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250 (& More) Reasons We Love Jane Austen

Austen at 250 logo with fireworks in background



Born on December 16, 1775, Jane Austen turns 250 this year. Help us celebrate! 

Everyone has their own reason for adoring Jane Austen, and we would all love to hear yours. Whether it's as simple as "Mrs. Bennet's nerves," a favorite witty line, or a heartfelt toast, we're gathering a joyful collection of 250—and more!—reasons you, her readers and fans, appreciate her. Join us in celebrating the incomparable Jane!

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Comments

  • Gretchen S Aug 18, 2025, 9:49 AM (16 days ago)

    My loving interest in Jane ( and JASNA ) has improved the quality of my life. And for this reason-
    "Friendship is certainly the finest balm for the pangs of disappointed love."

  • Christina Jennings Aug 18, 2025, 9:21 AM (16 days ago)

    Of tremendous enjoyment to me are these two inventions of Jane Austen:
    The scene in Mansfield Park where Sir Thomas Bertram completely unexpectedly comes upon John Yates loudly practicing his sword-fighting scene on a stage that was formerly Sir Thomas’s study, and each man has to dig deeply to behave with decorum to the other. Why Yates was tone deaf enough to continue to rehearse on his own when he was acutely aware that Sir Thomas did not approve of his children acting is another reason on an infinite list of why Jane makes us laugh.
    And another passage that finds Mrs Jennings in Sense and Sensibility misunderstanding a conversation she barely hears between Elinor and Colonel Brandon. Mrs Jennings thinks the colonel has just proposed, which he hasn’t, and the ensuing dialogs that go on for quite a bit of time between the two women make me chortle aloud, even after reading it innumerable times.

  • Tracey Boyle Aug 18, 2025, 8:31 AM (16 days ago)

    Her novels transport me to a place and time that soothes me.

  • Alice Moore Aug 18, 2025, 8:28 AM (16 days ago)

    I love her because she persevered when options were limited and expectations low for women. She knew her worth. And she makes me want to be a better sister and aunt.

  • Amanda Scheetz Aug 18, 2025, 7:56 AM (16 days ago)

    Jane Austen’s novels are timeless. They transcend time and speak to all of us who admire her through the many decades since they were written. She had an understanding of people and relationships that was spot on! She lives on for all of us through her writing.

  • Judy Mellow Aug 18, 2025, 7:50 AM (16 days ago)

    Her wit and concision enthraills me. My favorite line is this: The strangeness of Mr. Collins' making two offers of marriage within three days was nothing in comparison of his being now accepted.

  • Sara Munson Aug 18, 2025, 6:40 AM (16 days ago)

    ". . . the men all so good for nothing, and hardly any women at all!"
    —Northanger Abbey, Ch 14: Catherine Morland on why she isn’t interested in reading books of history.

  • Cheryl Kimberley Aug 18, 2025, 5:55 AM (16 days ago)

    My personal discovery, my hobby, of "all things Jane" has allowed me to use her as the root as the stem for all things pleasant all things joyful, interesting in my life. That includes "all things Jane" separate from my daily grind yet useful to the daily grind issues. Ie., my love of travel is always enhanced by the orientation of Jane Austen's life. Whether that includes a specific visit with me sitting at Cassandra's Cafe to enjoy the view of Jane Austen's house in Chawton or when I'm in Vienna to consider Marie Antoinette AND Mozart were alive the same time as Jane Austen. Soo fun. Jane Austen is the icing on my cake, the frill on my sleeve - the butter on my bread.

  • Jan Merriman Aug 18, 2025, 5:51 AM (16 days ago)

    I love Jane Austen's novels because she has always seemed so sharp and witty in her language and observations. Her books are as fresh as the day they were written. Her characters are for the most part alive and true. There is no writer to compare to our beloved Jane.

  • William Dawson Aug 18, 2025, 4:49 AM (16 days ago)

    Of course, I enjoy Jane Austen's writings for various reasons; however, as an avid letter writer to my pen pals, I admire her gift for correspondence. Her use of written correspondence is used often in her works, and I appreciate this mode of communication in our busy world. Her world was basically operating at the speed of human walking, that is about three miles per hour, and perhaps this paradigm is good advice in our 21st century's frenetic pace.

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