Friday, January 23, 2009

The Family Fortune

THE FAMILY FORTUNE: Laurie Horowitz: William Morrow: 2006: Fiction: 287 pages

Inspired by Jane Austen’s Persuasion, this is the story of Jane Fortune, a slightly past her prime single woman from an old family in Boston which has recently experienced some financial difficulties. Jane, the founder and editor of a well respected Literary Journal, called the Euphemia Review after her grandmother, her self-centered father and whiny sister are forced to rent out their Beacon Hill mansion. Even though Jane is in her forties, this is the first time she has had to leave the family home and strike out on her own. While struggling with this, her first love, Max Wellman, a writer who owes his career to being published in the Euphemia Review, comes back into her life.

I enjoyed watching the progression of Jane as she tries to figure her life out. The parallels to Persuasion are enjoyable, but this book does not live up to the spot-on social commentary of Austen's novels. Still, it was a pleasant read.

AJ

No comments: