Description

We tend to ‘read for the ending’, accelerating as we approach the denouement: who dunnit? or, whom did they marry, and why? But let’s pause for a moment and look at the beginning. Michael Wheeler starts with some good and some very bad novel openings. He then homes in on the openings of Jane Austen’s six published novels, pages that demonstrate her genius, especially her wit and economy, as she creates the ‘world’ of each work of fiction.