DRESS-UP JANE AUSTEN: DISCOVER HISTORY THROUGH FASHION. WIN A COPY!

Think you know your morning dresses from your riding habits? Whether it’s dancing the night away or preparing for a winter walk are you sure you know what it is the best outfit to wear? Have a close look at the costumes contained in Dress- up Jane Austen and you'll find wonderful suggestions. 

And what about discovering Jane Austen’s Regency era through fashion! Aren't you curious to know more about such a fascinating time? Thanks to Dress-up Jane Austen you'll get to find out unusual details, how a Regency bride and groom dressed for their wedding  or why everyone used to wear hats, for instance.  

What is Dress-up Jane Austen?

It is a beautifully illustrated activity book. Written by Catherine Bruzzone and illustrated by Hennie Haworth, it is part of a series,  Fashion Paper Dolls,  and it's all about discovering the history of the Regency Era through the fashions of the time. It provides a healthy dose of nostalgic paper dolls fun and interesting information.  Whilst the series of books is meant for children, leafing through its lovely pages,  I'm sure that adults, especially Jane Austen fans,  might enjoy the level of detail in the drawings, too.

JANE AUSTEN FOR CHILDREN. ALICE CHANDLER, AUNT JANE AND THE MISSING CHERRY PIE

Jane Austen has been part of my life ever since I read Pride and Prejudice as a book-loving child. The book-loving child grew up to be an English professor, and I’ve taught Jane Austen, written about Jane Austen, and lectured abroad about Jane Austen. Currently, I am giving a Jane Austen course at our local senior citizens’ center.

But what to do about my granddaughter Dana? How could I introduce her to the author I loved and give her at least a sense of what Jane Austen was like? I thought Dana would like a story about Jane Austen, if only I could find the right format for it.

My first decision was borrowed straight from Stephanie Barron, whose Jane Austen mysteries I so much enjoyed. Mine would be a mystery story, too—only at a child’s level rather than an adult’s. That was how the mystery of “Aunt Jane and the Missing CherryPie” originated.

My next decision was deciding who should be the narrator. Jane Austen lived surrounded by visiting nieces and nephews—some, very sadly, because they needed childcare after their mothers had died in childbirth. (Four of Jane Austen’s sisters-in-law died in this way—two after the birth of their eleventh child.) We know from Jane Austen’s nephew that she told “the most delightful stories, chiefly of fairyland, and her fairies had all characters of their own.” We also know that she wrote what she called Miscellaneous Morsels for her brother James’s daughter. So, Jane-Anna-Elizabeth Austen (always called Anna) became the narrator of my story.

SPOTLIGHT ON ... GOODNIGHT, MR DARCY ( A BABY LIT PARODY ) - HOW TO INTRODUCE VERY YOUNG READERS TO JANE AUSTEN'S WORLD

About the Book  

The adored children’s classic Goodnight Moon gets a classic lit makeover in this charming parody of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice novel. In the opening of Goodnight Mr. Darcy ($16.99, Jacketless Hardcover, 10 x 8-1/2 in, 32 pages, 978-1-4236-3670-0), all of Austen’s much-loved characters are at the Netherfield Ball: In the great ballroom, there was a country dance, and a well-played tune, and Elizabeth Bennett; and Mr. Darcy surprised, by a pair of fine eyes . . . And don’t forget Jane with a blush and Mr. Bingley turned to mush, and a gossiping mother and father saying hush.

Parents and toddlers alike will enjoy this new take on Austen’s timeless work à la Goodnight Moon.