art book | Bookshelf Fantasies

Title: A Jane Austen Year: Celebrating 250 Years of Jane Austen
Authors: Jane Austen’s House curators
Publisher: Pitkin
Publication date: March 11, 2025
Length: 208 pages
Genre: Non-fiction
Source: Purchased
Rating:

This beautifully illustrated book charts the life of one of the world’s most beloved authors through the letters, objects, and manuscripts that shaped her life.

Published in partnership with the curators of Jane Austen’s House, the enchanting Hampshire cottage where Jane Austen’s genius flourished that now attracts thousands of visitors every year.

Arranged over the course of a calendar year, from snowy scenes in January to festive recipes in December, specially commissioned photography of Austen’s home and possessions are brought together with extracts from her books, reproductions of her letters, and stories of her life throughout the seasons. Highlights include the first time Austen read a published copy of Pride and Prejudice to an enraptured audience in her drawing room, affectionate letters to her sister Cassandra reproduced in full and an exquisite miniature portrait of Tom Lefroy, the man she nearly married.

Read this book for a unique and intimate insight into Austen’s world. Dip into it as you will, or visit each month, and enjoy a full year of Austen—her life, works and letters, people and objects she knew, and of course her idyllic, inspiring home.

Note: Photos from book page on Amazon and the Jane Austen House website, plus a few photos I took myself…

If you’re looking for a special gift for the Austen-lover in your life — or if you’re just in the mood to treat yourself! — then look no further! A Jane Austen Year is a gorgeous illustrated book that’s perfect for anyone who loves the works and world of Jane Austen.

Put together by the curators of Jane Austen’s House in Chawton, this coffee table book is a delight to read through cover to cover, or simply to open at random to enjoy a page or two at a time.

The book is organized by month, highlighting a combination of historical events in the author’s life, seasonal references from her books, letters she wrote at that time of year, and other tidbits about the environment and the countryside where she lived. Photos, recipes, and book excerpts offer something different on every page.

I read through A Jane Austen Year over the course of about a week and a half, reading one month at a time, and savoring the photos and other content. The monthly approach is an interesting way to organize the material. I suppose it could be a bit confusing, since as a whole it’s not chronological — Jane’s birth and death, for example, are discussed in the months when they occur, as are other events from her life, so that we’re constantly jumping between years. That’s okay: If you’re looking for a biography of Jane Austen, this isn’t it. Nor does it pretend to be!

A Jane Austen Year truly is what its subtitle promises — a celebration. The variety of material is an absolute treat, which left me hungry for an opportunity to finally travel to Chawton and visit the Jane Austen House!

I’ll close by sharing a few photos that I took while leafing through the book one more time:

To learn more, visit the Jane Austen House website: https://janeaustens.house/
You can buy this book and other lovely items directly from their giftshop: https://jane-austens-house.myshopify.com/products/pre-order-a-jane-austen-year-hb
They’ve also got a podcast! Find out more: https://www.buzzsprout.com/2434395

To order via Amazon: Amazon
Disclaimer: This is an affiliate link. I may earn a small commission, at no additional cost to you.

Title: The Country Diary of an Edwardian Lady
Author: Edith Holden
Publisher: Rizzoli
Publication date: 2018
Length: 192 pages
Genre: Nature
Source: Purchased
Rating:

A charming addition to Rizzoli’s carefully curated program of bringing classic books back into print.

This beautifully packaged facsimile of Edith Holden’s original diary is filled with a naturalist’s masterful paintings and delightful observations chronicling the English countryside throughout 1906. As one of the few true records of the time in print, the handwritten thoughts and paintings contained in The Country Diary of an Edwardian Lady transport readers to a more refined, romantic, and simpler time.
Capitalizing on the current Downton Abbey-inspired appetite for Edwardian-era ephemera, fashions, and society, this reproduction brings readers back to a time in which propriety, civility, and an appreciation for the natural world reigned. This souvenir of a bygone era serves not only as a calming touchstone, but a reminder that as long as we choose to see it, we are still surrounded by beauty and grace. Presented to retain the charm and beauty of the original volume filled with Holden’s hand-drawn illustrations of the English countryside’s flora and fauna through the changing seasons of the year, as well as handwritten notes, observations, and quotations, The Country Diary of an Edwardian Lady makes a lovely addition to any home’s library or side table.

Looking for a gorgeous gift book for a nature lover? Have I got a book for you!

Edith Holden was a British artist and teacher who lived from 1871 – 1920. In 1906, she spent a year documenting the beauty of the world around her through her journals, which were first published in 1977.

Rizzoli reissued this beautiful replication of Edith Holden’s work in 2018, and I’m so glad I stumbled across it. This high-quality hardcover features thick, sturdy pages, filled with the words and illustrations that the author originally recorded.

Organized by month, Edith Holden includes background information on the calendar, some mottos and rhymes about each month, a day-by-day recording of the plants, animals, and weather she encounters, and beautiful illustrations of the natural world she observes. Mixed in with these are also a rich array of poems that she’s selected, all of which complement her writing and drawings.

For me, the true highlight is the illustrations. They’re just beautiful. Not being a huge poetry fan, I ended up skimming a lot of these (ugh, I’m so unsophisticated and lack a decent appreciation for poems), but they’re still nice to have.

I read through the entire book, and I think this is one I’ll keep handy for a quick peek whenever I need a pick-me-up. This would be an amazing gift for the gardener or nature lover or poetry fan in your life!

To see more examples of Edith Holden’s artwork, visit this site, which handles licensing for all related merchandise (and has a nice gallery of images to browse through).

There’s also a coloring book:

And who knew? There was even a TV series about Edith Holden!

As for how I first became interested, I have to be honest and say it’s all about the jigsaw puzzles! I had never even heard of this book until I stumbled across a set of seasonal jigsaw puzzles inspired by Edith Holden… and even after I’d completed all four, I had no idea there was a book until a kind friend mentioned it to me.

This book would make a terrific gift for someone who loves beautiful books, nature, gardens, even historical diaries! Or maybe even a nice little treat for yourself.