Jane Austen's Letters

This book took quite a commitment. I think I checked it out four times, plus renewed it each time I was able to. Because I read it over such a long stretch, it's hard for me to remember my impressions of the beginning. I do remember thinking how clever Jane Austen was, which comes through in her letters as much as in her books.

And towards the end, especially as her books started being published and she started writing more letters (or at least, more of them were preserved) to her nieces and nephews, I was quite enchanted. It does feel a bit like eavesdropping, to read someone else's letters, and I wonder at what point a person is famous enough or has been gone long enough that it's OK to read their mail. But I'm glad I was able to read hers.