Jane Austen’s Genius Guide to Life: on Love, Friendship
and Becoming the Person God Created You to Be by Haley Stewart is a
Christian non-fiction book that analyses Austen’s characters to see what she is
saying about vices and virtues in practice in our lives.
I gave this book 3.5 out of 5 stars. I loved how Stewart
broke down the characters and showed valuable lessons that apply to all people
regardless of age, gender, marital status, etc. It was very practical and
interesting. The focus on vices and virtues (from the catholic perspective of
the author) didn’t bother me. Even though these are unfamiliar terms for me (as
I am protestant), they were biblically solid and worth looking at. I also
appreciated how they helped me to see how Austen’s characters acted, changed
and/ or didn’t change.
However, the focus on Mary the mother of Jesus was just too
much for me. The last section of every chapter looks at her and tries to apply
what we learned in that chapter to something about her and I didn’t like this.
It felt like she was taking precedence over Jesus and took away from what had
been said in those chapters. Even so, I am still glad I read it and there are
definitely parts of the book that I will refer back to. Therefore, I recommend
this book to Christian Jane Austen lovers who can overlook those sections for
the gems in the rest.
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