By Dan Read
When I took this book out of its package, my wife looked at the title and said, “Another Jane Austen sequel!?” (to her credit she did not roll her eyes). I admit it, I’m a sucker for these books. And, this one was a lot of fun to read. It is not as meticulously crafted and carefully rewritten as Jane’s book, but it captures a lot of the sense of the period and the struggle of young women to have meaningful lives in a relentlessly patriarchal society.
At the end of Sense and Sensibility Margaret is just reaching an age “highly suitable for dancing, and not very ineligible for being supposed to have a lover.” Up to that point she is a marginal character, an occasional companion or spy. She lives in the shadow of her two brilliant older sisters. That becomes her motivation in life, to become a person of her own and not simply a dull younger sister or the wife of some interesting or important man. The novel follows her in that quest.
It starts out with life at Norland before Mr. Dashwood died. Especially as he becomes increasingly incapable of exertion, he is Margaret’s tutor and inspiration. Together they pore over maps of Europe and descriptions of the ongoing excavations at Pompeii, their goal when his health improves. Her father encourages her adventurous spirit. When he dies, she and Edward become fast friends (reminiscent of the Emma Thompson movie), a relationship which continues throughout his life.
Zomparelli ties up a lot of loose ends from S&S and amplifies many characters. Margaret’s relationship (or lack thereof) with Fanny Dashwood after the invasion, and her perceptions of the other family members, make for interesting reading. There is a great scene with Lucy, Fanny and Mrs. Ferrars. I have often imagined what these characters’ lives turned out to be, and enjoyed reading someone else’s vision.
Jumping off from the end of S&S Margaret does indeed pursue her independent vision of her life, fighting patriarchal dismissals and social convention all the way (not much dancing and no lovers, as it turns out). She does make it to Pompeii, which results in real adventure and ultimate success. I think Zomparelli does a good job of capturing the sensibilities and conventions of the early 19th century. The dialogue is good. There are occasional anachronisms and overly modern ideas. The Italian adventure does spin off into a lengthy melodrama. But since this is about characters who are well known and well-loved and is akin to imaginings that I have indulged in, I could just sit back and truly enjoy how the story developed.