Letters to Alice

It's not memoir or nonfiction, but reads like a series of letters from "Aunt Fay" to her freshman student niece about reading Jane Austen. Alice doesn't "get" Austen either. Weldon gives a great deal of the background in an amusing way, while nattering to her niece about other things including the rift between herself and her sister, Alice's mother. I truly love this book and I'm happy to see that it's back in print. I first began to hear of it when it came out in 1985, but only read it about three years ago. It was buried among a stack of books most beloved by my own aunt, who had died some years before. This book was worn and tattered, and I sat down with it because I recognized the title. Marvelous! I'd read all of Jane Austen except the infamous and unpublished "first novel." I promptly sent it off to friends.

Written in the form of witty letters to a niece taking an undergraduate English Lit course, this book attempts to bring insight to the work of Jane Austen in particular and to answer those who question the relevance of literature in general. First published in 1984, there is no mention of deconstruction's effect on academic departments, but otherwise the author seems to address most issues pertinent to the reading and writing of fiction, beginning with a wonderful chapter on the lovely metaphoric City of Invention. Elsewhere, Weldon discusses non-literature, Latin, a writer's relatives and friends, feminism, literary truth, critics and invention. Austen is here as well,and the author enlightens with her discussions of Austen's life, times, works, style and death. There are many wonderful passages, and I especially admired the analyses of Austen's work, but I would have liked more of this, and in more detail. At one point the author writes: "[Jane Austen] knows how to end a scene, an episode, a chapter, before beginning the next: when to allow the audience to rest, when to and how to underline a statement, when to mark time with idle paragraphs, allowing what went before to settle, before requiring it to inform what comes next. It is a very modern technique. It requires ... consciousness of audience, and audience reaction." It should be evident from that passage that Weldon is an elegant, insightful and articulate writer, and I would have *loved* to have seen extended examples and analysis of specific Austen passages to illustrate the points made in the preceding excerpt. Ultimately, I didn't think the niece's subplot worked. Weldon first advises her not to attempt to write a novel, and then advises her to write it, and then advises her about dealing with the publisher when the novel is not only published but very successful. What's Weldon's greater meaning? Why would this undergrad's novel be published and who is reading it? Is it a condemnation or just a device to drive the conceit?I learned a lot about Jane Austen and about writing, and got some help for the next time someone tells me it's a waste of time to read a novel. Very enjoyable and highly recommended.

There's a national debate going on in my country concerning the value and relevance of literature in modern society. Students are liberally encouraged by their schools to drop literature from their curriculum in favour of more examination friendly subjects to increase their chances of achieving the maximum aggregate score for their "O" and "A" levels. So, it is not without some irony that I should be reading Fay Weldon's "Letters to Alice On First Reading Jane Austen" as my introduction to this author's works. Well, I was completely blown away by its first chapter/letter entitled "The City of Invention" which alone is worth the price of the book and....says it all. The imagery she uses in distinguishing the different genres in writing as well as the intrinsic or superficial merits of each form of writing is absolutely breathtaking. In it, she hints at why Shakespeare in the "city of invention" is that castle that marks the skyline and a compulsory stop for every tour group making the rounds of the "city". Weldon is eloquent, witty and wickedly funny with her pen. While she never quite hits the high of that first chapter again, she offers some rare and valuable insight into why Austen is read even today. Great literature has the power when read (whether quietly or aloud) to touch the masses by revealing the universality of some home truths or values they espouse. Although Austen fans will be delighted to see their favourite characters come to live in Weldon's world, you don't have to like Jane Austen to enjoy this book. To fellow Singaporeans sceptical about the value of literature in schools, my advice is "read this and you will see how absurd the question really is". No matter if you disagree after reading the book, b'cos you would have had a jolly good time. Great stuff. Truly.

Borrowed from a friend during my Jane Austen period, this book so delighted and inspired that it is now a dog-eared resident of my nightstand. As a neophyte pro-writer, I often have people ask me how I made the transition from "wanna-be" to "real" writer. This book was an important part of that process.

I treasure this book. Reading Fay Weldon is like having a very best friend who's read everything you love, has brilliant insights into literature and life, and is absolutely hilarious. She meets that need the passionate reader feels at the end of a wonderful book, to discuss it with someone whose opinion is worth having. "Letters to Alice: On First Reading Jane Austen" takes the form of letters from a writer to her niece, Alice, who's complained of being forced (!) to read Jane Austen. (I remember how utterly lame I thought PRIDE AND PREJUDICE was when I was 13--nobody had explained to us that it was supposed to be funny! Thank God I tried it again years later.) In the course of trying to make Austen (and all literature) accessible to her niece, the writer takes her on a marvelous journey into the city of the imagination. I keep starting sentences and then deleting them, because writing accurately about this book is tricky. Its genius is perhaps that the book illuminates the relationship of writer to reader without being dry or academic--it is, in fact, thoroughly entertaining. If you LOVE books, if you spent half your childhood curled up in some corner reading, if you try to foist books onto your friends--you will recognize the city into which Weldon leads you, and you will feel welcomed and at home. All in all, a fab read. Treat yourself!