Four Classic Novels

Book excerpt: Elegant, sophisticated and full of humour and romance, the novels of Jane Austen have been favourites of readers around the world for more than two centuries. Although set at the turn of the nineteenth century, in the England that she herself knew, Austen's characters espouse values and sentiments that still speak to modern sensibilities. No author has captured so vividly the affairs of hearts in conflict with class and social convention. This volume features four of Jane Austen's best-loved works: Sense and Sensibility, Pride and Prejudice, Emma and Persuasion.