Ranking Jane Austen's Books

I've ranked Jane Austen's most famous six novels from the book I like the least to my very favourite novel. Which is your favourite Jane Austen book?
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You can find me on instagram at: @mirandasnotebook, @mirandasbookcase and @teaandtattlepodcast
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BOOKS MENTIONED IN VIDEO (not giving away my ranking order!) -
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[sorachi]

Persuasion definitely is underrated and deserves more love, it is lovely to see the novel as your #1. I have seen so many adaptations of the novels but now I have decided to read the books starting with Pride and Prejudice.

[myriamlopresti]

Jane Austen is also my favorite author of all times ! Thank you about Fanny Price. I love her too!

[kellykiiskila]

I’m reading Emma right now and I’m loving it! So far I’ve read P&P, Persuasion, and Northanger Abbey ❤️

[wandalorenz]

I have just watched several peoples rankings of the books and it has been so fun to see everyone’s opinions.

[secondhandsurrey]

After many years saying I would read P&P, even staring as Caroline in my school play (13 years ago!) this week I started reading it. And I think it’s down to watching your videos that gave me the confidence (I only found you 1.5 weeks ago and haven’t stopped watching your videos!) you’ve inspired me to broaden my reading - I got back into it heavily in July 2020 but was reading a lot of modern novels. So far I am loving P&P and can’t wait to read more of it, and more of JA!

[kkitao]

I really enjoyed your comments! Thanks for posting.

I have to disagree with you on a couple of points. I would rank Sense and Sensibility higher than you did, because I think the love story is not diluted by having two heroines but that the love story is about the heroines. I think it is more a story about Marianne and Elinor then about the romances. As one of Jane Austen‘s early books, it shows her inexperience, but it also shows all the promise that she later more than fulfilled.

This is difficult because both of your top two books are so good, but I would reverse the ranking.

Persuasion is a wonderful book, and I love Anne Elliot, I love the story, and the letter near the end is one of the most romantic passages I’ve ever read. From a literary point of view, I think Persuasion probably is Jane Austen‘s best book.

Still, my heart belongs to Lizzy, and also, I think Pride and Prejudice is the most perfect fulfillment of a theme that Austen always used, which was learning and growing based on our experiences. You mentioned that Lizzie grew and changed, but so did Darcy. At the beginning, he judged Lizzie based on her rank, and resisted his feelings because of her low connections. He learns to be more open to people and not to judge them based on their position. That Lizzie and Darcy both grew and changed based on their experiences, and that it is suggested that they will both benefit in different ways from the marriage in the future, shows a balance that I find very satisfying.

Anyway, I enjoyed your hearing your opinions, and they gave me something to think about. Thanks again.

[elizabethbrink]

I think Jane Austen is my all-time favorite author, too. I discovered her in high school after covering a Pride and Prejudice play for my school newspaper. My dad went with me (because I couldn't drive at the time), and we were both hooked. We would watch the Colin Firth/Jennifer Ehle movie over and over again and we still quote it to each other. His copy of Pride and Prejudice has so many underlines and margin notes it could be considered an annotated version, haha! As I've gotten older, I have come to appreciate both Mansfield Park and Persuasion more with the quiet strength of Fanny and Anne. I think Persuasion has to be my favorite, too.

[sarahel]

I have just discovered your channel and very much enjoyed this video! I also like the Jane Austen audiobooks and would like to listen to more. I especially need to reread Northanger Abbey, perhaps on audiobook, because I read it a long time ago and it's also my least favorite of her novels.
My all-time favorite is Emma, because as you said it's a wonderful story with amazing characters, but I also love Pride and Prejudice, Persuasion and Sense and Sensibility. I find it very hard to rank her books!

[pilarmartin]

My ranking is 1. Persuasion, 2. Emma 3. Pride and prejudice and 4. Sense and sensibility. I want to read the two other this year.

[efstathiakositzidou]

I absolutely agree with you from 6 to 1!Persuasion my absolutely favorite!🥰

[Laurengreenkat]

Jennifer Ehle read P&P on YouTube during lockdown. It's wonderful and definitely worth listening to if you haven't already. x

[laurac]

I’ve only read three Austen’s so far and here is my ranking: 1)Persuasion (which I loved, and have read twice) 2) Mansfield Park 3) Pride and Prejudice ( I really did not care much for this one, and I am pretty sure it will drop lower when I read the other three some day.) Thanks for talking about them all.

[Bearcub]

Really informative and interesting video! I will definitely read them all again and rank them all 👍😊☺

[tracytilford]

Pride and Prejudice is my all time favorite but I simply cannot pick what comes next. Every time I think I have an order I revisit one of the other stories and my order changes so I've given up and all 5 other Austen novels are tied for second place.

[Hannah-xnst]

I've read Emma, Pride and Prejudice, and Northanger Abbey- I really must get to her other novels!

[lfior]

Miranda! Really enjoying your videos, I love discovering new book tubers because most existing popular ones (or ones that still upload) do not read a variety of genres, and there's too much YA and too little non-fiction and classics etc. The one thing I would say I don't enjoy as much is when booktubers spend time explaining the plot to viewers! The plot is readily available on google, but the overall outlook of the reader to the book, isn't! Good luck here on YouTube! <3

[thejoyofreading]

I love Jane Austen's novels, all of them ❤❤ but Persuasion is my favourite one as well. Even if Lizzie Bennet is my favourite heroin 😊

[isamandrino]

I think I love all Jane Austen books especially Pride & Prejudice, Sense & Sensibility, Emma and Persuasion ; they are real gems which I reread from time to time. It's so difficult to rank these 4 ones. I think the beautiful TV serie with Jennifer Ehle and Colin Firth, and the film with Emma Thomson and Hugh Grant make me prefer P&P and S&S.

[HerHomeschoolHomestead]

Persuasion and Pride and Prejudice are my top two picks. But I adore them ALL! I am never able to pick between Elizabeth and Anne.

[khayes]

100% agree on N.Abbey - it was written to poke fun at the novels of the period as a pop-crit book like Ben Elton and his books on Big Brother in the late 90s/2000s - not all of the books from the period have made it on to bookshelves in 2020 - can't say I own a copy of the Castle of Otranto! My faves are 1. Persuasion 2. P&P 3. Tricky as I prefer S& S and Mansfield Park equally. I couldn't get on with S&S then read it quickly before the Emma Thomson movie came out and then really understood it . In light of everything we've learned about slavery and society in recent years I think I will re read Mansfield P again for veiled references she has made - there was a film with Harold Pinter as Sir Bertram and it explored this more deeply/visually. 4. Emma- don't know what it is I just find it hard to connect . 5. N. Abbey. The most wonderful think about Austen is her comic/cringe characters, no one can touch her for the skill at drawing them - the Elton's. Mrs Norris, Mr Collins, Mrs Bennett - they are just wonderful.