Tag Archives: Jane Austen

An August Card Party

Join us for an afternoon of  Backgammon and Whist —games Jane Austen would have played. No experience required, experienced players will be on hand to teach the games. Or try out Endearment, an Austen inspired role-playing board game.  Saturday, Aug. 222–4 p.m.‘Aina Haina Public Library2564 Kalanianaole HighwayLight refreshments provided, but beverages must be in covered containers,Continue reading “An August Card Party”

Eloquently Defending Janeʻs Honor

Even before she shared the benefits of JASNA membership, her participation in JASNA Annual General Member meetings in North America, and her travels to Jane Austen sites in England at JASNA Hawai‘iʻs 250th Birthday Bash in Honolulu, dual-region member Margaret Gill took the New York Times to task for trivializing the works of Jane AustenContinue reading “Eloquently Defending Janeʻs Honor”

The Austen Affair June 27

The JASNA Hawai‘i Reading Group discussed The Austen Affair on June 27 as a Zoom event. “Two feuding co-stars in a Jane Austen film adaptation accidentally travel back in time to the Regency Era in this “delightfully clever and riotously funny” 2025 debut novel by Madeline Bell that Macmillan Publisher calls a tribute to JaneContinue reading “The Austen Affair June 27”

Jane Austen’s Bookshelf

Explore your favorite author’s favorite authors at the JASNA Hawai‘i Reading Group’s summer discussion on March 28. We will discuss Rebecca Romney’s 2025 book Jane Austen’s Bookshelf: A Rare Book Collector’s Quest to Find the Women Writers Who Shaped a Legend. The Washington Post calls the book “a meditation on reading and writing, on honestyContinue reading “Jane Austen’s Bookshelf”

Happy 250th Miss Austen!

JASNA Hawai‘i celebrated the 250th anniversary of Jane Austen’s birth with a wide-ranging event in early December at the historic Hawai‘i State Library in downtown Honolulu. Participants enjoyed Regency-era activities, including card games and dancing, as well as a costume contest, refreshments, photo booth, trivia contest, book exchange, and informative videos. Member Margaret talked aboutContinue reading “Happy 250th Miss Austen!”

Jane Austen 250th Birthday Bash

JASNA Hawai‘i and the Hawai‘i State Library invite you to celebrate the 250th anniversary of Jane Austen’s birth on Saturday, Dec. 6, 1–4 p.m. at the Hawai‘i State Library, 478 S.King St. in Honolulu. Learn Regency-era activities, including card games and dancing. Watch videos about Jane Austen and her times or participate in our photoContinue reading “Jane Austen 250th Birthday Bash”

A Lady of Letters

Jane Austen is believed to have written thousands of letters. Just 161 survive, collected in various compendiums—familial and scholarly, deciphered and illustrated, economic, and expensive. The Hawai‘i Region explore a handful of the letters for its July 12 Reading Group online discussion. Participants from Hawai‘i and across the continent read excerpts and speculated about theContinue reading “A Lady of Letters”

Sisterly Censorship

To get ready for Public Television’s four-part Masterpiece Theater series Miss Austen in May, the JASNA Hawaii Reading Group discussed the novel that inspired the new series—Gill Hornby’s Miss Austen: A Tale of the Austen Sisters. Allowing plenty of room for speculation, we had a spirited discussion of sibling relationships, Regency manners, and Cassandra Austen’s possibleContinue reading “Sisterly Censorship”

Fancy That – the Original Fan Fiction

Written in 1914, Old Friends and New Fancies is considered to be the first work of Austen fan fiction. Goodreads says “this charming and original sequel to the novels of Jane Austen intertwines the lives of the most beloved characters from all six Austen novels with new characters of the author’s devising. Inventive matchmaking leadsContinue reading “Fancy That – the Original Fan Fiction”