A couple of years ago, I decided I should start reading the books I didn’t read in high school (back then, to my English teacher mother’s despair, I HATED to read and read very few of the assigned books). So, I picked up Jane Austen’s Sense and Sensibilities. While it took me awhile to get used to the 1800’s writing, I truly enjoyed the story. And, it helped me improve my vocabulary (as I did not understand sense vs. sensibility before I read the book).
Anyway, my interest of Jane Austen was piqued. I watched Pride and Prejudice and was whisked away into a simpler (or more difficult?) time. I thought I would pursue more of Jane Austen. But, of course, I got distracted with life, Philipia Gregory, etc.
Well, I finally got back into my Jane Austen kick and I’ve gone forward full blast. I’m reading her books, novels about her life, listening to books on CD, watching movies about her life (Becoming Jane was a great movie that gave me tingles in my belly). Now, I’m getting confused. All the books, movies, etc. are getting intermingled and I can’t remember what’s about her life, what’s Jane Austen’s novels, and what is made up about her life. And, different books have different takes. So, I thought I’d try to sort some of them out and give my take on each one.
Today, I’ll talk about my first stop on my Jane Austen tour which was Me & Mr. Darcy. It’s a fiction book about a single young woman who is desperate to find her own Mr. Darcy. She goes on a Jane Austen tour in England and has a few “dates” with the “real” Mr. Darcy. She also meets a journalist whom she detests, at first … The book referred a lot at Pride and Prejudice. It made me want to go read the original (since I’d only seen the movie). The story was cute and would be right up your alley if you like chick-lit with a little historical fiction thrown in. It was interesting how the author had the protangonists new romance follow a similar line as Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth Bennet’s relationship (as I found out after finally reading Pride and Prejudice). Although, it’s this type of “borrowing” from one book to another that has contributed to my confusion after reading so many different titles in this “genre.” My friend, Stephanie, reviewed this book at her blog. Go check her out for another opinion.
Next stop, for another day, will be The Lost Memoirs of Jane Austen.
Book Escape 
I read Me & Mr. Darcy on the flight home from China (well, read a few chapters at least – as you already know, it’s kind of hard to read on an airplane with two kids in tow)! It was cute and light. You definitely should add Austenland by Shannon Hale to your list of Austen-inspired fiction – it is too cute! I wrote a whole post about Austen books in February – you might want to check it out!
Oooo! I’m on Jane Austen kick lately, too. I missed out in high school and never got around to reading them. I’ll be starting with NORTHANGER ABBEY in a week. Yay! My first Jane Austen.
Thanks for the other Austen-y recommendations, especially the “fake” diary one.
I went through an Austen phase after high school and ended up with the storylines all confused. More recently I’ve reread a couple and of course watched many of the movies so they’re not quite so mixed up anymore. I haven’t really read any of the modern novels based on Austen but I do have a copy of ‘Lost in Austen: Create your Own Jane Austen Adventure’ by Emma Campbell Webster that sounds kind of fun.
Oh, BTW, welcome. Found you through Stephanie.