Least to Most Favourite Jane Austen Novels

[@viraghorvath1267]

Mansfield Park is so underrated! It's actually my favorite Austen book, I read it a long time ago but I remember clearly that I could relate to Fanny's character so much. It's high time for a reread. :D My second might be Emma, it was so fascinating. I loved the BBC adaptation of that!

[@katiejlumsden]

It really is - such a fantastic novel, and one I am so, so fond of.

[@birgitpost3675]

I love the comment that Persuasion is about second chances. Persuasion has climbed in my estimation because the relationship between the main characters is different than my favorite, Pride and Prejudice.

[@BeatrixOnyx]

I would say Emma is my favourite Austen novel. It's her masterpiece in my opinion. It's so interesting re-reading it. There's so many little hints that are easy to miss on your first reading. I'm not surprised that PD James likened the book to a dective novel.

[@katiejlumsden]

Emma is a wonderful book - there are just other ones by her I love a little more!

[@juliequick5526]

I’m currently towards the end of Mansfield Park and I truly adore Fanny Price! I am an internal person and find it hard to alter my feelings once they are set. I understand people may think her boring, but as they mature, Fanny will surely become a fave character. She is utterly wonderful! Enough said 👌

[@katiejlumsden]

I definitely agree - she's a wonderful character!

[@loisthiessen5611]

Thanks for your comments on the various novels. I am a great fan of Jane Austen's work and agree that "Pride and Prejudice" is her best. The plot lines reflect the Regency era, and the limitations placed on people by status and sex. I am also a student of history, and that increases my enjoyment of her work. One cannot look at her characters through a present-day lens, and that may lessen their interest to some extent (unfortunately for those readers).

[@elizhopp]

Late to comment but I just found your videos recently. I'm so happy to see the love for Mansfield Park. It is my favorite Jane Austen novel. I've listened to the audiobook so many times that Aunt Norris has become the devil on my shoulder whenever I have a bout of social anxiety. "Remember, wherever you are, you must be the lowest and last;" The qualities that Fanny possesses as a heroine are those we don't often see glorified in other works. Empathy, self-knowledge, gratitude and deep, lasting connections with others. Her relationship with her brother is also well depicted. He is the other family in her life that has escaped poverty through his own merits. As the lovely ending of Mansfield Park shows that even though she may have been thought a charity case dependent on her Aunt's family, it is rather quite the opposite as everyone in the house benefits from her presence in some way. I could go on and on... Happy to see the love for Mansfield Park and to have found your channel!

[@katiejlumsden]

Thanks very much. Mansfield Park is such a fantastic novel, and it always makes me sad that it's a bit underrated. Fanny is such a great character :)

[@DanielFletcherFlute]

I've totally discovered my love for classic literature this year- actually in huge part because of this channel. I read so much as a child and young teenager, but kind of lost that as I got more involved in music (I'm a classical musician- about to head to a prestigious music university) and last year I took an AP Literature class and totally rekindled my love for reading. Jane Austen had been a favorite this year- I've read three of her books so far, and have made a goal to finish her this year. Lady Susan I think is next! And just wanted to thank you really quickly. I seriously can listen to you for hours and your love for Dickens has gotten me into Dickens (I've been doing the OMF readalong in serial parts kind of at my own pace) and yeah. It's also inspired me this year to do a minor in English, and that's amazing too. So thankful for you and for the amazing English teachers in high school that rekindled my love for reading. Keep doing exactly what you're doing. I'll definitely be here watching it.

[@katiejlumsden]

Thank you Daniel - this comment made me really happy. I hope you enjoy Lady Susan, and your future adventures with Jane Austen - she's so great.

[@logann-mackenziefroste563]

Daniel what was the first classic book that you read as kid ?

[@BookishTexan]

This was good fun. Persuasion is my favorite (havent read them all yet).

[@katiejlumsden]

Thanks :)

[@paulapoetry]

Pride and Prejudice remains my favourite, too. Definitely, each has its own specific strengths. 😀❤

[@katiejlumsden]

It's just so good!

