Happy December and it’s time for another Six Degrees of Separation, that lovely meme hosted by Kate at booksaremyfavouriteandbest where she chooses a title for us bloggers to start a chain and link various titles together. I love this meme, and this month I’m going to do a slightly different take on it.
This month’s selection is Sanditon by Jane Austen, which is an unfinished work of Austen’s. I haven’t actually read this title yet, but some day I hope to! As this meme is Six Degrees of Separation, and there are six finished Austen books, I thought this month that I’d make this Six Degrees Jane-themed, and link through Austen’s works, starting with my least favorite and ending up with my favorite Austen. Shall we start?
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Sanditon by Jane Austen
Official Synopsis from Goodreads: Written in the last months of Austen’s life, Sanditon features a glorious cast of hypochondriacs and speculators in a newly established seaside resort, and shows the author contemplating a changing society with scepticism and amusement.
It tells the story of Charlotte Heywood, who is transported by a chance accident from her rural hometown to Sanditon, where she is exposed to the intrigues and dalliances of a small town determined to reinvent itself – and encounters the intriguingly handsome Sidney Parker.
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The first link in my Jane Austen chain goes to my least favorite of her works, the dare-I-say-it boring:
Mansfield Park
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I didn’t enjoy reading this, I haven’t enjoyed any of the adaptations, and I cringe when I think of someday attempting this one again. But, re-read it I shall, as I’m embarking on a re-read of Austen’s works and will be curious to see if my rankings change after my re-read!
Speaking of a re-read of Austen’s works, I’m kicking off my re-read with my next selection, which some of you may be surprised to see that I’m ranking this one so low:
Emma
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I’m currently reading this one, and my reasoning for ranking this so low is that I just don’t like the character of Emma. I find her spoiled and snobbish, but I will say that even though I’m not a huge fan of the book (even if it is funny), I do really love the movie adaptations of it and am looking forward to the latest version coming out next year. Perhaps my re-read will alter Emma’s spot on my list?
Next up is:
Northanger Abbey
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I really enjoyed this when I read it many, many years ago, but to be honest, I’m not sure I remember much about it! I remember it being great fun and gothic, but other than that, not much. I’m looking forward to re-reading this as I expect it to be as fun the second time around.
Next comes the three that are hardest for me to list, as they are all such lovely reads that I truly love, it’s hard to choose which order for them to be in. But, it must be done, so in the third spot is:
Sense and Sensibility
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This one has my favorite Austen man (Colonel Brandon) and a sadness to it that the others don’t have. It’s also got some of my favorite scenes, and who can forget that exquisitely beautiful movie version with Emma Thompson and Kate Winslet? This is one of my favorites, and I’ve re-read this one multiple times and am looking forward to discovering something new on my next re-read.
Another one that I’ve re-read multiple times is:
Pride and Prejudice
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I think this is most reader’s favorite Austen. It’s the snappiest and has the fastest pace, and who can resist that lovable crank Mr. Darcy? This is the ultimate enemies-to-lovers romance, and Elizabeth is my favorite Austen heroine.
But even though I love Pride and Prejudice, the top Austen spot in my heart belongs to:
Persuasion
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Ahh, the romance! The setting! I love it all and especially love the long-suffering love story here. I’m really looking forward to re-reading this one and hope it remains my favorite Austen.
So there you have it! Six Degrees Jane Austen Style!
How do you rank the books? Have you read all of them?
luvtoread 
When I first saw the black and white version of Pride and Prejudice with Sir Lawrence Olivier and I think Greer Garson I fell in love with all books Jane. I had to find and read every one and was enthralled. I think my favorite adaptation of P & P is the miniseries with Colin Firth playing Mr. Darcy. I love how her works stand the test of time. She was truly gifted!
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I love both of those versions! Colin Firth is the perfect Mr Darcy 🙂 I’m looking forward to re-watching those after I re-read Pride & Prejudice!
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Interesting! I’d rank Mansfield Park much higher, maybe third, and will be interested to see if your opinion changes when you re-read it. I love Northanger Abbey as a bit of fun but it definitely doesn’t have the depth of the others. Starting from the bottom I’d probably have Emma, Northanger Abbey, Persuasion, Mansfield Park, P&P and Sense and Sensibility as number one. Though if you ask me again tomorrow there’s a good chance my list would be different… 😉
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I’m curious to see if my opinion on Mansfield Park changes. I really hope it does change, and that I enjoy it more! Sense and Sensibility as number one is a great choice – I love that one more each time I re-read it!
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Emma has always been my favourite book of Austen’s, and Pride & Prejudice one of my least, even though I adore the most recent movie adaption.
Thanks for sharing your chain
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I also love the recent Pride & Prejudice – I love Kiera Knightley’s Elizabeth! She’s so full of life and energy. There are so many that really love Emma – I am finding it more enjoyable this time reading it, so perhaps my rankings will change!
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I do think I need an Austen reread – it’s been too long for me to rank my Austens with confidence, however, my top three would be the same as yours but perhaps in a different order.
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They are such lovely reads! And what’s also good about rereads is rewatching the adaptations as well! 🙂
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Yes, I’ve read them all, multiple times and can’t really rank them as each one has something special. Emma was once my least favourite but recent rereads have revealed so much more to me, starting with the exquisite plotting. If I really HAD to give the one the gets most to my heart it would be Persuasion. But, I love P&P’s lively wit; I love S&S’s clever dichotomies that aren’t as dichotomous as the title suggests; I love MP and think Fanny is far too maligned my people who read with 21st century eyes rather than with an understanding of who Fanny was and the time she was living in; I love Emma because she is, really, the only heroine who truly grows in an Austen novel; and I love NA because it is defends the novel, it makes fun of readers who can’s separate reality from fantasy, and it makes fun of silly sel-centred young men. Every time I read Austen I see something more about humanity.
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They really are such lovely reads! I’m finding in my re-read of Emma that I’m enjoying it more this time around than previously, and so I’m looking forward to re-reading Mansfield Park as I hope to enjoy that one more as well! I’ll be sure to remember your suggestion about the time period.
You bring up a great point about seeing more about humanity on each read – that’s truly the mark of a great classic! I’m hopeful that the new adaptation of Emma will bring in new readers to Jane, so that more people can experience her!
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