Reading Austen in America

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Reading Austen in America presents a colorful, compelling account of how an appreciative audience for Austens novels originated and developed in America, and how American readers contributed to the rise of Austens international fame. Drawing on a range of sources that have never before come to light, Juliette Wells solves the long-standing bibliographical mystery of how and why the first Austen novel printed in Americathe 1816 Philadelphia Emmacame to be. She reveals the responses of this books varied readers and creates an extended portrait of one: Christian, Countess of Dalhousie, a Scotswoman living in British North America. Through original archival research, Wells establishes the significance to reception history of two transatlantic friendships: the first between ardent Austen enthusiasts in Boston and members of Austens family in the nineteenth century, and the second between an Austen collector in Baltimore and an aspiring bibliographer in England in the twentieth.

Reviews

Juliette Wells creates living portraits of Austens earliest American readers and admirers and of their devotion to a novelist who would gradually become known and beloved around the world. * Winterthur Portfolio *
Combining the narrative history of biography with the detail of the collector, Wells weaves a story that charms and interests even despite (and likely because of) its rather immediate, dare one say, nerdiness (and one says such a thing with both respect and appreciation) It is an intriguing mode of both history and historiography, and one that the young Jane Austen would likely have found rather compelling. * College Literature *
Austenites and bibliophiles will enjoy this survey from Wells (Everybodys Jane) of the early American response to Jane Austen Details about early American publishing make up a great deal of the books early sections and provide fascinating insight into the reading habits of the country Theresmuch to delight in throughout this book. * Publishers Weekly *
With useful notes, appendixes, and fascinating photos, this book is sure to appeal to Jane Austen Society of North America members, students, academics, and anyone interested in a case study of early American publishing and readers. * Library Journal *
Wells has produced a ne analysis of the Philadelphia Emma from 1816, of which only six copies are known to have survived ... Wells has contributed a fascinating and fruitful piece of research into the history of the American reception of Austens novels. * English: Journal of the English Association *
In presenting facets of Wells current scholarship, readers will welcome this collected volume. Judging from the fandom of the Quincys and library patrons, reader reception can provide fascinating insights. These entertaining personal histories will open more eyes to the possibilities behind unearthing copies of the 1816 Philadelphia Emma. * JASNA News *
Through meticulous research into how an audience for Austen's writings developed and spread, [Wells] details the responses made by a diverse readership - the passionate, the obsessive, the bewildered and the unenthusiastic ... I encourage you to buy this book and read every word. * Jane Austen Society (UK) *
This is a very accessible book, written with a clear and engaging style, with enough scholarly detail to interest the academic, and references and endnotes a-plenty for those interested in following up her research, but with a strong focus on individual stories of American readers that would prove interesting even to those with no enthusiasm for Austen herself. * Katrina Clifford, Jane Austen Society of Australia *
More readers of Jane Austen live outside of Great Britain than within its borders; more Austen novels circulate around the globe than within the island of her birth. Juliette Wellss fascinating Reading Austen in America sets the standard for Austen studies for coming decades, as we begin to reckon Austens influence and legacy outside of Britain. Wells handles with grace a blend of archival research, book history and delightful anecdote, reshaping as she does so many long-held assumptions about Austen, the novel and the commitments a reader makes. * Mary Favret, Professor of English, Johns Hopkins University, USA *
A welcome addition to Austen scholarship, Juliette Wells Reading Austen in America contributes to book history, history of the book trade, and reception history. Painstakingly following the first publication of Austens in Americathe 1816 Philadelphia Emmathrough its various owners and readers over the next century and a half, Wells contributes to our understanding of the growth of Austens international reputation. Meticulously researched and lavishly illustrated, Reading Austen in America is a pleasure to read. * James Thompson, Professor of English, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, USA *

Author Bio

Juliette Wells is the Elizabeth Conolly Todd Distinguished Professor of English at Goucher College, USA. An acclaimed speaker and writer for popular audiences, she is the author of Everybodys Jane: Austen in the Popular Imagination (Bloomsbury Academic, 2011) and the editor of Penguin Classics 200th-anniversary deluxe annotated editions of Austens Persuasion (2017) and Emma (2015).