By Bill Gaither Members met on August 24, 2025, for an engaging and memorable lecture and discussion of Jane Austen’s brilliant novel Persuasion, led by Austen scholar and member Mary Jane Curry. Regional coordinator Sara Tavela presided. This was a Virtual Book Club meeting. With visuals, commentary, and group discussion, Mary Jane considered the major political, economic, and social elements that…
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A small but game group of Austen fans gathered July 20 for Austen-style fun. The always entertaining Sara Tavela, our regional coordinator, led the session, assisted by her faithful dog, Wentworth. The diversions included challenging trivia questions and a rousing round of “Would you rather?” The latter asked attendees to choose between two undesirable alternatives, such as attending a ball…
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By Elizabeth Jewell The initial discussion was, not surprisingly, the very warm weather we’ve had lately. Because it was a smaller group than usual (17 participants), we skipped the breakout rooms and got into discussing the recent JASP (Jane Austen Summer Program) in New Bern. Elizabeth Jewell spoke enthusiastically about the experience, which combined strong scholarship with fun times; she…
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By Elizabeth Jewell Sara Tavela led the May meeting, which featured Dr. Susan Allen Ford speaking about her book, What Jane Austen’s Characters Read (and Why). Ford was a professor of English at Delta State University and has been the editor of Persuasions: the Jane Austen Journal and Persuasions On-Line since 2006. She will be a plenary speaker at the…
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By Elizabeth Jewell JASNA President Mary Mintz presented “Jane Austen in American Periodicals: Highlights of the First Hundred Years.” She began by saluting the contributions of Karin Wiberg, Sara Tavela, and Gisele Rankin to the NC chapter of JASNA. Mintz covered both the people who praised Jane Austen—often other women writers—and the reviews that were less appreciative. Her discussion of…
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