This was another Librivox recording. Kudos to Annie Coleman for tackling the entire book by herself, she did a fantastic job!
P&P has always been one of those books I figured I should read, since it's such a classic. But I'm not a romance person nor am I a Victorian type person so I avoided any Jane Austen book like the plague. I figured that I would download it from Librivox and give it a try, and thought, if I don't like it I'll just delete it from my ipod, no big deal.
As it turns out, I loved it. Yes really.
The novel opens with the line "It is a truth universally acknowledged that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife".
P&P is centered around the Bennetts. Specifically Elizabeth. The Bennetts have 5 unmarried daughters and, as with the times, the goal of the parents (mostly mom's) is to marry off all the girls. When a rich, unmarried man comes to town, the eldest daughter, Jane, is presented to him. Mr. Bingley and Jane hit it off quite well. However, Elizabeth and Mr. Bingley's friend, Mr. Darcy, don't fair as well. The story continues with a back and forth of the couples, as lovers are broken apart and others are brought together.
I can see why Elizabeth is someone to admire for young girls. She's very much of her own mind and doesn't bend to other people's will very easily, if at all. Mrs. Bennett is something of a twit. Almost every word out of that woman's mouth makes one cringe. Her desperate need to be "wealthy" and have her girls married to the best possible man, whether the girls want it or not, is annoying bordering on deplorable. Although I'm assuming that her attitude went with the times.
It takes almost to the end of the book to find out if Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy will even get together. Mr. Darcy must overcome his Pride of assuming he is above the Bennetts. And Elizabeth must overcome her Prejudice against Mr. Darcy and all the misconceptions she believes about him.
I've already downloaded Sense and Sensibility for my next venture in Austen's world.
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