Byrne's aim is to show how these objects, many of them reproduced in her book in lush color plates, reveal a much more cosmopolitan awareness of the world than is commonly credited to Austen." -- Maureen Corrigan, NPR for THE REAL JANE AUSTEN

Vividly persuasive.... THE REAL JANE AUSTEN is excellent... particularly on the dissonant topics of theater and slavery....Byrnes section on slavery is better still, establishing links between Austen's protagonists and contemporary figures, her pointed references and contemporary events, which highlight her supposedly oblivious fiction's sharp views on the slave trade." -- New York Times Book Review for THE REAL JANE AUSTEN

"Byrne takes Austen seriously as a writer...[she] brings to life a woman of "wonderful exuberance and self-confidence," of "firm opinions and strong passions." Little wonder that every other man she meets seems to fall in love with her." -- Michael Dirda, Washington Post for THE REAL JANE AUSTEN

"Byrne brings to this brief history an eye for telling details of daily life, slaveholders' unthinkable cruelty, and the fervent work of a few good men and women who changed their world." -- Kirkus Reviews