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momosteele's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
sylvanas's review
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
finestgreen's review against another edition
2.0
Less a modern retelling and more a less-well-written retelling with contrived modern elements lazily bodged in. Just about reaches the standard of "readable", but completely fails to establish a plausible world or real characters. Things happen because they happened in the original, mostly stripped of any underlying reason or rationale.
book_concierge's review against another edition
3.0
Audio performed by Susan Lyons
This is book 3 in the Austen Project series, wherein authors take on Austen’s classic novels, reimagining the scenarios in contemporary times. In this outing, Mini Coopers replace carriages, and cappuccinos take the place of tea, but the characters, relationships and basic scenarios remain the same.
21st century Emma is still a wealthy, exasperatingly obtuse young woman with too much time on her hands and no real job to keep her mind engaged. Harriet Smith is her friend and pet project.
If you’ve read the original you’ll find yourself anticipating certain scenes – When does Emma meet Frank Churchill? When will Mr Elton get his signals crossed? When will the picnic happen? I actually found this a little distracting because I was looking forward to what might happen instead of paying attention to what was going on. That’s my failing, not the author’s.
I enjoyed this light romantic comedy, but it is not as good as the original. That is probably entirely to do with the time frame. Austen’s Emma was exasperating as she meddled in others' affairs and acted on the basis of misread social cues. However, I could understand her in the time frame of the Regency period. She was merely a product of her situation and social class; and her final realizations, however slow to come about, were all the more rewarding. But the modern Emma just has no such excuse for her superior manner. I cannot imagine how a college-educated young woman (even one from such a high social standing) would be so blind to the differences in people, and so clueless as to how snobbish she was being. I just could not like her at all.
Also, while Alexander McCall Smith included all the characters of Austen’s original – Vicar Elton, George Knightly, Isabella & John Knightly, Miss Taylor and Captain Westin, Miss Bates, Frank Churchill, and Jane Fairfax – he didn’t give them as much page time as Austen gave them. This modern Emma focused much more on the title character, and I missed those other people and their interactions.
The audio version is capably performed by Susan Lyons. She has good pacing and sufficient skill as a voice artist to differentiate the various characters. This is particularly helpful in the many scenes where two (or more) women are speaking.
This is book 3 in the Austen Project series, wherein authors take on Austen’s classic novels, reimagining the scenarios in contemporary times. In this outing, Mini Coopers replace carriages, and cappuccinos take the place of tea, but the characters, relationships and basic scenarios remain the same.
21st century Emma is still a wealthy, exasperatingly obtuse young woman with too much time on her hands and no real job to keep her mind engaged. Harriet Smith is her friend and pet project.
If you’ve read the original you’ll find yourself anticipating certain scenes – When does Emma meet Frank Churchill? When will Mr Elton get his signals crossed? When will the picnic happen? I actually found this a little distracting because I was looking forward to what might happen instead of paying attention to what was going on. That’s my failing, not the author’s.
I enjoyed this light romantic comedy, but it is not as good as the original. That is probably entirely to do with the time frame. Austen’s Emma was exasperating as she meddled in others' affairs and acted on the basis of misread social cues. However, I could understand her in the time frame of the Regency period. She was merely a product of her situation and social class; and her final realizations, however slow to come about, were all the more rewarding. But the modern Emma just has no such excuse for her superior manner. I cannot imagine how a college-educated young woman (even one from such a high social standing) would be so blind to the differences in people, and so clueless as to how snobbish she was being. I just could not like her at all.
Also, while Alexander McCall Smith included all the characters of Austen’s original – Vicar Elton, George Knightly, Isabella & John Knightly, Miss Taylor and Captain Westin, Miss Bates, Frank Churchill, and Jane Fairfax – he didn’t give them as much page time as Austen gave them. This modern Emma focused much more on the title character, and I missed those other people and their interactions.
The audio version is capably performed by Susan Lyons. She has good pacing and sufficient skill as a voice artist to differentiate the various characters. This is particularly helpful in the many scenes where two (or more) women are speaking.
alidottie's review against another edition
4.0
If you are a diehard Austen fan, then don't judge this book by my opinion. I have read all her books once--a couple or three twice, but it's been awhile so I am not an expert. But by my experience, I thought McCall-Smith did a delightful job modernizing and retelling Emma. He has just the wit to succeed at doing this.
kathleenguthriewoods's review against another edition
5.0
Picked this up on a whim while browsing my favorite book shop. Was saving it for an upcoming trip, but decided to just take a peek last night. Hooked! The writing is delightful. Stay tuned....
* * *
Absolutely delightful! Great vacation -- or any time -- read. McCall Smith is a gifted linguist, as well as a creative storyteller. I love how he has re-imagined all of the original characters, given them new life in a contemporary telling. When does the movie come out?
* * *
Absolutely delightful! Great vacation -- or any time -- read. McCall Smith is a gifted linguist, as well as a creative storyteller. I love how he has re-imagined all of the original characters, given them new life in a contemporary telling. When does the movie come out?
roseleaf24's review
2.0
Austen's Emma is a light satire of the heirarchy and gender roles of her time. In Smith's hands, it turns male-focused and mocking, even a little bit creepy.
colleengeedrumm's review
4.0
What a wonderful writer! I keep meaning to get to his Ladies #1 Detective Agency series, and now I see he has a whole lot of titles and series to his name! There was a certain sweetness to this novel that's an updated version of Austen's original, which I am sad to say I haven't read yet either, so I'm now curious to see how it compares. I so enjoyed the story of Emma and how she matures into her life with such insightfulness. I'm a fan now of Smith - he's truly accomplished.
Thanks to Goodreads giveaways for a free copy in exchange for an honest review. A wonderful, light read that makes one think and reflect on one's own life and meaning of. (I definitely wish I had the money hand leisure time of the Woodhouse's!)
