Book description
These three short works show Austen experimenting with a variety of
different literary styles, from melodrama to satire, and exploring a
range of social classes and settings. The early epistolary novel LADY
SUSAN depicts an unscrupulous coquette, toying with the affections of
several men. In contrast, THE WATSONS is a delightful fragment, whose
spirited heroine - Emma - finds her marriage opportunities limited by
poverty and pride. Meanwhile SANDITON, set in a seaside resort, offers a
glorious cast of hypochondriacs and spectators, treated by Austen with
both amusement and scepticism. Jane Austen (1775-1817) was very modest
about her own achievements, but has become one of the most celebrated
and well-loved writers in English literature. Her best-selling and most
enduring novels include PRIDE AND PREJEUDICE and EMMA. Margaret Drabble
is a writer and critic, her most recent novel is THE PEPPERED MOTH.
