For the Jane Austen lover who can’t get enough gorgeous editions of her half dozen novels (me), Puffin Books has come out with a new deluxe edition of their Puffin in Bloom version of Sense and Sensibility.
Joining the deluxe editions of Pride and Prejudice, which came out last March, and next spring’s Emma, the deluxe edition of Sense and Sensibility came out earlier this month, and the publisher sent me a copy to get my hands (and feast my eyes) on. (I can only hope they eventually give this deluxe treatment to Jane’s other three novels!)
The Puffin in Bloom series is described by the publisher as follows:
Puffin in Bloom is a charming assortment of classic novels with coming-of-age themes. Cover artist Anna Bond of Rifle Paper Co. is best known for her signature floral patterns; and just as a flower blossoms, so too does a child into adulthood. This selection of literature is a collection both the young and young-at-heart will cherish forever.
Though I love all of Jane Austen’s works, my favorite three are Persuasion, Pride and Prejudice, and Sense and Sensibility. Though I love the book and movie/miniseries versions of each of them, I feel like Persuasion and Pride and Prejudice have had quite good movie/miniseries versions already, being great representations and including most of the details from the books (especially 1995’s Pride and Prejudice from the BBC).
But, though I greatly enjoy both the 1995 and 2008 versions of Sense and Sensibility, one thing I particularly love about reading the book is that there is so much more content that hasn’t yet quite made it to the screen, compared with the other two books I mention above. You get a lot more of the story when you read the book, a lot more of what happens in Elinor’s mind, especially. That holds true in general for most book/movie pairings, but I feel it keenly in this case.
When I opened the package with the Puffin in Bloom Deluxe Edition Sense and Sensibility book inside, it felt special to me right away. Its lovely smaller size and thicker shape is not heavy, but is great to hold onto, causing me to carry it around the house for a while, just to have it near me. In this size, the book is 443 pages, which puts a bit less text on the page than with some editions, which I find helpful for keeping my place better with Jane’s long, complex sentences. The book is, of course, still divided into its normal three volumes.
The beautiful cover (and back cover) artwork catches your eye right away, but what sets this deluxe edition apart from the original Puffin in Bloom edition is the gorgeous edge art, the new colorful endpapers (that match the edge art), and the built-in ribbon for marking your place.
Though the content of the books in the Puffin in Bloom series isn’t any different than in a Dover Thrift Edition of the same book, for example, the gorgeous look of the Puffin in Bloom series, as well as the better quality paper used (compared with cheaper pulpy paper), make the reading experience more enjoyable and the look on your bookshelf elevated. And it’s still affordable, to own a beloved book that’s also gorgeous. The Puffin in Bloom Deluxe Edition of Sense and Sensibility retails for only $21, but can be found in some places for a lower price.
Note: I received a copy of this book for review purposes, but all swooning over Jane Austen’s novels is entirely my own.
