Seventeen-year-old Cassandra Mortmain wants to become a writer. Trouble is, she's the daughter of a once-famous author with a severe case of writer's block. Her family--beautiful sister Rose, brooding father James, ethereal stepmother Topaz--is barely scraping by in a crumbling English castle they leased when times were good. Now there's very little furniture, hardly any food, and just a few pages of notebook paper left to write on. Bravely making the best of things, Cassandra gets hold of a journal and begins her literary apprenticeship by refusing to face the facts. She writes, "I have just remarked to Rose that our situation is really rather romantic, two girls in this strange and lonely house. She replied that she saw nothing romantic about being shut up in a crumbling ruin surrounded by a sea of mud."
Rose longs for suitors and new tea dresses while Cassandra scorns romance: "I know all about the facts of life. And I don't think much of them." But romantic isolation comes to an end both for the family and for Cassandra's heart when the wealthy, adventurous Cotton family takes over the nearby estate. Cassandra is a witty, pensive, observant heroine, just the right voice for chronicling the perilous cusp of adulthood. Some people have compared I Capture the Castle to the novels of Jane Austen, and it's just as well-plotted and witty. But the Mortmains are more bohemian--as much like the Addams Family as like any of Austen's characters. Dodie Smith, author of 101 Dalmations, wrote this novel in 1948. And though the story is set in the 1930s, it still feels fresh, and well deserves its reputation as a modern classic. --Maria Dolan
Can you imagine throwing your gloves to tell a guy you're engaged and not having everyone else in the room look at you? Seems a little weird to me. Plus wouldn't your intended question why you would have to tell another man your engaged?
While checking out some background information on this topic I found a few blog posts over at a blog called Nineteen Teen They did a three part series on Flirting with Props. In Part 1 they talk about flirting with a handkerchief. In Part 2 they talk about flirting with gloves. In Part 3 they talk about flirting with fans.
The Jane Austen Book Club is a 2007 American romantic drama film written and directed by Robin Swicord. The screenplay, adapted from the 2004 novel of the same name by Karen Joy Fowler, focuses on a book club formed specifically to discuss the six novels written by Jane Austen. As they delve into Austen's literature, the club members find themselves dealing with life experiences that parallel the themes of the books they're reading.Up until this past weekend I had never seen this movie. It shocked people when they found out, because wasn't I a Jane Austen Fan and I've never seen this movie?!?!
Nancy Kelley posted a comment on Wednesday's blog post featuring the Jane Austen Stamps.
Are these actual British stamps?
Yes they are!
Jane Austen and Charlotte Bronte are the only two British female authors to be solely featured on stamps. I found a website with this collection information. Books and Authors on Postage Stamps
Below, 1975 series of stamps honoring Jane Austen on the bicentenary of the author's birth, issued by Great Britain. Designs, from left: Mr. Darcy, from Pride and Prejudice; Catherine Morland, from Northanger Abbey; Emma and Mr. Woodhouse, from Emma; Mary and Henry Crawford, from Mansfield Park.
Source: fanpop.com via Guri on Pinterest
Source: fanpop.com via Guri on Pinterest
Source: fanpop.com via Guri on Pinterest
Source: fanpop.com via Guri on Pinterest
