Okay, Austenland is another fabulous book for Jane Austen fans, especially for those who are obsessed with Colin Firth's version of Mr. Darcy. I love the way it's written, and it's just a fun story. Basic premise is that there's a resort-type place that caters to the Austen-obsessed. If you can afford it, you spend two weeks at an English manor, following the customs of Austen's time with other participants and actors to play scripted roles. They even promise "romance." Our intrepid heroine, Jane Hayes (AKA Miss Erstwhile) has had less than ideal luck with men, some of which is due to her constant need to compare them to her ideal, Mr. Darcy. She longs to live during Jane Austen's time and find a man like Darcy.
A great-aunt bequeaths her this opportunity to visit Austenland, and the adventure begins. The situation is closely monitored [hence the Big Brother reference just below] by the actors, who are paid, and by a headmistress type person who insists on keeping everything as true to the time period as possible. No cell phones, no technology, no calling a woman by her first name...unless you're engaged. There are, thank goodness, certain allowances made for toilets and electric lights instead of kerosene lamps, but that's about it. And you can get kicked out for not following the "rules." It's like a reality show without the cameras.
My favorite line, and I don't think this is giving too much away, is the following, "In all the years Jane [our heroine] had fantasized about an Austenland, she never considered how, once inside its borders, she would feel like an outsider."
Also, when she says, "If you're listening Big Brother, I refuse to be Fanny Price." Ha! I love that.
This is a great book for all Austen fans, particularly if you've picked apart the characters and know exactly who you would be (or would not be) if given the chance. I'm with Jane Hayes--I refuse to be Fanny Price. : )
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