Persuasion by Jane Austen

Title: Persuasion

Author: Jane Austen

Publisher: Penguin Classics

Date Released: March 27, 2003  

Originially published in 1817

Rating:  ★★★★★

Summary: {Goodreads}

At twenty-seven, Anne Elliot is no longer young and has a few romantic prospects. Eight years earlier, she had been persuaded by her friend Lady Russell to break off her engagement to Frederick Wentworth, a handsome naval captain with neither fortune nor rank. What happens when they encounter each other again is movingly told in Jane Austen's last completed novel. Set in fashionable societies of Lume Regis and Bath, Persuasion is a brilliant satire of vanity and pretension, but, above all, it is a love story tinged with the heartache of missed opportunities.

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Urban Dictionary defines book hangover as ”when you've finished a book and you suddenly return to the real world, but the real world feels incomplete or surreal because you're still living in the world of the book.”

Seldom does a book affect me so much, make me feel so deeply, whether it be rage or sadness or adoration, even confusion, that for a few hours I’m no longer just me. Instead, I’m a character. I live in this world; I know their stories, feel their pain, witness their love. It happens, but not often.

It’s a lot like falling in love. It wasn’t sudden. In fact, it began a bit slowly. You get to know each other, you wine and you dine, and at some point… You just know. You know that it’s love.

Persuasion did this for me. Jane Austen did this.

Now, I’m no stranger to Ms. Austen. I’ve read Pride and Prejudice. I’ve read Sense and Sensibility and I’m slowly working my way across the rest of her works (in no particular order). They’re both great pieces of literature, but neither had a great effect on me. Somehow, I just figured I would pick up Persuasion next and I’m so glad I did.

Here, we meet Anne Elliot - an exquisite heroine. She is one the most mature, self-aware female characters that I’ve ever encountered. One of my greatest attractions to her is my own reflection in her character. She is a reader, very intelligent, and, as an introvert, quite socially outcasted from her family. She is surrounded by people who value wealth and rank over pureness of character, yet she has managed to learn to love one man (our dear Captain Wentworth) with so much emotion, over many years, despite the opinions of others. That is the great testament of this novel. Love conquers all.

I could go on and on about the plot, the characters, or Austen's criticisms of social norms, but for once, I’ll leave it at that. There are plenty of reviews that can critique and expand on all that. Here, I just want to express my own thoughts upon finishing this novel. If you’re looking to get your spirits lifted, to witness the strength of deep, true love across many years, the beauty of forgiveness, and a happy ending… just read.

** This review is also found on Goodreads here.