Life of Lydia

Dear readers, in this post I am going to reveal a piece of long-awaited information: my ranking of Jane Austen books from favorite to least favorite.

I recently got a collage creating app on my smart phone. I’ve been putting it to good use by making collages of photos of Jane’s works. Samples below:

Aren’t those beautiful? Well, now it’s finally time to reveal my ranking. I am going to accomplish this task through a collage. The others were just practice for this one:

(The title of each book is a link to a blog post about or relating to the book)

#1 Sense and Sensibility. This was the book that turned me into a true Janeite. I thought it was one of the best things that had ever happened to mankind. I loved S&S with the violent passion and feeling that oozed out of every corner of my being. I wouldn’t be able to describe what exactly was so great about the book because my emotions cloud my judgement.

#2-Emma. This was a very close second to S&S and I had to really ponder which order they should be in. I think Emma is the best developed of all of Jane’s characters. My love of the book Emma was of a different sort than my love of S&S. It was a more quiet appreciation. As I read the book I would think “I see what Jane is doing here. Wow!” The feeling I experienced was more amazement at how well written the book was rather than blind passion.

#3-Pride and Prejudice. I was very impressed with how Jane developed Elizabeth Bennett. I liked how even though Elizabeth is confident she is also kind of a mess. Her character development is very impressive. The reason why P&P is ranked below Emma is because I think Elizabeth is not quite as well developed as Emma.

#4-Mansfield Park– This is by far the most serious Jane book. That is not necessarily a bad thing, but it definitely has a different vibe than her other works. I had a bit of a hard time with the play business. I just decided to accept that performing plays was considered sketchy, and not to let my modern thoughts cause too many troubles. I really liked Fanny Price. I appreciated how through Fanny, Jane shows us that if a person is quiet, it doesn’t necessarily mean they are weak, or easily manipulated. I feel like Fanny gets a bad rap from modern readers which is a real pity.

#5-Northanger Abbey– I must say that I had more fun reading Northanger Abbey than I did Mansfield Park. The reason why I ranked the books as I did was because Mansfield Park seems to have deeper things going on under the surface. The best thing about Northanger Abbey is how funny it is. Fun fact: This February, we were at a superbowl party for my parents Sunday school class. I spent most of the event reading Northanger Abbey. Another partygoer saw me reading and said, “How studious!” I thought to myself “I’m not exactly studious, just bored.”

#6-Persuasion-I feel terrible ranking this at the bottom, but all the other books just had some reason why they should be ranked higher. I think that a sixteen year old like myself, who has never experienced anything that could be described as romance, had a hard time empathising with the woes of long lost love. But, I am extremely self satisfied with my blog post about Persuasion.

Well, this is my ranking, challenge it if you dare. I would be pleased if you put your ranking in the comments.

Note to my mother: would you mind sharing this blog post on your Facebook?