Happy 238th Birthday, Jane Austen! Part II

          Technically, her birthday is over in England. Interestingly enough, the Jane Austen Center in Bath celebrates a festival, not in December, but rather in September (it's not too late to add this to my Christmas list).  We did miss the Jane Austen Society of North America South Carolina Region's celebration on December 14.  I truly thought Google would have some fun little game or design to commemorate her birthday; maybe they are waiting for her 250th.

In case you need a brief biography of Miss Austen, here is one by Carolyn Kellogg of the LA Times:
       

     Jane Austen was born on this day in 1775. Happy 238th birthday, Jane Austen!

Austen, of course, was the author of novels that have endured and delighted for centuries. Her biggest hits are "Pride and Prejudice," "Emma" and "Sense and Sensibility" -- lasting stories of young women coming of age in Edwardian England. Less well-known, but no less Austen-y, are "Mansfield Park," "Northanger Abbey" and "Persuasion."

Born into an affluent family, Austen had a comfortable upbringing not unlike her characters': She learned to play piano, visited friends, attended dances. She also, from a young age, wrote. Her first published work was "Sense and Sensibility," published in three volumes; it was originally published anonymously, identifying Austen only as "A Lady."

Austen lived to be 41, with two of her books, "Persuasion" and "Northanger Abbey," published posthumously. She is now buried in Winchester Cathedral and a plaque in her memory is in Poets Corner in Westminster Abbey.

Last week, an 1869 watercolor portrait of Austen sold for more than $270,000. In 2016, her face will begin appearing on the 10-pound note in the U.K. Meanwhile, her books grace shelves all over the world.

I have seen her plaque in Poets Corner and rather upset with myself that I didn't get a picture of it.  

In googling "Jane Asuten Birthday," I found a book that looks interesting: Among the Janeites by Deborah Yaffe.  Since the world of Jane Austen fandom fascinates me, I plan on adding this to the Jane Austen shelf.  It will go nicely with What Jane Austen Ate and Charles Dickens Knew.

I must confess that I have not read all her novels <collective gasp of horror>.  I have started Sanditon. So, to honor her 239th birthday, I have set a goal of reading them all before December 16, 2014.  Jane Fairfax is my model, not Emma.