[@shanethorn7568]

Your author week videos always have the effect of making me incredibly excited to read/reread every single book on the list. Your previous Austen author week led me to read Lady Susan, which then went from a footnote to being one of my favorite Austens. Sense and Sensibility is actually my favorite, partly because of Marianne and Willoughby. I like Edward a great deal as a character, though I agree that the romance with Elinor is underdeveloped. One of my favorite things in Austen is how she engages with the art and culture of her time (people discussing landscapes, poetry, etc), and S&S has a good amount of that.

[@katiejlumsden]

Thanks - I'm glad you really enjoyed Lady Susan - it's so great! I do really like Marianne and Willoughby's characters, though Edward and Elinor's romance is not my favourite. I'm hoping to reread Sense and Sensibility sometime soon though.

[@GameofTomes]

Currently reading P&P for the first time and LOVING it ❤️❤️ -Jessica

[@katiejlumsden]

So glad you're enjoying it!

[@gdandrews]

Your enthusiasm for Jane Austen is so infectious! I'm really enjoying Jane Austen July. Pride and Prejudice has always been my favourite. I haven't read Lady Susan before but it arrived in the post just the other day and I am looking forward to reading it, once I finish Northanger Abbey :)

[@katiejlumsden]

I really hope you like Lady Susan!

[@freddylowe4900]

Wow! I have only recently just found your channel and was hunting JA rankings on the Internet as they really interest me. Perfect timing, thank you so much! I also completely adore Jane Austen so I loved watching this video. Got to be honest, S&S is one of my favourite Jane Austen books but I agree with the unrivalled brilliance that is Pride and Prejudice. That book is such a masterpiece!

[@katiejlumsden]

Thanks :) I do just love all of her books.

[@FootSoldier4Christ]

My favorite Jane Austen novels are in order from favorite to least favorite: 1. Pride & Prejudice for many of the same reasons you gave. I love the characters in this novel the best. I love Elizabeth's wit and refusal to compromise on her happiness. I also like how Darcy humbles himself in the end. 2. Sense & Sensibility because of the story line itself, the juxtaposition of the natures of Elinor and Marianne. 3. Emma because of Emma and Knightly. Knightly is my favorite hero or male lead. Like Pride & Prejudice, I like the comedic parts and the absurdity of Me. Elton and his wife. 4. Mansfield Park because I love underdogs, and Fanny is an underdog. I enjoy Edmund's kind but blind relationship with Fanny. This novel delves into the morals and behavioral expectations of the time.

[@FootSoldier4Christ]

I accidentally sent this before finishing. 5. Northanger Abbey. I like that Katherine is the youngest heroine of Austen's novels. I also like large, spooky manor houses, abbeys and castles and the comedic gothic element. 6. Persuasion is my least favorite because I don't care for the heroine, Ann. Although she is a good soul, she is too much of a doormat. I don't care for Wentworth, either. He hung onto his resentment of Ann after so many years. Although he redeemed himself in the end, his character had not improved, unlike Darcy in Pride & Prejudice who had humbled himself.

[@centpushups]

Finally some love for Mansfield Park. Fanny definitely resonates more with me because we are the most similar of all the MC.

[@bookmouse2719]

I love Henry Tilney....also I love the book Emma (bit of a mystery) with humor. Persuasion is sad but a good ending. Mansfield Park is interesting when Fanny goes back to her family. Mary Crawford reminds me of Lady Susan. Edmund was so mean to Fanny! S & S eh....it's better than reading Withering Heights. I love P & P.

[@MidwinterNightingale]

Very enjoyable video! My favourite is actually Sense and Sensibility - as one of two very different sisters I find their relationship fascinating and very moving. I was introduced to a Jane Austen board game yesterday called Polite Society - great fun and really made me want to reread them all. I'm especially keen to return to Mansfield Park which I enjoyed but have never revisited. I agree Fanny has a lot of depth in her quiet determination to stick to her principles - she reminds me a little of what I love about Jane Eyre as a character (albeit with less fierceness!) Your love for Lady Susan made me wonder if you have read Vanity Fair - Becky Sharpe is my favourite charming-but-ruthless anti-heroine!

