What a Happy Discovery!

Does anyone subscribe to the wonderful Jane Austen's Regency World Magazine? (If you do not I highly recommend it, as this magazine, delivered every two months, is packed full of the latest news in the world of Jane Austen and much more!)

Anyway, I subscribe and after the Nov/Dec issue came out, I wrote a letter into the magazine regarding one of the articles - this was back at the beginning of November. Image my surprise when I received my Jan/Feb issue and there, in the Letters section, was the letter I had written in! I was beyond pleased to see my words down in print!

This is the letter, as it is rather difficult to read from the photo!

"I really enjoyed finding out more about the much anticipated adaption of Death Comes to Pemberley (JARW No 66). Coincidentally this links into a current project I am undertaking for my school studies, investigating into the reasons behind Jane Austen's continued and world-wide fame. For a large part of this project I am discussing the huge impact of television adaptations. I have found from experience with my classmates and peers that watching the adaptations can be more appealing than actually reading her work - a condensed version of the story brought to life on screen seems to make the 19th century novelist more approachable for them. To test my theories about the importance of adaptations I surveyed 100 people. Although it did show that (thankfully!) most people who have seen an adaption have also read the book, it did show how important the adaptations really are. When I asked my respondents how they first were introduced to Jane Austen, the most popular response was that they had watched a film or TV series and it was this which then led them to read the original books.  In addition, when I asked whether they preferred the adaptations of her work more or less than the novels, a considerable number of people stated that they enjoyed them equally, and a surprising number even said how they prefer the adaptations, commenting that if you need an 'Austen fix', it is easier and often faster to just watch a film rather than read the book. The survey has confirmed my ideas on the importance of film and television in promoting Jane Austen's work - although for me, you cannot beat experiencing Jane Austen's humorous wit, engaging characters and timeless story-lines other than directly from the author herself. 
Sophie Andrews, Reading, Berkshire"

                              


                   That's me! ->






I just wanted to share this with my lovely readers! Again, I highly recommend this magazine.

Your affectionate (and rather pleased!) friend,