Alexander McCall Smith brings Jane Austen into the 21st century
Writers including Alexander McCall Smith and Curtis Sittenfeld will bring some of Austen's most famous stories into contemporary times.
Writers including Alexander McCall Smith and Curtis Sittenfeld will bring some of Austen's most famous stories into contemporary times.
Can there be too much Jane Austen?
Publishers don鈥檛 seem to think so. There鈥檚 been zombie- and vampire-fueled versions, a popular book club-inspired version, Austen bios, even a book studying the cult-like following of Austen fans.聽
And now there鈥檚 this, a project to rework Austen鈥檚 six most popular novels into the present day. The Austen Project pairs six bestselling contemporary authors with Jane Austen鈥檚 six complete works. The authors will put a contemporary spin on the characters and setting, leaving the plot largely intact, for a decidedly modern Austen series.
The novels include 鈥淪ense and Sensibility,鈥� 鈥淣orthanger Abbey,鈥� 鈥淧ride and Prejudice,鈥� 鈥淓mma,鈥� 鈥淧ersuasion,鈥� and 鈥淢ansfield Park.鈥� The authors include Joanna Trollope, whose modernized 鈥淪ense and Sensibility鈥� is out this October, as well as Curtis Sittenfeld, who will be reworking 鈥淧ride and Prejudice鈥�; Val McDermid, who will update 鈥淣orthanger Abbey鈥�; and the latest author pairing to be announced, No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency series author, Alexander McCall Smith, who will revamp 鈥淓mma.鈥澛�
Authors for 鈥淢ansfield Park鈥� and 鈥淧ersuasion鈥� will be announced later this year.
What can readers expect? Think light, humorous updates on the characters and their environments. According to the UK鈥檚 Guardian, in 鈥淓mma,鈥� Mr. Woodhouse is obsessed with vitamins, Jane Fairfax plays the tenor saxophone, and Frank Churchill has been living abroad in Australia.
What won鈥檛 change, of course, is the romance.
鈥淥ne of the issues, of course, is the erotic tension that pervades the original novel Emma,鈥� McCall Smith told the Guardian. 鈥淭hat is there in large measure and will remain there in my version. And Freud will be looking over my shoulder as I write. I can't wait to begin my encounter with these delicious characters.鈥�
Trollope鈥檚 reworked 鈥淪ense and Sensibility,鈥� which HarperCollins will release later this month, bears this description: 鈥淓linor Dashwood, an architecture student, values discretion above all. Her impulsive sister Marianne displays her creativity everywhere as she dreams of going to art school.鈥�
McDermid鈥檚 reimagined 鈥淣orthanger Abbey,鈥� to be published in spring of 2014, features a CCTV camera and satellite TV dishes on the cover.
No matter the dozens of Austen spin-offs circulating the market, we鈥檙e predicting the Austen Project will be popular among the country鈥檚 countless Austen fans. To paraphrase one of our favorite authors, it is a truth universally acknowledged that there can never be too much Austen.