Review by MJRyan

Old Friends and New Fancies by Sybil G. Brinton bills itself as the very first Austen sequel. In this age of hyperbole, that seems like just the next outrageous statement in a long line of outrageous statements. However, this is a re-issue of a novel published in 1913. Imagine! An Austen-inspired sequel that hasn’t been influenced in any way, shape or form by Andrew Davies, Colin Firth, Emma Thompson, Keira Knightley or the BBC. Needless to say, I jumped at the chance to review a book unadulterated by pop culture.

Most unlike its inspirations, the novel opens with a broken engagement. It also opens with a healthy dose of a few of Austen’s least likable characters - Lady Catherine, Lucy Ferrars and Anne Steele. An inauspicious beginning, indeed. It seems that Lady Catherine and Anne de Bourgh are in Bath and have quite the group of hangers-on perfectly willing to bend to Lady Catherine’s wishes and whims. Especially simpering and scheming is Lucy Ferrars, who has her sights on Colonel Fitzwilliam for her sister Anne Steele. Unfortunately for Miss Steele, when the Darcys arrive with Fitzwilliam in tow to put in their requisite two-week appearance (the rift between Lady Catherine and Darcy at the end of Pride and Prejudice is never mentioned), Fitzwilliam is immediately enchanted with Miss Mary Crawford.

Characters from every novel are either woven into the story or mentioned making me wonder whom this novel was going to focus on. Once the narrative moves from Bath to Pemberley and London the focus narrows down to Colonel Fitzwilliam, Georgiana and Kitty Bennet, with Georgiana being the emotional center and primary focus of the novel. The overpopulation of characters in the story, some needlessly mentioned, made the story seem cluttered. I found myself, especially at the beginning, having to stop and think about the character mentioned, what book they were from, their previous relationships in the source novel and the new relationships within this novel. I loved that there was a list of characters and their respective books at the front of the novel. I wish all novels had a character list. I also think it should be a literary law that a map of the novel setting should be included at the front of every book. Wouldn’t it be wonderful to have a little map of England to see where Derbyshire is in relation to Herfordshire and London, especially for new readers? But, I love maps and looking at maps so I could be alone in the promotion of this literary law. I digress. Back to the book review.

While I was always aware I wasn’t reading Austen, the author does an admirable job of writing in Austen’s style, focusing on the perils and pitfalls of finding and retaining love in Regency England. Her interpretation of all characters with the possible exception of Elizabeth Bennet, are spot on. While it would be difficult to have Austen’s continuous wit, the author instills enough that I found myself laughing aloud quite a bit. The too brief appearance of Mr. Bennet especially made me chuckle.

Since it is a sequel to all of Austen’s novels, it would be a good idea to have read all of the books before you read this. At the very least, you should have a good familiarity with the scandal at Mansfield Park, the characters of Pride and Prejudice and the personalities of the characters from Sense and Sensibility before picking up Old Friends and New Fancies. If you’re searching for a book similar in tone and sensibility to Austen’s work but totally lacking feverish embraces or mention of tan breeches look no further. Old Friends and New Fancies will be a very satisfying read.

AustenBlog is giving away a copy of Old Friends and New Fancies, courtesy of Sourcebooks. Send your name, full mailing address, and your favorite Austen villain to editor@austenblog.com by 10 p.m. Eastern time, Tuesday, September 4, 2007.

We heard back from Sony Pictures Classics with more details of U.S. release dates for The Jane Austen Book Club.

The film opens on September 21 in New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco/Bay Area, Scottsdale AZ, Chicago and Boston.

On September 28, it expands to Denver, Washington, Baltimore, Portland, Philadelphia, Dallas, Houston and Seattle.

On October 5, the film will expand throughout Alaska, Alabama, all throughout California, some more Colorado, all throughout Florida, Atlanta, Des Moines, Indianapolis, Kansas, Kentucky, New Orleans, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Missouri, North Carolina, Nebraska, New Mexico, Nevada, all throughout New York, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Texas, West Virginia, Wisconsin and Washington.

Stay tuned to AustenBlog for TJABC goodies and swag!

Variety has an article about Robin Swicord’s journey of making this film.

So she went back to a passion project she and Sony’s Amy Pascal had talked about for some 15 years, a movie about people who love Jane Austen. “Amy and I got serious about trying to do a movie about a dysfunctional family of Jane Austen scholars that would echo some aspects of ‘Pride and Prejudice,’” Swicord recalls. As of June 2006, Swicord’s “The Jane Prize,” an academic family comedy in the vein of “You Can’t Take It With You,” was on a slow track.

Then producer Calley, who once ran Sony Pictures Entertainment and still checks in regularly with Pascal, approached Swicord with “The Jane Austen Book Club,” a 2004 bestseller by Karen Jay Fowler. Calley had read “The Jane Prize,” and clearly Swicord knew her Austen.

“The last thing I needed was something competing,” Swicord says. So she decided to do both.

According to Diana Birchall’s article from the set of the film in the latest issue of JASNA News, Ms. Swicord hopes to make The Jane Project her next, um, project; presumably it will happen only if TJABC does well.

Alert Janeite (and dedicated member of Team Tilney) Kelley B. sent us an article from the Salisbury Journal about Tim Luscombe, who adapted Northanger Abbey for the stage and is directing the production in Salisbury from September 6-29 and then make a national tour.

“My starting point is that I absolutely love it. Northanger Abbey is my very favourite Jane Austen book and it is a short novel. I just love Henry Tilney - people do.”

That might be the understatement of the century.

“He is so very wise,” says Tim. “Always ready to forgive other people. He has every right to be furious with Catherine, but ends up forgiving her, and teaching her to use her imagination in a more sensible way.”

*siiiiiigh* …. what were we talking about again?

The Gothic theme of the play will also be reflected in the lighting design, which will be in the style of the 19th- century German romantic painter Caspar David Friedrich, who used sepia ink to achieve his distinctive and striking images.

Sounds like fun! If you get to go, don’t forget to tell us about it.