[@katiejlumsden]

I have read Vanity Fair, and really enjoyed, though ten years ago or so. Becky Sharpe and Lady Susan definitely have a lot in common! I can certainly see connections between Fanny and Jane Eyre. That board game sounds so fun!

[@jimsbooksreadingandstuff]

I've now read #1, #4 and #5...I think I should look out for #2 or #3 for next Jane Austen July....

[@kevinrosero9723]

Love Mansfield Park too!

[@gracetaylor7351]

Really enjoy these I haven't read all of the books but watched of Tv series of them !! But I always love watching cause you enjoy it so much !!

[@katiejlumsden]

Thanks :)

[@BlatantlyBookish]

What a lovely video!! I commend you on being able to rank Austen's works. Pride and Prejudice is my favorite and then the rest are just too difficult for me to rank. Jane Austen July makes me want to reread all of them!! ♥♥♥

[@katiejlumsden]

I feel like my ranking is fairly loose in the middle. I really want to reread the rest now. Apparently there's a new audiobook of Sense and Sensibility coming out later this year narrated by Rosamund Pike, which I am very excited for!

[@lindaklinedinst9236]

I finished listening to Sense & Sensibility by Jane Austen as a Audio Book through my Library. I really enjoyed this book. I also have the Physical Paperback Book of this too. I love Jane Austen's Books. Happy Reading :)

[@katiejlumsden]

It's a great one. I really need to reread it.

[@joepalooka2145]

Great video, very interesting. I have not read all of Jane Austen's books but now I'm inspired by your excellent talk.

[@katiejlumsden]

Thanks :)

[@Mouseling216]

S+S is best. The two sisters have more character than any of the other heroines, even Emma who is the eponymous character doesn't get as much character until nearer the end

[@katiejlumsden]

It's not my favourite, but I do love it.

[@rachelport3723]

I've become obsessed with the idea of Mansfield Park as Maria's story and would love to have her story told - what makes a woman behave the way she does - her feelings for Henry Crawford notwithstanding, she marries a total idiot, encouraged by her aunt who can't even imagine how Maria feels. Then, meeting the man she does love (or has a passion for) after she is married, gets seduced into a ruinous affair. It's quite as good a premise as Anna Karenina or Madame Bovary. In the book as it is written, Maria is largely a plot device, especially the elopement - but the more I think about it, the more I want to know her better.

[@katiejlumsden]

It certainly would be interesting to read a retelling of Mansfield Park fully from Maria's perspective.

[@josielacey8372]

Persuasion is definitely my favourite with P & P a close second, although I've never read Mansfield Park or Northanger Abbey. I think I'll have to read them soon, just to complete my love of Austen.

[@katiejlumsden]

You definitely must - those two are great!

[@-.Germanicus.-]

Sense and sensibility is honestly my favorite next to emma. Persuation is my 2 favorite

[@samantha.irenes]

I love videos like this, lol. I took a class on Jane Austen for my English Lit degree so I've read them all, and Persuasion is tied with P&P for my favorite. I found Northanger Abbey and S&S to be charming (S&S's adaptations are usually better than the book though, esp the Emma Thompson one). I really disliked Mansfield Park, how she handled themes of slavery left a bad taste in my mouth, and I couldn't help but feel like I was reading the beginning of Jane Eyre but for 500 pages. Didn't like Lady Susan or Emma either, but Emma I think suffered from it being the last book I read for that class and it was just Too Much Austen by that point haha.

[@robynfindley7623]

Good job for including lady Susan alot of people leave that one out emma is my favorite .

[@katiejlumsden]

I adore Lady Susan!

