Good old Jane Austen! Whether it's a nostalgia thing - with remembrances of the Sunday afternoon drama on the BBC of my youth, which would invariably be an adaptation from Dickens or Austen, I cannot help but warm to the style of this author. Emma is not drama on a big scale - no big car chases or things blowing up - instead, the drama is intimate and personal. A misdirected comment or look had ramifications that would impact on the lives of those around you. Emma Woodhouse is our heroine, and she is the centre of society in the village. Devoted to her father who fears danger in everything outside his home, she regularly sparks off Mr Knightly, an old family friend, who tries to keep her in check when he sees her going astray. Emma decides to take the humble Harriet under her wing, and thinks that Mr Elton, the new vicar, would be a suitable match for her - instead of the local farmer who had set his cap at Harriet. Emma persuades Harriet to her way of thinking, but after rejecting the farmer, is appalled to discover that Mr Elton has set his sights on herself, rather than her friend Harriet. Emma rejects him, at which point his true character is revealed and he slinks off to Bath and returns with a catty, self-serving rich wife. Enter Frank Churchill, the son of her best friend's husband. He pays Emma a lot of attention and everything thinks this will end in marriage. Emma is initially flattered, but is determined not to marry, and also thinks that he might be a match for Harriet (she is a determined matchmaker!). Then there is the delicate and mysterious Jane Fairfax, who is staying nearby and who Emma somehow feels is a rival of some kind but can't quite put her finger on it until she starts to worry that her oldest friend, Mr Knightly, might have some feelings for this beautiful creature. Too concerned about sorting other people's love lives out for them, she did not realise that she should have been focusing a bit closer to home... and suddenly realises that no-one can marry Knightly except herself! This is a well written tale of manners and as with all Austen there is humour and a lightness of touch. Lots of characters, all interwoven into this tale where you hope that it comes good in the end.
My STAR rating: FOUR.
Length: 358 print pages.
Price I paid: free.
Formats: print; abridged audio CD; unabridged audio download; ebook.
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