Journal Entry 1 by Heaven-Ali from Birmingham, West Midlands United Kingdom on Saturday, September 15, 2007

I received this book free from Penguin, as part of their "blog a penguin classic promotion". I will be wild releasing it somewhere in Birmingham after I have read it.

I have read Evelina and the other Fanny Burney novels before - but it must be more than 15 years since I read them and I have to admit to not remembering much about them now.

Looking forward to re reading this novel.


Book Description
The reputation of Frances Burney (1752-1840) was largely established with her first novel, Evelina. Published anonymously in 1778, it is an epistolary account of a sheltered young woman’s entrance into society and her experience of family. Its comedy ranges from the violent practical joking reminiscent of Smollett’s fiction to witty repartee that influenced Austen.
 

Journal Entry 2 by Heaven-Ali from Birmingham, West Midlands United Kingdom on Monday, September 17, 2007

This is undoubtedly still a wonderfully entertaining novel, more than 200 years since it was first published. Burney's epistolary novel of a naive young girl's adventures and misadventures into fashionable London society, combines high drama with comedy and romance. The novel is a comedy of manners that would certainly delight fans of Jane Austen, and which paints a wonderful picture of fashionable life in the second half of the eighteenth century. Evelina - is thoroughly "good" as many heroines of this period were. She is beautiful, dutiful and respectful, innocent and blushes easily - still you can't help but like her and champion her cause as she attempts to have her father acknowledge her existence and give her his name.
I found this novel to be an absolute joy, and it proved to be the perfect accompaniment to my weekend, real escapism! The epistolary style makes it quite easy to read - as it is possible to read in it in short bursts, should you want to, I actually found it harder to put to down than I would have thought.


This is about to go on a book ray : )


Wlydetwo Birmingham UK
Kazbag Birmingham UK
CaterinaAnna Coventry - UK
celticseahorse - cornwall - UK
LeishaCamden - Oslo - Norway
 

Journal Entry 3 by Heaven-Ali at to a fellow bookcrosser in by hand, A Bookring -- Controlled Releases on Saturday, September 22, 2007

Released 4 yrs ago (9/22/2007 UTC) at to a fellow bookcrosser in by hand, A Bookring -- Controlled Releases

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Will be passed to Jen at the meet up today. 

Journal Entry 4 by wyldetwo from Sutton Coldfield, West Midlands United Kingdom on Saturday, September 22, 2007

Picked up at this afternoon's meet - thanks Ali! 

Journal Entry 5 by wyldetwo from Sutton Coldfield, West Midlands United Kingdom on Saturday, October 27, 2007

I found this a bit hard to get into - the epistolary style, the language, and all the endnotes I felt obliged to read - but I enjoyed it in the end! I felt it was a bit like one of Shakespeare's comedies with the comic characters, long lost relations etc.

I will pass this on to Kazbag at today's meet-up - thanks for sharing Ali! 

Journal Entry 6 by kazbag from Birmingham, West Midlands United Kingdom on Wednesday, November 28, 2007

TBR. 

Journal Entry 7 by kazbag from Birmingham, West Midlands United Kingdom on Thursday, August 07, 2008

Sending to Caterina-Anna. 

Journal Entry 8 by Caterinaanna from Coventry, West Midlands United Kingdom on Wednesday, August 13, 2008

Arrived safely on Monday, but I went straight to sleep when I got home that day and wasn't online at home to journal it yesterday - probably because I'm half-way through the book ... 

Journal Entry 9 by Caterinaanna from Coventry, West Midlands United Kingdom on Thursday, August 14, 2008

Well that didn't take long, did it? For reasons that you don't really want to know about, I've picked it up at some very odd times of day and have probably kept reading it far longer than I should each time.

I was curious about this but hadn't been expecting to enjoy it, and on reading the dedicatory ode and the note to the publishers et al wondered if I'd survive the experience. However once the story got going and Evelina's letters to her guardian became more relaxed, it was rather hard to put down.