[@OlyBliss]

Watching this was like listening to you prioritise your own children😂 clearly you have a lot of love for all of all of Austen’s work. I wasn’t actually aware of all these titles so it was nice to have an overview of the Austen universe and your favourite folk. Can I ask though, did the love of Austen come before or after the BBC series and did you watch it at the time? I have P and P on audio I haven’t gotten around it yet but you just bump it up on my TBR through sheer passion😄

[@katiejlumsden]

I can't really remember! I know I saw the 2005 Pride and Prejudice film before reading the book, but for the rest I can't actually remember whether I watched or read them first. Regardless, I'd highly recommend Pride and Prejudice (and the rest of her) - the audiobook is just so great!

[@lemonadehug]

Hi Katie, just wondering if you have read the unfinished novel, Sanditon of Jane Austen and if you have, what are your thoughts on it? I have recently watched the ITV’s adaptation of Sanditon and loved the story plot and characters development very much. Oh how I wish that Jane Austen had completed the novel. Am sure it would be yet another great work as Pride and Prejudice, if not more captivating.

[@katiejlumsden]

I have read it. I wish she'd finished it. I saw the ITV adaptation - well, some of it - but I wasn't a fan and gave up on it half way through.

[@mysticmouse7261]

Pride and Prejudice is one of my least favorite though above Sense and Sensibility. I agree that Mansfield Park ranks high. It is a novel for all times though very much in the style of the nineteenth century lit tradition. It is the most Dickensian.

[@katiejlumsden]

Interesting - maybe that's why I love Mansfield Park so much!

[@jeffreykaufmann2867]

1995 P&P is the best Jane Austen movie.

[@logann-mackenziefroste563]

I am deciding if I should start reading the Jane Austen books. I looked at some at the bookstore and they all seem so super hard to understand the writing and the language and they seem like one can only read Jane Austen in school where one has the teacher there to help explain what is going on in the book. I read one page and I was like what did I just read. So how do you read classics for fun and still understand the writing and the language? Also what is a good starter Jane Austen book ? Or maybe there is another classic book that I can start with in reading classics ?

[@CarolynsReadingRamblings]

Ok so of course I knew your rankings from your Jane Austen week (except Lady Susan I think) but the condensed version was great :D. I think I have mentioned my ranking before or at least top 2 but mine are, from most to least favorite-1.Sense &Sensibility 2. Northanger Abbey 3. tied between Persuasion and Pride and Prejudice 4.Emma 5. Mansfield Park and now that I have read Lady Susan, it is number 6 so something finally moved Mansfield up in my esteem. I still loved Lady Susan because Jane Austen's writing is amazing as always in it and I loved several characters. However, the suspense of whether a certain thing was going to happen or not was INCREDIBLY stressful and I despise Lady Susan so much lol. Oh and this is silly but after reading Dr. Thorne and Framley Parsonage I kept thinking of Anthony Trollope's De Courcy family while reading about Austen's (hers has an e in it though right?). Ok finished rambling, wonderful video as always :D

[@katiejlumsden]

Ah I kind of love and hate Lady Susan XD And I hadn't made the connection between the two De Courcy families - maybe Lady Susan's genes got out after all into all the awful De Courys of the later 19th century :P

[@CarolynsReadingRamblings]

Books and Things oh my gosh now I am thinking how cool it would have been if Anthony Trollope had said that his De Courcys were the next generation of Austen's😍. Only I like her De Courcys better (except Frank).

