Austenesque Lovers TBR Challenge 2023 discussion
General Introductory Matters
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Introductions
Katie wrote: "Hi everyone!I'm in South Carolina and have been a huge fan of JA fan fiction for several years now. I just found this group so I'm excited to do my first challenge year. I read almost 100% Kindle ..."
I admire people who keep spreadsheets. They make my brain hurt.
I try to write reviews but I agree with Sheila that if I don’t do it right away I forget.
Katie wrote: "Hi everyone!I'm in South Carolina and have been a huge fan of JA fan fiction for several years now. I just found this group so I'm excited to do my first challenge year. I read almost 100% Kindle ..."
Hmm... Not sure I've read one where D & E teamed up?
Marlene wrote: "Katie wrote: "Hi everyone!I'm in South Carolina and have been a huge fan of JA fan fiction for several years now. I just found this group so I'm excited to do my first challenge year. I read almos..."
I'm probably phrasing it poorly but they both end up working together (sometimes separately and then comparing notes) to solve problems, like Madness in Meryton.
Mod
Kindle Unlimited gives access to so many JAFF gems. Cheering you on to hitting your goal of 100 this year.
Hi, I’m Kim from Ohio and I’ve been reading JAFF for probably around 12 years. I’ve been participating in this challenge since 2015 and I’m perpetually in the Catherine Moreland range almost every year, once or twice I made it to Mr Knightley’s level. I enjoy reading everyone’s reviews and my TBR list is ridiculously long. I’m happy to be back, JAFF is my comfort reading.
Mod
Woohoo, glad to have another of our veteran members back, Kim! You and I tend to read at the same pace I think b/c I end up finishing up in those ranges, too. Oh yes, JAFF is my comfort reading, too. :)
It’s definitely my comfort reading also and this group has been great in helping me find new content.
Hi! My name is Adriana, I live in Brazil and I come from a family of readers.I discovered Jane Austen, by chance in my teens. After not finding War and Peace to read in the library at home, I found Pride and Prejudice and the experience was impactful!
I still remember my reactions to some parts of the book, which I reread shortly after finishing.
Until 2019, apart from my favorite Jane Austen books, what I read in English was basically technical texts, but my father got sick and I stayed awake for hours in the hospital after the last night's medications. I decided that I would read at those times, so I discovered some Abigail Reynolds books. Now, in addition to JA fan fiction in English and in Spanish, I also read some historical novels and my reading speed, which was already good, got even better, which has helped me at work.
Despite practically not writing in the group because of the language barrier, I read the comments and thank you very much for your observations. I discovered not only several books that I liked but new points of view for some of the stories.
As my last few weeks have been troubled, I prefer for now to set my goals at fifty books of all genres for 2023.
@Adriana Bem-vindo 🤗 I am also from Brazil, but have spent so much of my life in the United States that I now find it easier to read in English than in Portuguese. I am going to DM you so you can give me some recommendations of Brazilian authors to read in Portuguese.
Mod
Love your story of chancing upon P&P in your teens. :)
You found a wonderful way to use your time during hospital visits. I am in awe of you and several others who have disciplined yourself to learn to read and speak other languages than your own.
Hope your life struggles smooth out soon, but yes, cheering you on to fifty books in 2023. :)
Adriana wrote: "As my last few weeks have been troubled, I prefer for now to set my goals at fifty books of all genres for 2023.."50 is still great! I hope all is well with you. I will say a prayer for you.
Greetings from snowy Ottawa,I have never posted to a group on GR before, so this is exciting! I was born in St. John's, Nfld and now live in Ottawa, Canada. I have always been an avid reader, a history buff and a historical fiction fan. Those loves came first. My Dad and I used to watch every costume drama produced by British TV that made its way to Canada. While I honestly cannot remember when I wasn't a JA fan, I believe it was likely a TV production that started my love of all things Austenesque.
I splurged recently and bought Harvard Press' beautiful annotated editions of JA's works. Some I have read already, but I will post reviews of those I haven't read yet.
I am currently reading the Chronicles of Carlingford, while Victorian and not regency, I think this series can be described as Austenesque as the author, Mrs. Oliphant, has some wit and applies an acerbic eye to all of her characters. I also enjoy some regency historical romances from authors like Mary Kingswood. As long as there is some wit, romance and historical insight, I am happy!
