Jane Austen. A name most readers and movie viewers are familiar with. Who is not associated with her works? Very few I would imagine. If you have only watched the movies – Emma, Pride and Prejudice and Mansfield Park amongst others, I strongly encourage you to obtain Austen’s original novels. Her writing is rich, intricate and incorporates a far broader vocabulary than most modern titles. As such, author Nancy Moser has taken on a task that would cause a lesser author to tremble, producing a “bio-novel”, a biographical novel of Jane Austen’s life.
Austen is arguably one of the most renowned female authors, her books are continuously in print and several film adaptations have been made; to flesh out her life through a novelization is a dangerous task. When an author is so beloved passions are certain to run high, and it will be impossible to please everyone. Each lover of Jane’s work will hold an imagined sketch of her character in his/her heart. Moser must certainly count her blessings for the letters that remain from Austen’s prolific correspondence with family and friends, as well as the biographies that have been written which provided Moser with a basic framework upon which to build.
Written in the first person, Jane begins telling us her story as an adult. This choice of narrative provides a deeply personal feel to the story. Readers who have been been reluctant to read formal biographies of Jane Austen by imagining dry, impersonal recitations of dates and details have nothing to fear here. Very little is described of her childhood (which would have made for fascinating reading), allowing the focus to dwell upon the details of her adult years.
Austen is already in the habit of writing for her own delight and that of her family as a young woman though her work will not be published until much later in her life. The reader is introduced to the large Austen clan fairly promptly, much like some of Jane’s own works where many of the characters are related in some way. Thankfully a cast of characters, their spouses and number of children, is provided at the beginning of the book in the case of confusion. I utilized this ready resource on several occasions to sort out all of the relations while I was coming to know the family characters. A similar epilogue is provided, detailing the historically accurate fates of other characters that we have become familiar with over the course of the novel.
As I began reading of Jane’s years as a young woman I felt that I was entering familiar waters. Though Moser has not aimed to emulate Austen’s distinct writing voice there is a shade of her style to be found in the text. Moser chooses to use some of the now obsolete spellings that Jane was familiar with, as well as words no longer commonly in use that Austen deftly employed in her own work. Moser manages to keep this historical writing style firmly in place throughout the book. I do wonder though, if the word “wannabe” was in use during the nineteenth century. This one word is the only instance I can point to and wonder if it is out of time, I commend Moser on maintaining this level of consistency.
Further enhancing the authenticity of this bio-novel, Moser incorporates excerpts from Jane’s novels and personal correspondence throughout Just Jane. They appear as she is editing her work, reading letters of great import from relatives and quoting humorously the words of her own characters. The importance of her writing is made clear as she totes it with her on her many journeys across the countryside. Her family’s relocation from Steventon to Bath however, throws her into a long period where she no longer writes.
This period is the most difficult section of the book to read. Jane becomes bitingly cynical, judgmental and centered upon herself. With few letters existing from this time period (Jane’s sister Cassandra burned her most revealing letters) Moser is left to fill in the blanks as to how Jane must have felt during this period when she refused to write. Jane struggles with the lack of control she feels in her own life and does not deal with the changes she is forced to make gracefully. Her reactions, not at all idealized, present a very human and imperfect response to her trials.
Though Moser has included notes at the end of the book to provide readers with some sense of what is historically recorded and what she has inferred, it does remain unclear which emotions are verifiable by Jane’s own letters (whether from this period or not), and which are only fictional. As Jane was an author who dealt largely with the emotional currents of women, her own emotional state and opinions is of great interest to her readers, so some further elaboration would be a great help. One example is Jane’s disdain of large families and childbearing, was this her true opinion as expressed in any of her letters, or was it created? As the seventh of eight children, large numbers of nieces and nephews and being born into a family of faith I was very surprised to see this attitude arise repeatedly. I would love to learn more about the authenticity of this, and other opinions presented by Jane’s character. This uncertainty may drive readers to seek out Austen’s published letters to read more from her own hand.
The extended time of emotional trial comes to a conclusion upon Jane’s relocation to Chawton Cottage in Hampshire, not far from her native Steventon, along with her mother, sister and family friend. This re-settling seems to spark the creative flame; she once again begins writing, and comes in time to be published at long last. I believe that many readers would enjoy a more detailed analysis of this period of Jane’s life, more emphasis on the years leading to, and following her publication than on the times of emotional turmoil she experienced. In this telling of her life’s story, Jane comes into a stronger sense of who she is, and finds contentment in being Just Jane.
Printed by the Christian book publisher Bethany House, and written by a woman of faith, I was eager to see how Jane’s faith was portrayed. I was familiar with her status as the daughter of a pastor, but was entirely unfamiliar with how her faith played out in her life – God rarely makes an appearance in her own novels. Moser incorporates Jane’s belief in God throughout the story most naturally. Jane questions God, pleads with Him and at times must be content to rest in Him. Her faith-filled musings and references to God’s power are not at all stilted or obviously inserted; they blend beautifully into the text and never appear overtly “preachy” or moralizing. Due to the natural incorporation of Jane’s faith this title will be enjoyable for all Austen lovers regardless of their spiritual beliefs.
Just Jane is character-driven; the life of a single 19th-century woman of strong moral character does not make for an action-packed page-turner. It is most enjoyable when read slowly – savouring the development of relationships and emotional drama. A cup of tea, an open fireplace, or bathtub seem to be ideal locations to indulge in reading this title. As an Austen lover I felt that I was sitting down with a friend to learn more about her, to ask her questions – receiving both expected and surprising answers. Simply put - no devotee of Austen’s work will be able to resist this fresh, historically based foray into her life.
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Publisher Info:
Title: Just Jane - A Novel of Jane Austen’s Life
Author: Nancy Moser
Format: Paperback, 368 pages
Publisher: Bethany House Publishers (September 1, 2007)
ISBN-10: 0764203568
ISBN-13: 978-0764203565
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