Noontime Book Chat Day 2: Cassandra & Jane by Jill Pitkeathley

Welcome to Day 2 of Noontime Book Chat with J.Kaye from J.Kaye’s Book Blog and me here at Peeking Between the Pages. Today it’s here at my place and I’m going to talk a bit about Jane Austen as portrayed in the novel.

Unlike J.Kaye I would have preferred a sequel type of book to Pride & Prejudice or maybe I should say I was expecting one but I am really enjoying this fictional story narrated by Cassandra, Jane Austen’s sister on what Jane’s life may have been like back then. I too, began by reading the History Behind the Book at the end and there is also a family tree of the Austen family that has been very helpful while reading the story.

This story is weaved together with what is known of Jane Austen and builds around that a fictional story that brings to life what might have been. The story revolves around the relationship between Jane and her sister Cassandra which by all accounts was a very close one. Cassandra was only a couple of years older than her sister, they were the only two girls in the family, both remained at home with their parents and never married. At that time in history women didn’t have a lot of options if they didn’t marry. They lived at home till their parents passed and then hopefully there were male relatives to take care of them and support them.

Unfortunately it seems that Cassandra destroyed most of the letters written to her by her sister Jane before her death. Why; well maybe to hide things-things-she felt were Jane’s personal business; we’ll never know. However, Jill tells us a story through what is known and it’s fun to read through and recognize bits and pieces that have made up Jane Austen’s books along the way. Like how Pride & Prejudice orginally seems to have been called First Impressions or how Northanger Abbey was called Susan. I think Jane’s writing was greatly influenced by her own family and surroundings and that came through in her novels.

So, I’m at about page 100 now and J.Kaye will be taking over tomorrow but I look forward to getting through the next 100 pages and seeing what will come next for the girls and more on how Jane’s novels may have progressed in time. To end today, there is this short letter in the front of the novel I’d like to share called Such a Sister, Such a Friend…

• ‘I have lost a treasure, such a sister, such a friend as never can have been surpassed. She was the sun of my life, the gilder of every pleasure, the soother of every sorrow; I had not a thought concealed from her, and it is as if I had lost a part of myself.’ (Letter written by Cassandra Austen to her neice Fanny Knight on 18 July 1817 after the death of her sister Jane Austen)

This letter leaves us with an intense feeling of the love that was shared between these two sisters. Please be sure to join us this week for our chat of this wonderful book and join in if you’ve already read it.

Day 1 was over at J. Kaye’s Book Blog and you can see it here.
Day 2 is above here at Peeking Between the Pages
Day 3 will be at J.Kaye’s Book Blog
Day 4 will be here at Peeking Between the Pages
Day 5 will be a wrap up at J.Kaye’s Book Blog and here at Peeking Between the Pages