I have read 70 books this year, and I am conservatively hoping to read between 11 and 20 Austenesque books. I think this group will really spice up my 2023!
Hi Stephanie! hope you will love it here, we will love having you :)
Welcome, Stephanie. Glad to have you joining our lovely neighborhood.
Mod
I have never posted to a group on GR before, so this is exciting! I was born in St. John's, Nfld and now live in Ottawa, Canada. I have always been an avid reader, a h..."
Those lush and lovely costume dramas have been a hook for me, too. So glad you took the leap to join us and write an introduction, Stephanie. I'm jealous of your Harvard edition collection and look forward to your reviews on those.
Cheering you on to Miss Anne level with your twenty books. :)
Welcome to all the newbies and returnees!2023 is going to be awesome (tfu tfu)
Happy seasonal celebrations to all, in which ever form you celebrate.
🔥⚡🔥⚡🔥⚡🔥⚡ ((coz there is no fireworks emoji)
Hi I’m Sharon. I first read P&P in highs school and revisited every 3 to 5 years. I watched 1995 version several times. I watched 2005 movie and thought it was just okay but rewatched it this year and fell in love with the movie and ended up buying it. I watch both versions frequently and love them both. I found Abigail Reynolds and fell into the JAFF rabbit hole. I’m retired so I feel like I can safely make Mr. Darcy’s Library my goal. This is my first GR group. I belong to several Facebook groups and find the community to be everything lovely. Although P&P is my favorite I also enjoy Persuasion variations
Mod
How wonderful to have you join us for your first GoodReads group, Sharon! I enjoy watching the Austen TV adaptions, too. The Austen fan community are indeed an amazing crowd.
Cheering you on to Mr. Darcy's Library!
Hello Everyone!My name is Dawn and this is my fourth year to join this wonderful group. Thank you Sophia for providing this place of comfort and refuge for us! I am from the great state of Ohio, am a mother of five and work at the local elementary school. Mrs. Bennet would be very proud of my recent activities. I have very recently married off one of my daughters, and a second daughter will follow her into the married state in four months!🤭 I, like some others have said, am often more of a lurker than a participant. I feel like I know many of you that participate often because, even though I don’t often have time to be more active online, I enjoy and look forward to your comments and reviews and like to see what everyone is reading and discussing in this group! I always plan to take a more active role, and hopefully things will slow down enough to make that possible. . . someday. Thanks for letting me watch from the sidelines! ☺️
Mod
My name is Dawn and this is my fourth year to join this wonderful group. Thank you Sophia for providing this place of comfort and refuge for us! I am from the great state of Ohio, a..."
What fun, we have our own dear Mrs. Bennet in the group with two daughters marrying. :) Congrats to them both!
Five children and working in a school would keep anyone too busy to do more than lurk so we're thrilled to give you a place to relax and enjoy a cozy chair off to the side of all our chatty conversations here. Glad to have you back, Dawn!
Dawn wrote: "Hello Everyone!My name is Dawn and this is my fourth year to join this wonderful group. Thank you Sophia for providing this place of comfort and refuge for us! I am from the great state of Ohio, a..."
Congratulations (Mrs. B ;)!! That definitely must be a hectic time.
Welcome Dawn! I only have 2 daughters and the 2nd one married in 2022. Nice to see themAll well settled 😉
I’m also in Ohio ( western Reserve Area) woke up to icy streets, snow, wind and cold!
Welcome to our community. Happy Holidays or Merry Christmas as you celebrate. We too have very nasty weather these several days.
wosedwew wrote: "Hi, I'm Rose and I read Jane Austen Fan Fiction!I read everyone's introduction and notice how many of us have spent lives in so many different areas. Me, I'm not like that.
I now live on the sam..."
Rose, that is an amazing goal!!
Hi all! I'm Dana. I grew up in Illinois near Chicago, but have lived in northwest PA near Lake Erie since 1996. My husband and I recently celebrated our 25th wedding anniversary and have 3 adult children. My oldest will be getting married in 2023, I have a son in the military and my baby is in college. I discovered Jane Austen when I was a sophomore in high school and we read Pride and Prejudice, followed by the movie version with David Rintoul and Elizabeth Garvie. Since then, I've been hooked.
I haven't decided my challenge level yet. I will post that later.
