
And we're back, with part 2 of James' six-month Jane Austen Read All A-Long. And oh, this month we read one of my favorite books ever, not to mention favorite of Jane Austen's:

I've read this book many times, and I still love it every time I read it, and still get so caught up in it that I find myself racing to the final pages, even though I certainly know how it ends.
I love it from the very first sentence:
"It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife."
I mean, c'mon. Look how much is packed into that sentence, and how beautifully it sets up the book. There's that arch tone that Austen was such a master of. It's got a formal, flowery-ness that clearly puts it in a different time than now. And it tells us what the roles of men and women were during that time.
And look how quickly and sharply she details the social "niceties" of a small village when Lydia Bennet, who nearly caused a huge scandal by running off with a gentleman, returns to town as his wife rather than a ruined woman:
"To be sure it would have been more for the advantage of conversation, had Miss Lydia Bennet come upon the town; or, as the happiest alternative, been secluded from the world, in some distant farm house. But there was much to be talked of, in marrying her; and the good-natured wishes for her well-doing, which had proceeded before, from all the spiteful old ladies in Meryton, lost but little of their spirit in this change of circumstances, because with such an husband, her misery was considered certain."
OUCH.
There is so much humor, often subtle yet also deeply sarcastic, that I frequently laughed out loud. Yet this book, like Sense and Sensibility, also has tinges of melancholy. Mr. and Mrs. Bennet have a marriage that has not worked out so well; the five Bennet sisters have little to look forward to in life, given that their home is entailed to a cousin, and they have no fortunes to make them attractive; that fate is further driven home by family friend Charlotte Lucas, making a marriage which, on paper, is a decent one, but condemns her to a life of being married to one of the most pompous asses that ever existed; they live in a time when the rebellious behavior of one sister could ruin the prospects of the other four permanently. I could go on and on. Even with a happy ending (c'mon, I'm not going to worry about spoiling a book this old), it's still clear that our heroine's family continues to be problematic for her, even if her own good marriage allows her to help their prospects a bit.
I haven't read all of Austen's books, and I've heard rumors that Persuasion might be her finest, which I'll find out when I read it later this fall. But for now? What a treat to return to this. Next month: Mansfield Park.
And now, as promised, a Pride and Prejudice-related recipe from Dinner with Mr. Darcy.
Newcastle Pickled Salmon
Author's note: "I like to imagine that Mrs. Bennet chose this recipe from Newcastle because her favorite daughter, Lydia, had been dispatched there with Wickham shortly before the date of this dinner [a special dinner to impress wealthy young men]. Mrs. Raffald specified "strong beer alegar" which is close to vinegar, and "long-pepper," which is a little hotter than black pepper."
2 1/4 cups pale ale (Newcastle Brown Ale is good and appropriate, but will color the fish slightly)
1 tsp sea salt
4 salmon fillets
2/3 cup white wine vinegar
1/2 tsp ground mace
1/2 tsp ground cloves
1/2 tsp black peppercorns
Long pepper, if you can find it, or a pinch of dried chili flakes
1 inch fresh ginger, sliced
- Bring the ale, 1 1/4 cups water and the salt to a boil, and take the scum off the top. Put the fish skin-side down in the mixture, and poach lightly for 7-8 minutes, the carefully remove each fillet onto a plate, reserving the poaching liquid in a container. Leave in the fridge overnight.
- The next day heat the ale and salt liquor in a pan, and add the vinegar, mace, cloves, peppercorns, long pepper or chili flakes, and ginger slices. Bring to a boil and simmer for 5 minutes. Put the salmon in a glass dish, and pour the hot liquid over, making sure the fish is fully covered.
- Once it has cooled, put an airtight lid or plastic wrap over the dish, and keep in the fridge. It can be eaten after 3 days, and will keep for a week or more. Mrs. Raffald put hers in earthenware pots covered with strong brown paper, and says it will keep a whole year (but I wouldn't like to risk it).