Synopsis: "From its sharply satiric opening sentence, Mansfield Park deals with money and marriage, and how strongly they affect each other. Shy, fragile Fanny Price is the consummate "poor relation." Sent to live with her wealthy uncle Thomas, she clashes with his spoiled, selfish daughters and falls in love with his son. Their lives are further complicated by the arrival of a pair of witty, sophisticated Londoners, whose flair for flirtation collides with the quiet, conservative country ways of Mansfield Park.Written several years after the early manuscripts that eventually became Sense and Sensibility and Pride and Prejudice, Mansfield Park retains Jane Austen's familiar compassion and humor but offers a far more complex exploration of moral choices and their emotional consequences."
My Review: So I was never a big fan of Jane Austen but after taking a quiz a few years ago to discover which of her characters was most like me and getting Fanny Price I decided to give her another shot. I had never read Mansfield Park and it had been years since I last had to read one of her works in school. Well, I can say that I am still not a fan. Shame on me for not liking such a classic but I was bored out of my mind for at least half of the book! In fact after attempting to read it and getting too distracted all the time, I switched to an audio. The narrator, Wanda McCaddon did a decent job, though even with her tone changes for the different characters, it was still difficult to distinguish who was speaking at times. Like I said I was bored until about Disc 6 or 7 of the 12 disc set, it seemed most of it was just idle talk and gossip. I kept waiting for something to happen and eventually there seemed to be a little something happening but it slowed down again. It also seemed that most of the exciting stuff happened off the pages (which may be due to Fanny's docile nature and avoidance of such things). But I do have to say whoever made that quiz really hit the nail on the head, Fanny and I have a lot in common! She kept me coming back and along with a couple of the other characters that I felt a small connection with (Edmund, Sir Thomas and William). But for all the wordiness of the book the ending seemed awfully rushed and just kind of laid out without elaboration. Well at least I gave it another shot!
My Review: So I was never a big fan of Jane Austen but after taking a quiz a few years ago to discover which of her characters was most like me and getting Fanny Price I decided to give her another shot. I had never read Mansfield Park and it had been years since I last had to read one of her works in school. Well, I can say that I am still not a fan. Shame on me for not liking such a classic but I was bored out of my mind for at least half of the book! In fact after attempting to read it and getting too distracted all the time, I switched to an audio. The narrator, Wanda McCaddon did a decent job, though even with her tone changes for the different characters, it was still difficult to distinguish who was speaking at times. Like I said I was bored until about Disc 6 or 7 of the 12 disc set, it seemed most of it was just idle talk and gossip. I kept waiting for something to happen and eventually there seemed to be a little something happening but it slowed down again. It also seemed that most of the exciting stuff happened off the pages (which may be due to Fanny's docile nature and avoidance of such things). But I do have to say whoever made that quiz really hit the nail on the head, Fanny and I have a lot in common! She kept me coming back and along with a couple of the other characters that I felt a small connection with (Edmund, Sir Thomas and William). But for all the wordiness of the book the ending seemed awfully rushed and just kind of laid out without elaboration. Well at least I gave it another shot!
My Rating: So unfortunately I have to give this one a One Paw rating. While I love classics, this era of book and style of writing is just not for me. I am not into drama or gossip in my regular life and definitely not into it in my reading world!
I think that for some classics it's just hard to get into them. Of all the Jane Austen stories I've seen done as movies, this premise is my least favorite. You're right though--at least you gave it another shot! :)
ReplyDeleteI love so many of the classics but the ones written in this style and time period are just not for me. I guess it is back to Homer and Dante for me!
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