Of course the heroine is good, but her desire to do the right thing, although uncertain of what that is, leads her into scrapes and misunderstandings which give her enough humanity to be sympathetic. The hero is, of course, far too nice (in the sense we use it today) in spite of his initial dismissal of our girl, and some of the other relatives remain caricatures, but they are fun for all that.

Mrs Selwyn's sarcasm, the time Evelina's cousins spend winding each other up, and even some of Captain M's jokes seem fairly innocuous today - maybe not always kind, but not so fantastically unusual in any sphere - so the willingness of the 'educated' in the novel to look down upon those who have a different set of manners (for underneath it all their morals are similar: compare the attitudesof Mr Smith & Willoughby to marriage for example) seems incredibly snobby to a modern reader. Mind you the ditch and the monkey were most definitely going to far, and I haven't enjoyed my most recent experiences of being importuned by drunken revellers either, so not all the repudiated behaviour would be considered well-bred even by such a low-class modern as I!

Thank you Heaven-Ali for sharing this and all who have helped it wend its way this far.

As luck would have it celticseahorse sent me her address just yesterday, so it would seem I have quite a parcel to make for her. 

Journal Entry 10 by Caterinaanna at Newquay, Cornwall United Kingdom on Monday, August 18, 2008

Released 3 yrs ago (8/18/2008 UTC) at Newquay, Cornwall United Kingdom

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On its way to Cornwall with a lot of other, rather different, books. 

Journal Entry 11 by celticseahorse from Newquay, Cornwall United Kingdom on Thursday, August 21, 2008

Ah that's why this was in the parcel..I had forgotten about this ray..I confess to still not having finished my blog a penguin..it was possibly worst book of the year for me..
I look forward to reading this I have one to finish before this, and a little nest of 6 which came in same parcel which will try to pull me away but will get to it promptly.
Thanks for the ray Heaven-Ali and for sending CaterinaAnna 

Journal Entry 12 by celticseahorse from Newquay, Cornwall United Kingdom on Tuesday, September 23, 2008

Just an update..I seem to be struggling with a reading slump at the moment..If I can't get started on this this week I will get it moved onto next participant. 

Journal Entry 13 by celticseahorse from Newquay, Cornwall United Kingdom on Sunday, October 05, 2008

It took me some time to get into..(I didn't plunge into the notes first:-))then I found myself quite enjoying travelling with innocent Evelina. I struggled to get into the rythm of the language even though I am a classic/period fan as it is soo youthfully flowery and verbose. I think she is being very subtle in poking fun at her contemporaries but there isn't any outright wit and humour compared to Austen and Gaskell and I missed it.
However, I did enjoy the viewpoint of a fresh ingenue innocent abroad, it is a nice way for the reader to be introduced to the social rules and etiquette of the time. I can't in any way imagine Evelina dressed as the women on the front cover of the book:-)
It was refreshing to find goodness and propriety getting its reward. I am glad that I will never have to meet the Captain in person, I think poor Mrs Mirvan deserves a medal or two.

I did read the chronology at the back and found Frances'life had more twists and turns than her own plots..I would be glad to read a biography of her life..she survived a masectomy in 1811 and outlived her brothers and sisters, husband and child..mmmm some lady.

LeishaCamden has been PM'ed so hope to get this in post this week
 

Journal Entry 14 by celticseahorse from Newquay, Cornwall United Kingdom on Thursday, November 13, 2008

Humengous apologies put this ready in envelope and then it got hidden under the ironing pile..
Gone in post today to Norway online airmail..had to print customs ticket as well? 

