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To celebrate the 250th year of Jane Austen, the Austen Connection on Substack is doing a read-along this year of Austen’s novels starting with Northanger Abbey in Feb. I’m hoping to follow along with that because I’ve only ever read one of her novels, Pride and Prejudice, and it’s one of my favorites. 😊

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That's so good to know, Kim - thank you! Will go subscribe now :-) I feel like I'm all alone out here while everyone else is reading a different Austen book or Emma at a different time - ha. I hope you enjoy Northanger Abbey - another book I haven't read yet!

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I love Jane Austen. So much fun to read her work again.

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Yay! I adore EMMA and can't wait for you to join the recaps/deep dives this spring. We do have some pretty great existing recap seasons to return to when you need another slow read 😉

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When your announcement about Emma first came out, I was like noooooooo, my timing is all off to read along. But then I realized it will just prolong the experience, so it’s all good ☺️

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We also did Emma as a group read on Personal Canon Formation last year.

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Will look for it - thank you!

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I miss my uggs.

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They really are just heaven for (cold) feet ❤️

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With the cold we've had this week I've realized I need to find some outfits that I can layer more. But good grief just finding basic shirts that are long enough is a chore. LOL

I'm a huge Lion King fan. I loved Mufasa mostly because we got so many origin stories, but I could have done with less singing. I usually love a good song but it didn't work for me in this one. But I'd still see it again. And I also feel like there are potential for more LK stories.

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Okay you’re right. Perhaps less singing wouldn’t have been a bad thing 😉 As for longer shirts, I know!! Old Navy and Maurice’s and Torrid typically have stuff, otherwise when I’m online I have to search “tunic”

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And I love music in a movie but somehow for this live action not from an animated movie was just weird.

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I'm doing the 2025 Austen Challenge with The Austen Connection (on Substack). I rarely purchase books and bought Northanger Abbey in preparation (from bookshop, of course). I've only read Pride & Prejudice.

OK JINX I just saw Kim's comment below! :o)

We are also trying to go the movies once a month. Haven't seen one yet in January, this is a reminder to do so!

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Can’t wait to hear about what you go see! And I’m excited to search The Austen Connection for all of the Emma content!

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I love my Uggs too!

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They do their job so well ❤️

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The diss for LIBRARY GIRL 🤭🤭🤭

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Did you see my Goodreads review? I was SO excited about that book and fully prepared to suspend disbelief, and then encountered the ridiculous diet talk and was like NOPE NOPE NOPE.

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Noooo, that's a bummer! I was curious about it because a team member of mine liked it. Ah well. Off to read your review!

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There’s a passage about one of the moms dieting all day so maybe now she can actually have a cupcake and that’s just …. not anything we need kids to be thinking about. It was the second diet reference in the first few chapters

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I love the idea of reading a classic book as a ‘deep dive.’ I might join you in this!

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I love your deep dive reading goal! Excited to hear more about it as you make your way through titles this year 😊 also, I LOVE your movie goal. I completely agree - it is so fun to be a joyful consumer of movies in an age where it’s so easy to turn everything into an opportunity to become a critic 🤍

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I find myself less excited about being a critic these days, Michele. Even with books, I am less inclined to talk about books I didn’t love, and even when I don’t like something, I’m working harder and harder to figure out why someone else would appreciate it. Our society is full of scorn and haters, I’d prefer to stay far from the masses.

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I read Emma for the first time last year. I have really enjoyed other Austen novels but I struggled getting into it. Finally I watched one of the movie adaptations to get a sense of where it was heading & that gave me the push I needed. Ended up really liking it & celebrated finishing it by watching the other movies & of course, Clueless once again. Have fun with your slow read. My next Austen is Northanger Abbey

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Everyone definitely seems to be on the Northanger Abbey train, Laura! Someday maybe I will get to that :-) I definitely am benefitting from all of the other Emma content that I'm consuming, and Sara and Chelsey's podcast episodes helped me with the setup to push through initial confusion. One chapter a day is an excellent pace for me ~ I tend to get very impatient with the excessive number of words for any given thought ;-) I'm excited to watch a movie adaptation when I am done reading!

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Somehow I got through school without reading Austen - so I decided to read one a year. Just two more to go! Hope you enjoy your Emma journey!

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