Emma

Though the language used in Emma appears to be highly flowery and outdated in contemporary times, the contents that capture the subtle nuances of human behaviour, like emotions, expectations and reactions have an universal value.
The ingrained superiority complex which is the folly of Emma, the fair-minded common sense of Mr Knightley, the pomposity of Mr Elton, the possessiveness of Mr Woodhouse, the gallantry of Frank Churchill and the naivete of Harriet capture varying shades of human behaviour in a wide spectrum of colours.
An Indian reader can immediately identify himself with the characters in the story for we are a race that believe in "arranging" marriages taking into consideration the caste, economic and social status and the family connections of the bride or groom to be. a truly commendable book of her age and date.

"Emma" was my first attempt at reading Jane Austen's works. Recognizing that she wrote Classics, I ventured forth enthusiastically. Sorry to say I never "got it" with this book. To me the characters were dull, the writing was tedious, and the plot was boring and not the least bit interesting to me. After 100 pages I gave up. Even the English of her time was unfamiliar and not easy to grasp. I won't give up and shall try her other books.

It's difficult not to like Emma--the character--despite the fact that she seems to lead a rather vapid life. Of course, this is a function of the society in which she lives, and one can imagine such a charming and intelligent woman being a far more productive individual were she to exist today.

Taken in the context of its time, the novel 'Emma' is a delightfully fun and witty examination of the societal constraints and mores of the period in which it takes place. Plot is not essential here, and there really isn't a great deal of it. It's the characters who count, and Emma is certainly the most captivating of the lot. She bears some resemblance to the major female leads of other Jane Austen novels, but rather lacks the spirited, rebelliousness of Elizabeth Benett (of 'Pride and Predjudice').

'Emma', as a novel, is not as tightly written as Pride and Predjudice (which is probably Austen's best known and best loved work). There are places in 'Emma' that certainly could have done with some decent editing, sections of dialogue that are simply far too protracted and tend to weary the reader. That said, the book is still worth investing the time to read.

Lindsay Brambles (author of 'In Darkness Bound')

Emma was my introduction to the world of Jane Austen and I felt most welcome. Emma is the story of Emma Woodhouse, a self-satisfied girl who has it all, and her mischiefs in matchmaking. I thought it was very silly at first that this entire book is all about who ends up with whom but Jane Austen does more than that, in fact Jane Austen is a lot more than that. There are also some characters here you'll probably relate to someone you know, talkative Ms Bates, silly Harriet Smith, pretentious Mrs Elton, prim and proper Jane Fairfax, etc.