It wasn't my intention to do a review -- what could I say that hasn't already been said about this wonderful book? I discovered I had a lot to say about it. If you haven't read the book yet, do not proceed, do not pass go because there are spoilers in this review.
THE JANE AUSTEN SOCIETY
There was a book that came out a few years ago called The Jane Austen Book Club and then the movie version followed. It didn't rattle my world. As Natalie's book gathered great praise and buzz this year, I thought I would give it a go and read it. I'm so glad I did.
There were no cliches, no predictability in the nature of the characters. No superficiality. Natalie Jenner writes from her heart and this love for all things Jane Austen, all the care she took to write about the people who are Austen devotees, is very evident in this beguiling book.
There is always a character or two in a book that we fall in love with or feel a special connection because there is some truth that mirrors our inner kingdom. The Janet Austen Society is that book for me. From Mimi Harrison, Adam Berwick, Frances Knight to Dr. Gray, their characters immediately captivated me. Each one was mending a broken heart, healing a trauma or loss with much grace. And then there's Dr. Benjamin Gray who warmed my heart like no other! A beautiful character, Dr. Gray is my creature. I love him.
This is the first time I'm focusing my review on one character in a book because to me it's a powerful story arc that really spoke to me.
LOVE AND LOSS
Dr. Benjamin Gray lost his wife Jennie, the love of his life, years before the story of the book unfolded. He was one of the walking wounded, self-medicating with morphine to erase the pain of her loss. He knew what he was doing was wrong. Every day he was tempted to use morphine. Some days he didn't but some days he succumbed. He was in a mental prison. This is where I empathized with Dr. Gray. His character felt so personal to me. I could understand the downward spiral that led Dr. Gray to do that. I've been divorced for over 5 years and even though my former spouse is alive, I lost him. After living and sharing so many things with him for almost 15 years, I found myself like Dr. Gray waking up every day hoping he was still with me. But that was a prison of my own doing. I knew I needed to move forward and it took some doing but I did.
BENJAMIN AND ADELINE
Dr. Gray resisted his love for Adeline Lewis because she was over 20 years younger than him. If he married someone else, he felt he was betraying Jennie. Throughout the book we see how Dr. Gray's mental prison slowly began to disintegrate when he realized he needed to change his mindset to pursue Adeline. The strong friendship he shared with Andrew Forrester was important to Dr. Gray. Andrew himself made Benjamin realize he wasn't a degenerate for loving a much younger woman, that he was worthy of her love. In order to build a life with Adeline, Benjamin had to forgive himself and to stop thinking that he was a failure as a physician. He always felt he failed Adeline because he couldn't save her baby. It's that mentality of spiritual poverty that kept him in the dark for so many years. He slowly crawled out into the light when he stopped taking morphine because he knew it would destroy him. Also, his love for Adeline and her well-being was so strong and true that it was the impetus he needed to change.
In the words of the book's author, Natalie Jenner:
"A pillar of the community, looked up to and depended upon by everyone in the small village of Chawton as their only GP and a longstanding resident, [Dr. Gray] is also--like all of us--wracked with self-doubt, guilt, and a fear of getting hurt.
My greatest wish is that the reader see and understand something of themselves in my characters and my story, and the affection many readers have for Dr. Gray is highly gratifying to me both as an author and a fan. "
RESISTING LOVE
You can't deny yourself the attraction you feel for someone. There is no point. It doesn't matter if you're the same sex or opposite sex or many years older or younger than that person. Love catches you unaware and shakes your world. You keep asking yourself "why that person? why him? why her? ". From the moment you lay eyes on someone whose soul speaks to yours in an unexpected way, you shouldn't resist. There is a new love story to be told through your new love with that person which may bring to light its true power.
Many say that love destroys and breaks your heart, that it's impulsive and negative. On the contrary, Love is a gift. If we human beings take love to corrupt or destroy others and ourselves, well then that is a different story. There are books that bring us joy and then there are books like The Jane Austen Society that do all of that but also bring out truths because we see ourselves in the characters. It's unexpected but life changing. The Jane Austen Society will take you places you never thought you needed to be. Great books do that.
Natalie Jenner is on social media:
Twitter: @NatalieMJenner
Website: www.nataliejenner.com
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