Roof Beam Reader
Adam Burgess
The Folio Society’s New Northanger Abbey!
As you all know, August was the month of all things Austen! While running the event and moving across country, I somehow managed a re-read of Northanger Abbey, which was even better and funnier than I remembered. I hope you all enjoyed the annual Austen reading event, whether you were a participant or an observer. But, it’s now confession time.
The Folio Society, a wonderful publisher of exquisite editions, and made up of some really awesome people, gave me a head’s up on a new Austen edition that would be coming soon. (Of course, they also stopped by and offered up a giveaway again this year, which was amazing!) While reading my old, dusty copy of Northanger Abbey, I got a sneak-peek at The Folio Society’s brand new, stunningly beautiful edition! Now that the book has become available, I finally get to share!
Jane Austen’s Northanger Abbey
Introduced by Val McDermid and Illustrated by Jonathan Burton
‘Jane Austen is the pinnacle to which all other authors aspire’- J. K. Rowling
Crumbling castles, ghostly skeletons and innocent maidens in the gravest of danger: the tropes of Gothic romance fill the mind of Catherine Morland. Venturing from her country parsonage home to delight in her first season in Bath, the Austen’s naive heroine must navigate the more prosaic hazards of female friendship and undesirable suitors to secure the affection of eligible Henry Tilney. But when she is invited to Northanger Abbey, the Tilneys’ ancient stately home, Catherine’s love of sensational stories fires her imagination, and threatens to destroy her future happiness. The last of Austen’s novels to be published, appearing posthumously in 1818, Northanger Abbey was the first to be completed, written when Austen was in her early twenties. Simply told in lively and elegant prose, this is her most playful work. But the tongue-in-cheek tone that characterizes the story belies the skill of a truly great writer flexing her creative muscles. Just as Austen’s talent for satire exposes the failings of the overwrought gothic novels of the age, her subtle, beautifully observed portrait of Bath society reveals the real value of fiction: its power to convey ‘the most thorough knowledge of human nature’.
As Val McDermid writes in her introduction – a heartfelt account of how Northanger Abbey has reinvented itself for her with each rereading – Austen unfailingly provides us with the opportunity to investigate our own lives and find surprising truths there.’ Award-winning illustrator Jonathan Burton has created six colour illustrations, depicting both the ballrooms of Bath and the imposing Abbey. Witty, fresh and perceptive, the images perfectly reflect Austen’s wonderfully sardonic novel.
The penultimate edition in Folio’s Jane Austen series, this volume is bound in gold cloth, and the slipcase reproduces the work’s spirited first line. If you haven’t gotten your hands on a Folio Society edition, yet, this is a great place to start. I now have quite a few classics from TFS, and they are quickly becoming my favorite collection.
Product information
Bound in metallic cloth. Set in Baskerville with Trajan display. 232 pages.
Frontispiece and 5 colour illustrations. Blocked slipcase. 9½ ̋ x 6¼ ̋.
For seventy years, The Folio Society has been publishing beautiful illustrated editions of the world’s greatest books. It believes that the literary content of a book should be matched by its physical form. With specially researched images or newly commissioned illustrations, many of its editions are further enhanced with introductions written by leading figures in their fields: novelists, journalists, academics, scientists and artists. Exceptional in content and craftsmanship, and maintaining the very highest standards of fine book production, Folio Society editions last for generations.
Roof Beam Reader 
Yay! Finally a beautiful copy of Northanger Abbey to be found!
LikeLike
yes!
LikeLike
I finally posted my review of ‘Northanger Abbey’ earlier this week. This new edition looks beautiful, and I’m looking forward to acquiring it soon.
https://iwouldratherbereadingblog.wordpress.com/2017/09/11/31-northanger-abbey-by-jane-austen/
LikeLike
it’s time we had a version of this novel that was as delightful to hold as it is to read
LikeLike
I had a great Austen in August, so thanks, btw 🙂
I read Northanger Abbey for the first time and absolutely loved it. It is vying with Sense and Sensibility as my favorite Austen. This is a beautiful edition!
LikeLike