A Day in the Life
How I wish someone would publish an annotated edition of Jane Austen's letters which I'm reading, or dipping into, as part of my research for my (tentatively titled) Immortal Jane books. I wouldn't go so far as to agree with the description of the letters as "a desert of trivialities punctuated by occasional oases of clever malice" (H.W. Garrod) but they can be hard going. I've picked a letter Jane wrote to her sister Cassandra 210 years ago, on Tuesday, June 11, 1799, and will share with you what I found. Jane was probably finishing Susan (renamed Northanger Abbey ) around this time. There's a reference in this letter to First Impressions , revised almost a decade later to become Pride & Prejudice . Jane, Mrs. Austen and Edward Austen/Knight had arrived in Bath on May 17, and were staying at 13, Queens Square. They returned home at the end of June. Much of the letter is to do with fashion. Jane had certain shopping errands she had to fulfill in t...