? Can't say I blame them | Main | Giddy on the inside ?

August 30, 2007

Lost in Austen : Create Your Own Jane Austen Adventure

by Emma Campbell Webster, ISBN 1594482586 [Amazon]

When I think of a choose-your-own-adventure book, I see wizards, knights brandishing swords, brigands, a damsel in distress. In the case of Lost in Austen, the reader is her own heroine, whose "mission is to marry both prudently and for love" in the role of Elizabeth Bennet. Anyone who has imagined herself as Lizzy would find this interactive version of Pride and Prejudice deliciously diverting. Be forewarned - a bookmark comes in really handy.

There are no brigands, but there are gypsies. Characters and scenes from other Austen novels make their appearance and have their own allurements. There are points to be won and lost for intelligence, confidence, fortune, connections, and accomplishments. It's optional to keep track of the points, but I chose to tally my score along the way. (Apparently what I lack in accomplishments, I make up for in faults.) While I chose my path rather conservatively, I did wander onto other storylines. There are also trivia questions to test one's Regency knowledge as well as end notes that cover source material. This book may be for fun, but who says there can't be annotations as well? Also scattered throughout are wonderfully cracked graphic-novel-Gothic illustrations by Benjamin Gibson.

What makes the book work is its mix of Austen's words and Webster's witty, sometimes catty, spot-on commentary, which at times illustrates why these characters and stories remain so close to our modern-day hearts. It really isn't such a stretch to be in Elizabeth Bennet's corset - to be human, flawed and seeking to be true to ourselves. In the burgeoning cottage industry of Austen sequels and spinoffs, Lost in Austen is a fun, cheeky treat from a writer who clearly loves Jane as much as we do.