Rosie’s #Bookreview Team #RBRT 1932: Pride And Prejudice Revisited by @KarenMCox1932

Today’s team review is from Sandra, she blogs here firthproof.co.uk

Sandra has been reading 1932: Pride And Prejudice Revisited by Karen M. Cox

This is a loose reinterpretation of Pride & Prejudice set in rural Kentucky during the Depression. The Bennet family, now in straightened circumstances, returns to live in the house where Mrs Bennet grew up. It has little in the way of modern conveniences (literally!), and they all have a lot of adjusting to do.

Some reviewers have bemoaned the fact that 1932 does not slavishly follow Jane Austen’s original plot, but surely that is the point. Karen M Cox has taken the bones of the original story, let her imagination run with it, and come up with this very enjoyable, and very different, homage to Jane Austen. Obviously, having moved continents, and more than a century in time, people in 1930s America behave and talk a lot differently than they did in the original story, so it’s not so easy to compare them; this is a good thing as nobody wants to read a pale imitation of such a beloved classic.

The main focus of this story is the relationship between Darcy and Lizzie Bennet, with most of it occuring after they marry, but Lydia and George Wickham still manage to cause havoc. However, Jane and Bingley’s relationship is not as prominent, and Mr and Mrs Bennet are a lot more ‘normal’.

To be honest, if you changed the names, 1932 would work very well as an independent novel, enabling it to reach a wider audience as not everyone has read, or is a fan of, Jane Austen.

I really enjoyed this and thought the characters were believable and convincing in their own right. Darcy and Elizabeth’s behaviour did change for the better, and they overcame their pride and prejudice.

…do anything rather than marry without affection.”
—Pride and Prejudice

During the upheaval of the Great Depression, Elizabeth Bennet’s life is torn asunder. Her family’s relocation from the bustle of the big city to a quiet family farm has changed her future, and now, she must build a new life in rural Meryton, Kentucky.
William Darcy suffered family turmoil of his own, but he has settled into a peaceful life at Pemberley, the largest farm in the county. Single, rich, and seemingly content, he remains aloof—immune to any woman’s charms.
Until Elizabeth Bennet moves to town.
As Darcy begins to yearn for something he knows is missing, Elizabeth’s circumstances become more dire. Can the two put aside their pride and prejudices long enough to find their way to each other?

1932, Karen M Cox’s award-winning debut novel, is a matchless variation on Jane Austen’s classic tale.

AmazonUK | AmazonUS