Mod
Yay! Dana's back. What a wonderful family update and fun that you came to Jane Austen so early. This older BBC TV adaption was my first P&P watch and I enjoyed what they brought to the roles.
We'll look forward to seeing what goal you set and cheering you on to getting there.
Dana wrote: "Hi all! I'm Dana. I grew up in Illinois near Chicago, but have lived in northwest PA near Lake Erie since 1996. My husband and I recently celebrated our 25th wedding anniversary and have 3 adult ch..."Glad to read you're here again - Merry Christmas. How's the weather there? We have had snow, freezing rain and now plummeting temperatures. 17 degrees and falling.
Dana wrote: "the movie version with David Rintoul and Elizabeth Garvie..."Hi! I have never heard of this version! I looked it up on youtube this morning and there it was, so I binged on it all day. Best snowday ever!
The cast was great but Darcy was quite the robot. He finally smiled in the end and became human.
CindySR wrote: "Dana wrote: "the movie version with David Rintoul and Elizabeth Garvie..."Hi! I have never heard of this version! I looked it up on youtube this morning and there it was, so I binged on it all da..."
Hahaha...I call him Robo Darcy!
I didn't like him either until the very end.
I didn't like him either until the very end.
I didn’t like Darcy in that one, but Elizabeth Garvie is great. Her expressions during the proposal scene are wonderful!
I remember watching the 1980's one on a small square television. At the time I thought that Darcy was soooo dreamy!
Hi everyone!!! I'm Victoria and I love Austenesque, mostly P&P! I join every year and usually read around 20 Austenesque books. Last year was terrible, though, and I only read 5 (just finishing Accident at Pemberley). I also read a lot of regency romance or mysteries. I'm so happy to be back again!
Yes, glad to have you back with us no matter how many or how little you read.
Mod
Bummer about the horrid Austenesque reading year, but woohoo to have you back with us, Victoria. Looking forward to seeing you hit your twenty and find some fab ones to love. :)
Victoria, I believe that Regencies, even if not JAFF, towards your challenge here. (Sophia, is that right?)
Mod
If they have an Austen feel to them, sure thing! :)
Thanks everyone! I have to get back in the habit of reviewing and not just rating. so many of you write thoughtful reviews! Do you take notes while reading?
Mod
I don't take notes as I read, but I do type up my review here quickly and it becomes my notes for me to look back on when I need to.
Sophia wrote: "Victoria wrote: "Thanks everyone! I have to get back in the habit of reviewing and not just rating. so many of you write thoughtful reviews! Do you take notes while reading?"I don't take notes as..."
That's good to know! Some have such good synopsis that I was wondering. I started a book twitter over the last couple of years, and tweet as I go through a book, but it's very informal. LOL!
I highlight sentences on my Kindle book. I put mini sticky tabs in my paperbacks. For my nonfiction books, I write right in them. It helps that I know what I'm looking for for my review. Other approaches I've tried:
*Journaling as I go, noting the date, and that becoming my review
*Writing a review as I go, which I'm doing right now because the plot is complicated and the character list is long.
But no matter what method I use, I have a limit to the length of my review. I cut back and cut back if the length of my review is over my limit.
So super excited about the new year. I get to reset all my paperbacks and audiobooks. I don't like rereading the same thing during the year. I would hate to get bored with any of them.
Happy New Year's Eve to you all! Just had a chance to read all the introductions since I posted way back in November. So lovely to know there are wonderful Austenesque readers all around the world! Oh, I realized I never posted my challenge level. I'm aiming for Anne Elliot (11-20). With teaching and writing, I don't get to read as much Austenesque as I'd like, but I think one or two Austeneque reads a month would be great. We'll see how that goes. I rarely ever meet my own goals. :)
Happy New Year's! Hope you all have a fantastic start to 2023!
Mod
Exciting to start with a clean shelf for the challenge and see what books will fill it.
Mod
Yes, such a marvel to all meet here with a shared love of Austen books.
Woohoo! Cheering you on to two books a month. Don't forget to count your Austen resource books for your writing, too. :)
Don't know where to post my challenge as I looked and didn't see one for 2023 to post in. I hope to read at least 200 here in JAFF but only 150 in Goodreads as I want to leave room for some unpublished ones this year.
Now I wonder how I had time to work and raise a family I seem to be busy all the time. -admittedly a lot of that business is me reading what I want in the middle of the day 😜