Journal Entry 15 by LeishaCamden from Alna bydel, Oslo fylke Norway on Monday, November 17, 2008

This arrived in the mail from England today. Heaven-Ali, what a coincidence - both of your rays that I've signed up for arrived within a few days of each other. :-) Thank you so much for sharing - this book is on the 1001 list but I have never come across it anywhere else. It looks like a very interesting read. :-) I have a few other rings & rays ahead of this one but hopefully it's OK if it takes me a little while to read it since I'm last on the ray. :-)

celticseahorse, thanks for the postcard! :-) 

Journal Entry 16 by LeishaCamden from Alna bydel, Oslo fylke Norway on Sunday, June 21, 2009

I have now finally read this book, it's taken me forever, but that's how it goes when I'm on the end of a ray. I'll just read this one book first, and then just this one, and, and ... :-)

But better late than never, and I did really enjoy this book a lot. It was hard to put down at times ... once I got into it. :-) The characters were fantastic and I loved the complicated plot. I didn't find it entirely believable all the time ... sometimes Burney takes it to extremes, eg Evelina's beloved guardian, he is really over the top sometimes ... but it's all so entertaining that I didn't mind it. :-) I really enjoyed the endnotes, even though they were a hassle at times ... but they really added to my understanding of the story and I learned a thing or two.

Overall a very enjoyable read, a lot of fun and an interesting insight into 18th-century mentality. A book I'd definitely recommend. I now plan to pass it on to my best friend who is also a BookCrosser and who was very interested in this book when I told her about it. We are both huge Jane Austen fans and Austen was a fan of Burney. :-) Heaven-Ali, I hope it's OK with you that I pass this book to my friend and probably to a couple of other Oslo BCers.

This book is #958 on the list of 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die. 

Journal Entry 17 by LeishaCamden from Alna bydel, Oslo fylke Norway on Sunday, June 21, 2009

Reserved for Tanumine! :-) 

Journal Entry 18 by LeishaCamden at A fellow BookCrosser, A RABCK -- Controlled Releases on Wednesday, July 15, 2009

Released 2 yrs ago (7/15/2009 UTC) at A fellow BookCrosser, A RABCK -- Controlled Releases

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This book went home with Tanumine from our local meetup this afternoon. When she's read it (though no time pressure!) there are a few others who are interested in it too. :-) 

Journal Entry 19 by Tanumine on Wednesday, July 15, 2009

Thanks Leisha!
This is also a 1001 book I want to read. 

Journal Entry 20 by Tanumine on Wednesday, October 28, 2009

I finished this book last night, as I just couldn't put it down till it was finished!
A wondereful story, and I can see why Jane Austen was a fan. Evelina is a really good character, complex as well as believable, and all the other persons are well written too. Though Captain Mirvan made me drop my jaw a few times... I liked the ending very much, Burney builds the suspension till almost the last chapter. And as Leisha said, the notes are really quite helpfull in getting a better understanding of the era.
So this is a book I will warmly recommend to anyone who likes a good intrigue.
 

Journal Entry 21 by Tanumine on Tuesday, November 03, 2009

I'm bringing this novel with me to the BC meetup tomorrow. 

Journal Entry 22 by Tanumine at -- wild release somewhere in Oslo, Oslo fylke Norway on Wednesday, November 04, 2009

Released 2 yrs ago (11/4/2009 UTC) at -- wild release somewhere in Oslo, Oslo fylke Norway

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Ingalill tok med seg denne fra BC-møtet vårt i dag :-) 

Journal Entry 23 by Ingalill on Thursday, November 05, 2009

It came warmly recommended so I grabbed it :-) (osloS)

I think I might have read one Frances Burney novel before but can't remember
which - so it doesn't count. Looking forward to this one though and will bring it back
to the OBCZ when I am done.

Update March 2010
Everytime I go to pick this one up I am tempted
by something else and end up putting it down.
It has taken me months to read 20 pages - so it is
time to call it quits.
Hopefully I will get a chance to come back to it
later.

I will take it with me to the next Oslo BC meetup.
(meaning the next meet I am able to make :-) 

Journal Entry 24 by Ingalill at -- wild release somewhere in Oslo, Oslo fylke Norway on Monday, April 12, 2010

Released 2 yrs ago (4/12/2010 UTC) at -- wild release somewhere in Oslo, Oslo fylke Norway

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Passed it on to a fellow bookcrosser at todays BC meet, La Baguette.

Enjoy!