[@dillardlester8111]

I just finished all the novels and shorter works. The only novel I've read multiple times is P&P and that is my favorite. Second I would put Emma. I thought the the character of Emma was refreshingly different from her other main characters. I also call Emma the Great Debate novel because of the two or three sit down debates that Emma and Mr Knightly have throughout. For some reason I like that. Then North. Abbey and Pers. Mansfield Park is second to last. Count me as one of those who find Fanny too boring. And the fact , that you mentioned, that she doesn't change at all is to me another mark against her. What I do like is the glimpse we get of her family. You don't see people like that in Austen so it was refreshing to spend time with them. S&S brings up the rear when it comes to her novels. With the short works, I agree with you that Lady Susan is great fun but the one that sticks in my mind the most is The History of England. I just found it adorable how anti Elizabeth I she was. It seems to me that there is an Austen Code and once you crack that code you can pretty well tell from the first 30 or so pages how things are going to turn out. You can tell by the way she describes people what their characters are. And these characters never seem to change through the novel. So, by the time I read Persuasion I could tell from the way she described Mr Elliott, the heir, that he was not a benign influence and would not end up with Anne. So, there really was no tension for me in his machinations. Like I said, this was my first read for most of these books so my opinions could change with time.

[@katiejlumsden]

I do enjoy the History of England - it's very, very funny! In terms of any Jane Austen code - I don't remember my first readings that well, and also a lot of Jane Austen plots are so widely in popular culture, it's hard for me to work out what I worked out and what I already knew!

[@SunriseFireberry]

You are probably the only one who ranks the pair of M. Park & L. Susan so highly. How Dombeyish. :-) How would you rank the Hardys, the Eliots you've read (leaving out F. Holt & Romola which you haven't)?

[@katiejlumsden]

I direct you here for my Hardy ranking: kzbin.info/aero/PLw2Mjecd2B-OI2kC45Ws2fnIwt4PUOj3F (The Well-Beloved being the lowest, Jude the Obscure being the top). For George Elliot, it probably goes: 5. The Mill on the Floss; 4. Adam Bede; 3. Silas Marner (although to be honest I don't remember it very well); 2. Daniel Deronda; 1. Middlemarch, but to be honest I just don't really like George Eliot XD

[@marchbros-bk9hp]

I think Northanger Abbey is my favorite. My least favorite is Persuasion.

[@louisofpointedulac]

I wish you make a video about the film adaptation of Lady Susan (that only took the name for that other juvenillia work), I think it's a masterpiece and I really want to know what you think about it, being such a fan of that novella.

[@katiejlumsden]

I talked about it a little bit here when I first saw it, kzbin.info/www/bejne/hpuTZJpuZpp_hKsm&1s, and it'll also be cropping up in my video on my favourite Jane Austen adaptations video, which will be up tomorrow. In short, I love it :)

[@louisofpointedulac]

Yay! I enjoyed Kate Beckinsale on the tv adaptation of Emma from 1996 but here I think she's superb, you really need to be an excellent actress to do what she does, specially the way she talks. Also, the director is amazing, maybe this is his most accesible work but I highly recommend checking his other films as well :)

[@katiejlumsden]

What else has he done? I'm not that familiar with is stuff.

[@louisofpointedulac]

Maybe his most "famous" film is Metropolitan, from 1990, for which he recieved and Academy Award nomination for best screenplay. Besides this two, he only directed other three: Barcelona (1994), The Last Days of Disco (1998, with Kate Beckinsale and Chloe Sevigny too!) and his latter movie, Damsels in Distress from 2011, with the phenomenal Greta Gerwig. His approach to comedy is maybe not for everyone's taste so I understand why he wanted to adapt Lady Susan and not let's say...Mansfield Park or other Austen work. At least in the true indie world he's quite beloved, being such a great actor's director. Love & Friendship made some money so I hope he's going to direct more. Sorry if my english isn't perfect but watching your videos helps, and I learn a lot about Victorian Literature, you really deserve a million subscribers for your superb content, but I'm sure you're getting there in a not so distant future but if not, who cares? :) It's just amaze me the great things you can find in KZbin with not that many views. You're amazing, thanks and cheers from Argentina!! :D

[@sonitagovan]

My favourites are from best to worst Pride and prejudice Emma Persuasion Sense and sensibility Mansfield Park Northanger Abbey

[@katiejlumsden]

Good choices, though Mansfield Park ranks much higher for me :)

[@sonitagovan]

@@katiejlumsden well it would for me too I love fanny price but Edmund was just not worthy of her and that's what killed it for me. I have similar sentiments on Edward Ferrars.... Although like you I am a huge fan of both Victorian and Regency literature so I am so grateful to have stumbled upon your page and listen to your thoughts. However I am not as huge a Dickens Fan as you are. I am also keen on Russian literature

[@KevTheImpaler]

I've only read three: 1) P+P, 2) Emma, 3) Persuasion

[@katiejlumsden]

The others are glorious too!