Companionate
Cadit quaestio - the question falls away. Sed quaestio manet - but the question still remains.
Not having to have to (deal w/another)
Some people were just worriers, and there were worse things for a parent to be.
That is all one can hope for in life: that one's parents are harmless.
You need to see people to get in touch with them.
the reassurance of those around us that we have done the right thing almost always helps, although it may not, as in this case, remove the underlying anxiety that we have acted selfishly or foolishly, or even perversely.
that he should do two things: one was to enjoy Frank's good fortune - thereby validating his own, earlier choice - and the other was to envisage a sense of future for himself.
He felt nothing: there was no pang, not the slightest one, and that confirmed his feeling that he was ready to find somebody who would not think him unexciting, as she clearly had.
You can be very uncharitable, Emma.
I know, she said. I shall try to do better. She smiled at her father.
Delicious thought: the absurd is always so tasty. But then, if one comes to think of it, any announcement of that sort is bound to seem sudden. It involves, you see, a transition. At one moment one is not engaged, and then the next moment one is. That, I think, is largely inevitable, given the nature of engagement.
I'm going to miss you so much, she said. I just am.
And I'm going to miss you too, said Miss Taylor. I'm going to miss you, even if I see you every day. Does that sound odd to you?
No, said Emma. It doesn't sound odd, because I think that's exactly what I'm going to feel.
And as far as her manner was concerned, there was a reserve about her, she felt; a slightly distant air. Was that the yearning that Miss Taylor mentioned?
I love clocks that sound like clocks. Tick-tock. That's what clocks should say, don't you think? You can believe a clock that goes tick-tock.
Weaknesses of character or personality issues-such as insecurity-are hardly a matter of choice.
She hates me. It had never occurred to her that she might be disliked.
"He had no enemies." - It could not be said of me, she thought, I have enemies to spare - all of my own making.
It had been an important summer for Emma, as it had been the summer during which moral insight came to her-something that may happen to all of us, if it happens at all, at very different stages of our lives. this had happened because she had been able to make that sudden imaginative leap that lies at the heart of our moral lives: the ability to see, even for a brief moment, the world as it is seen by another person. It is this understanding that lies behind all kindness to others, all attempts to ameliorate the situation of those who suffer, all those acts of charity by which we make our lives something more than the pursuit of the goals of the unruly ego.
for none of us is perfect, except, of course, the ones we love, the things of home, our much appreciated dogs and cats, our favourites of one sort or another.
She realised that happiness is something that springs from the generous treatment of others, and that until one makes that connection, happiness may prove elusive.
The eyes of the young woman are not on the young man, nor upon the hand she holds, but fixed on the one who views the painting, and they convey, as do so many of the figures in art that would say anything to us, this message: You do it too.
Thanks to Goodreads giveaways for a free copy in exchange for an honest review. A wonderful, light read that makes one think and reflect on one's own life and meaning of. (I definitely wish I had the money hand leisure time of the Woodhouse's!)
Companionate
Cadit quaestio - the question falls away. Sed quaestio manet - but the question still remains.
Not having to have to (deal w/another)
Some people were just worriers, and there were worse things for a parent to be.
That is all one can hope for in life: that one's parents are harmless.
You need to see people to get in touch with them.
the reassurance of those around us that we have done the right thing almost always helps, although it may not, as in this case, remove the underlying anxiety that we have acted selfishly or foolishly, or even perversely.
that he should do two things: one was to enjoy Frank's good fortune - thereby validating his own, earlier choice - and the other was to envisage a sense of future for himself.
He felt nothing: there was no pang, not the slightest one, and that confirmed his feeling that he was ready to find somebody who would not think him unexciting, as she clearly had.
You can be very uncharitable, Emma.
I know, she said. I shall try to do better. She smiled at her father.
Delicious thought: the absurd is always so tasty. But then, if one comes to think of it, any announcement of that sort is bound to seem sudden. It involves, you see, a transition. At one moment one is not engaged, and then the next moment one is. That, I think, is largely inevitable, given the nature of engagement.
I'm going to miss you so much, she said. I just am.
And I'm going to miss you too, said Miss Taylor. I'm going to miss you, even if I see you every day. Does that sound odd to you?
No, said Emma. It doesn't sound odd, because I think that's exactly what I'm going to feel.
And as far as her manner was concerned, there was a reserve about her, she felt; a slightly distant air. Was that the yearning that Miss Taylor mentioned?
I love clocks that sound like clocks. Tick-tock. That's what clocks should say, don't you think? You can believe a clock that goes tick-tock.
Weaknesses of character or personality issues-such as insecurity-are hardly a matter of choice.
She hates me. It had never occurred to her that she might be disliked.
"He had no enemies." - It could not be said of me, she thought, I have enemies to spare - all of my own making.
It had been an important summer for Emma, as it had been the summer during which moral insight came to her-something that may happen to all of us, if it happens at all, at very different stages of our lives. this had happened because she had been able to make that sudden imaginative leap that lies at the heart of our moral lives: the ability to see, even for a brief moment, the world as it is seen by another person. It is this understanding that lies behind all kindness to others, all attempts to ameliorate the situation of those who suffer, all those acts of charity by which we make our lives something more than the pursuit of the goals of the unruly ego.
for none of us is perfect, except, of course, the ones we love, the things of home, our much appreciated dogs and cats, our favourites of one sort or another.
She realised that happiness is something that springs from the generous treatment of others, and that until one makes that connection, happiness may prove elusive.
The eyes of the young woman are not on the young man, nor upon the hand she holds, but fixed on the one who views the painting, and they convey, as do so many of the figures in art that would say anything to us, this message: You do it too.