time period) will always be falling victim to the same character flaws and decisions the original characters did.
I am susceptible to what I am about to describe. Often, we fall into this trap that historical fiction has to revolve around wars, or significant world and/or nation events. That the only really good historical fiction comes out of studying those wars, and writing characters within those. Obviously, historical fiction surrounding the World Wars has birthed great novels (All the Light We Cannot See, The Book Thief, Lovely War, The Nightingale all come to mind). And there are even great novels that don't follow the World Wars that have also been classified as some of the best historical fiction (The Fountains of Silence and Outlander are two that come to mind). But--at least in my experience--I've never seen historical fiction that takes place during the World Wars that isn't about the World Wars, at least not explicitly. That's why The Jane Austen Society was so eye-opening for me. The characters all feel the effects of World Wars I and II, and some more than others. Yet, the plots doesn't revolve around the war itself despite majority of the book taking place in 1944 and 1945. Of course, the war is mentioned when the characters discuss money, or loss, and yet the characters have all experienced tragedy that doesn't always relate back to the war. It was eye-opening to me to see that not everyone who struggled during the 1940s struggled explicitly because of the war. There were other things going on, such as natural deaths of family members, or inheritance issues, or even just every day life tragedies, that are just as important to document as the tragedies of war. Historical fiction doesn't have to be war-centered all the time. There are other losses to be had during a time of war, and these losses could resonate more with present-day readers more than war does. The Jane Austen Society birthed this idea in my mind, and I will be forever grateful for that. I really do think we need to start broadening our historical fiction horizons, and to find more books like The Jane Austen Society.
Jane Austen played a huge role in this novel, as probably evidence from just the title. Jane Austen is the thread that ties all these different characters together. Despite all that life has thrown at each of them, they all understand and adore Jane Austen and her work. They are all dedicated to bringing her legacy back to life, because they believe in the power of stories to get through difficult times. It was inspiring to see how much these characters loved Jane Austen. Not only did Jenner bring her characters to life, but through them brought Jane Austen to life. In a way, Jane Austen was a whole other character, just as real as Dr. Gray or Frances Knight. She was always present, seeing as how she was the common denominator, but she was also always in the background. It was fascinating to study her influence on all these different people. Especially early on in the book, as each character was puzzling through what Jane Austen meant to them, it was just plain cool to see how each person interpreted her works, and her effect on their lives. It caused me to reflect on what Jane Austen and her works meant to me, and why it's important to carry on legacies. All and all, this book for sure made me want to reread all the Jane Austen works (even though I just finished reading them all!), and made me fall in love with Jane Austen's books all over again.
As I briefly mentioned before, the story started out a bit slow, which was helpful in my ability to pin down the characters. At first, I didn't realize we were started in the 30s and jumped to the 40s, but I felt like it was a great way to ease us into the large cast of characters. Despite that brief feeling of overwhelm and confusion, the pacing of this novel was fantastic, when balanced with the characters and the plot. The plot is very singular, and very easy to follow. Even though there are subplots (which are more or less the romantic ones), all the characters are very single-minded in attaining the cottage. Thus, the main plot is all about how these characters go about getting the cottage. But I would argue that the most important thing to take away from the plot is how everyday life is a plot, and is important. The characters spend so much time focusing on this cottage, that sometimes their lives start to pass them by. I don't want to spoil anything, but it just seems to me that the so-called subplots (romantic or otherwise) are even more important than the attaining of the cottage. It's a great study in how we need to start recognizing the importance of every day life, and how we can make changes in our world every day, if we so choose. That our lives aren't just dependent on this one great success, but a whole host of successes that come with living every day with joy and care. Now, obviously, this interpretation is just that: an interpretation. But I know that when I walk away from this review, that it will be one of my biggest takeaways from this book.
The Jane Austen Society was Natalie Jenner's debut novel, but I am so hoping that she releases something new soon, too! I'll be on the lookout, and you can be too, by following Natalie Jenner on her website, nataliejenner.com! And if you love Jane Austen and her words, you can find a catalogue of all of her best quotes from her six published novels here!
*This review can also be found on my Goodreads page*
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