Following Austen

Christian Retailing review

Just got this review from Christian Retailing:

"Smith spins her personal life story as she follows the steps of her favorite author, Jane Austen, in A Walk with Jane Austen: A Journey into Adventure, Love & Faith.  Visiting places in England such as London and the Hampshire countryside, Smith--whose previous title was the relationship-oriented The Single Truth--identifies with Austen in her quest for love and heartfelt faith.

Referring to such Austen works as Pride and Prejudice, Sense and Sensibility and Love and Friendship, a collection of juvenile writings, Smith points out their universal themes of love, community, friendship and heartache.

Smith seems to understand Austen's mind and offers a contemplative reflection of Austen, who has become the subject of many a recent book and film.  Mixing pathos with humor, A Walk with Jane Austen will appeal to Anglophiles, Austen fans and young women searching for their place in the world."

A couple minor corrections -- "Love and Freindship" [sic] (Jane always got her i's and e's mixed up) is one of the stories in Austen's Juvenilia.  The version I used was Catharine and Other Writings from Oxford University Press, which also includes her poetry and prayers.  And The Single Truth isn't so much about relationships.  It's a thoughtful approach to living a single Christian life.

Review at Bookreporter.com

Cindy Crosby has done a roundup of 15 new Austen books at Bookreporter.com in which she reviews A Walk with JA:

". . . a likable and vulnerable true-life memoir . . . a moving and well-written read.

If you don't mind a little spirituality, the most interesting nonfiction pick of the above would be the creative memoir, A WALK WITH JANE AUSTEN."

Read more:  Austen-mania!

Part II review at Jane Austen's World

Ms. Place has posted her review of Part II at Jane Austen's World -- and check out her new site, it's gorgeous.

This book resonated deeply with me . . . Lori weaves the personal details of Jane’s life and the details of her own past and present seamlessly in her exquisitely crafted journal.

Read more here.

Austen-tatious review coming soon

Austen-tatious will be posting a review soon.  Looks like initial impressions are good!

I'm currently reading Lori Smith's wonderful, beautiful, inspiring book...

Emma Campbell Webster endorsement

Emma Campbell Webster, author of Lost in Austen, has given us an endorsement as well.  Wow!

When I wrote the book, I wasn't really sure how all the faith stuff would blend with the Austen stuff (even though she was a woman of faith, it's not generally what we associate with her).  I wasn't sure how general audiences would take it, and I really wanted everyone to feel comfortable reading the book, so this means a lot.

“Sensitively written and carefully paced this memoir takes the reader on a tour of the author’s experiences while journeying around England in the footsteps of Jane Austen. Lori Smith moves seamlessly from romantic daydreams, through a close questioning of her relationship with God, to battles with her mental and physical health. The book reads as an intimate and honest memoir and has enough to satisfy the non-Christian (like myself) if they choose to look beyond the somewhat unexpected (in a mainstream book at least) pairing of Jane Austen and Christianity. Above all else, this is a book about searching—for love, meaning, peace with oneself, health, a good night’s sleep, and a decent cup of coffee that wasn’t made with that freeze-dried-instant-powder—and these are experiences that anyone of any faith can relate to.... A welcoming read. Lyrical and questioning...perfectly pitched.”

Thanks, Emma!  Check out her book and blog.

Karen Joy Fowler endorsement

We just got this endorsement from Karen Joy Fowler, best-selling author of The Jane Austen Book Club (soon to be a movie, of course).  I'm just honored that she would do this.  I think she was on deadline for a project of her own, and I know what that's like, so ... wow.  I want to say thank you thank you thankyouthankyou!

“A young woman goes looking for Austen in all the places Austen once lived and many of the places she wrote about. The Austen she finds is a woman of family, and of quiet but sustaining faith. Austen shares these things and many others with author Lori Smith whose book gives the reader the great pleasure of time spent with both. A lovely, intimate read.”

Starred PW review!

I just found out last Wednesday that A Walk with Jane Austen received a starred review from Publishers Weekly.  I'm tickled pink and just plain giddy! 

This is a huge honor.  PW reviews a select number of books, and gives stars to the top tier.  I'm really pretty gobsmacked. 

“In this engaging, deeply personal and well-researched travelogue, Smith (a PW contributor) journeys to England to soak in the places of Jane Austen’s life and writings. The book is sure to ride the wave of Austen-philia that has recently swept through Hollywood and a new generation of Americans, but this is an unusual look at Jane Austen. Readers will learn plenty of biographical details—about Austen’s small and intimate circle of family and friends, her candid letters to her sister, her possible loves and losses, her never-married status, her religious feelings, and her untimely death at the age of 41. But it is the author’s passionate connection to ‘Jane’—the affinity she feels and her imaginings of Austen’s inner life—that bring Austen to life in ways no conventional biographer could. Smith’s voice swings authentically between her own raw, aching vulnerability as a single Christian woman battling a debilitating and mysterious chronic illness and the surges of faith she finds in the grace of a loving God. And yes, Smith even meets a potential Darcy at the start of her journey. This deliciously uncertain romantic tension holds the book together as Smith weaves her own thoughts, historical research, and fitting references to Austen’s novels into a satisfying whole.”

Endorsement from Gina Dalfonzo

There's been a flurry of activity here over the last week.  Just received this endorsement from Gina Dalfonzo, editor of The Point blog (to which I contribute -- I am the resident not-so-conservative):

“With deep and sometimes heartwrenching honesty, Lori Smith weaves her story and Jane’s together into a wholly unique narrative. In the midst of a craze for treating Austen’s novels as little more than glorified bodice-rippers, Lori brings to bear her perspective as a single Christian woman who can identify in many ways with Austen’s own beliefs and experiences, exploring truths and ideas that others gloss over. The resulting book stands out like a beacon.”

Wow -- thanks, Gina!

An endorsement

I just got this endorsement from author Tamara Leigh, who I had the privilege of hanging out with at CBA in Atlanta.  I'm honored!

"With wit, charm, and rare honesty--of which I have to believe Jane Austen would have thoroughly approved--Lori Smith weaves her personal life experiences throughout her journey into the life that was Jane's. Infused with faith, romance, loss, and a search for self, A Walk With Jane Austen makes for that rare book which keeps popping into one's thoughts and beckoning one back."

 

Tamara Leigh Author of Perfecting Kate and Splitting Harriet

If you're looking for good chick lit, check out Tamara's books.  Mine is available for pre-order and will be released October 16.  (Forgive me if I've said that a hundred times!)

Part 1 review

Ms. Place at Jane Austen's World has posted more of her review.  Made me giddy!

"A Walk With Jane Austen is a lovely book, full of unexpected insights and revelations. Lori Smith's revealing and personal account is a pure joy to read. As a single, independent and talented woman she is in want of a man, but will not compromise her principles or her quest to experience romantic love in order to simply be with one. Sound familiar?"

Read more here.