[@angelaluz405]

Out of curiosity and because you know way more about the time period than I...is the scandalous nature of putting on the play in Mansfield Park the mere fact that they are acting or is it because of the content of the play Lovers' Vows that is the bigger issue? Would it have mattered, if it were a different play that didn't feature things like an unwed mother? Thanks. Another great video!

[@katiejlumsden]

I think it's a mixture of three things. Acting to begin with was considered unrespectable (as opposed to reading aloud, which was fine); actors were not respectable people. The subject of the play makes it even more inappropriate. Then the scale of the dramatics, what they do to the house, etc, makes it even worse.

[@tatianak8039]

Am I the only whose favorite is Emma? 😂

[@marchbros-bk9hp]

Which editions are the ones that you own? Are they only accessible in the United Kingdom?

[@katiejlumsden]

They're the Pan Macmillan Collector's Library editions. The design has changed now (same size, different covers), published in the UK, but I think you'll be able to find some on Book Depository.

[@whatevergoesforme5129]

My least favorite is Northanger Abbey. My most favorite is Pride and Prejudice.

[@whatevergoesforme5129]

Second place to Pride and Prejudice is a tie between Sense and Sensibility and Persuasion. I only enjoyed Emma when I became older. Mansfield Park kinda weirded me out because I am not into first cousins marrying though it was accepted in the past.

[@acratone8300]

I agreed exactly with the rankings below of George Elliot, although I appreciate them all a little more. I agree exactly with Jane Austen ranking, except I would move Persuasion up 2 notches. The best video version of Persuasion is the old BBC 1971. The Mr. and Mrs. Charles Musgroves sort of attempt to steal scenes. Morag Hood (Mary Musgrove) is also "the not so bright beauty" in some other old classical series, and Rowland Davies as Charles. Love how he beats back the nettles, much to Mary's annoyance (Anne is on his other arm). Mary knows her husband Charles had proposed to Anne some years before. kzbin.info/www/bejne/sIbEc5eNnbZpoM0

[@elizabeth.n1187]

This has made me want to re-read jane Austen and read more of them! Except Emma, do not like lol.

[@katiejlumsden]

She is a great one to reread :)

[@staffanlindstrom576]

Slow down a bit.

[@kevinrussell1144]

The volume and speed of your speech is almost too much, but who doesn't like enthusiasm? I'll have to take your advice and give "Mansfield" a second chance. Your explanations of the books are succinct and sound.

[@monsieurpecuchet2010]

I never thought I would meet a real-life Mary Bennett!

[@katiejlumsden]

I feel like that's not a compliment...?

[@monsieurbouvard6791]

@@katiejlumsden Considering our times, I mean, seen in relation to our day-&-age, you may entitle yourself to take it as a compliment.

[@quastrend]

How could S&S be the last? Persuasion?? Seriously?

[@katiejlumsden]

Because I love Persuasion? Like I said, I really love all of them, just Sense and Sensibility not quite as much. I'm hoping to reread it this year.

[@quastrend]

You have a weird taste..Sense & Sensibility, Northanger Abbey, Emma and Persuasion among the least preferred while Lady Susan, Mansfield Park and P&P top the chart? A real Jane Austen fan can never differentiate the beauty of her novels, let alone rank it. Fanny is simply amazing and you can see something similar in Elinor and Anne W. Likewise with Emma and Elizabeth. But appreciate your review though.

[@adman9117]

My god this lady already is speaking at 1.5 speed. Lol.... Slow down a little mam...