Where We See the World Through Jane's Eyes

Jane Fairfax by Joan Aiken
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is a well-crafted story about Jane Fairfax, a secondary (1-1/2?) character from Austen's Emma, and I enjoyed it quite a bit. Enough, that is, to recommend it.

Joan Aiken does particularly well (IMO) in blending "known" details with new plot points and characters. I am far from having made a serious study of the original, but I didn't find any details that contradicted it. The outings from the book, like the party at the Eltons or the picnic at Box Hill , (made familiar in the various movie adaptations) are accurate, as far as I can see, and it was interesting to view those moments from another perspective.

Her language works well, though I wouldn't say it's particularly Austenesque. Close enough to be consonant with the original, for sure.

The characters are well portrayed. Jane is more sympathetic here, not unsurprisingly, but I liked how Emma's behavior is less justifiable when viewed from a distance--and yet, she is still sympathetic, especially by the end. Emma comes off rounder and more real after seeing the story from Jane's perspective, which I approve of. I feel sorta the same about Mr. Knightley; he doesn't come off worse than in the original, necessarily, but definitely feels more complex. Frank Churchill is dealt with fairly, too, and seems both better and worse than how I saw him before. He really cares about Jane Fairfax, but the strange secrecy of their arrangement and his inability to confront his aunt or do anything to displease her looks more stark here, where Jane is the center of the story. (Jane admits to herself that Mr. Knightley is a better man than Frank, but she still loves him, which I thought was wise and poignant.) The one character who always seems to come out on top is Miss Bates, who is still silly and chatty and cheerful and desperately dull, but so kind and considerate and unselfish that she always reminds me of some thoughtful older woman at church or at the grocery store or across the street who talks too loud about nothing but always thinks about everyone else first...

It's a pretty fun book, too, but if it falls down at all it's in keeping things rolling in the final third, where the story bogs down a bit. (Heyer would have introduced a highwayman or a duel or something.) I enjoyed it enough to keep rolling, but I wish we could have had a few changes of scenery or bigger drama. Still, I liked it and thought it worked well.

I feel confident in recommending this to Austen readers (the ones who didn't read it long ago).

I already bought the author's other Austen books. Looking forward to those.

View all my reviews