Ever watch a movie or TV show and get caught up in the scenery? What if that scenery is books?
Our Favorite this week comes from the website Flavorwire. They’ve made a list of the top ten fictional libraries, including Beast’s library from the Disney classic Beauty and the Beast.
Is your favorite on the list?
“Fearful.”
Award-winning Regency romance author–and fellow teacher–Regina Jeffers talks about the etiquette of social calls, and how Jane Austen used them as a pivot point in her novels.
In the 1800s, morning calls or visiting upon a household developed a certain protocol, and those who broke protocol were often shunned. First a calling card was presented to the household’s servant. It was common for those who came to London for the Season to drive about with a footman in tow to present one’s cards to acquaintances. Do you recall Mrs. Jennings doing so in Sense and Sensibility? “The morning was chiefly spent in leaving cards at the houses of Mrs. Jennings’s acquaintance to inform them of her being in town.”
One would leave three cards with the servant: one from the lady for the house’s mistress; one from the caller’s husband for the house’s mistress and another for the house’s master. Displaying cards of those who had called was commonplace. It gave one social status to display cards from those of the nobility. In Persuasion, the Elliots took care to display “…the cards of the Dowager Viscountess Dalrymple and the Hon. Miss Carteret, to be arranged where they might be most visible.”
Read the rest of the article here.
It is never too late to be what you might have been.
–George Eliot
http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/184688/George-Eliot
What happens to rare manuscripts when they become old and begin to fall apart? They get restored! And now you can get in on the action.
From the Goodreads Voice article, 3/3/14:
With the Smithsonian Libraries, home to more than 50,000 rare books, you can select a specific book to “adopt” from the active list of books in need of restoration. Among the items currently up for adoption, you’ll find historic manuscripts from the 1700s and 1800s, and the list is always changing.
Across the pond you can help the Adopt-a-book program at the British Library preserve more than 1,800 works every year.
And Australian book lovers can support rare works in the University of Adelaide’s collection.
Many regional branches also offer adopt-a-book programs, so ask your local librarian for a suggestion!
“A piece of whalebone or ivory, formerly worn by women, to stiffen the forepart of their stays.”
Thanks so much to everyone who suggested names! I had a lot to mull over this past week–and one very obstinate character–but I think we have a good result 🙂
Let’s start with the contest winners:
Congratulations! E-mail me ladies and let me know which of the four prizes you’d prefer, and what would be your second choice if your first isn’t available.
And an honorable mention goes to Carol (my wonderful friend in Wales), for her suggestion of Lady Felicia!
~~~
The stubborn character was my hero, Mr. Archaeologist. He informed me during the week that he was no ordinary archaeologist, but that he was the male-line heir to his cousin’s title and estates.
And his cousin has already introduced himself in my other WIP.
So Mr. Archaeologist became Mr. Grey, and clung to his own preference for a given name…which took me several hours to uncover 🙂
That makes our cast of characters:
What a group, eh? And they’re all whispering in my ear, so I’m off to write. All I need now is a title!
A room without books is like a body without a soul.
–Cicero
http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/117565/Marcus-Tullius-Cicero
A few months ago, I shared Isobel Carr’s article on Regency-era paper dolls. This week’s Favorite is the 21st Century version.
Created by Sarah Vaughn (aka savivi) for DeviantArt, Regency Dress Up Doll is basically an electronic version of the old paper doll. The outfits and their accessories are all inspired by Jane Austen’s novels and the moves they spawned. You can change facial features and hair styles, too!
And if you prefer Ken to Barbie, the same artist has a Regency Hero Dress Up Doll…with period accurate underclothing 😀
“To run tame about the house; to live familiarly in a family with which one is upon a visit.”
Cora Lee, Regency Romance Author 