This is a the perfect gifting book for any fans of Jane Austen, or even anyone who loves graphic novels! Evan’s illustrates Austen’s story beautifully, while reimagining some moments. I really enjoyed the art-style of the novel, it’s in keeping with the time period while also being recognisable as its own style. Beautiful display book, gift and story!

I heard Kate Evans at the Knit and Stitch Show talking about her research based on the quilt top made by Jane and Cassandra Austen. Kate has produced a graphic artist's joyous response to her research. It's not an academic text but a beautiful publication that any Austen, or, patchwork fan would respond to and love to own.

In a year of celebrating Jane Austen, both her timeless books and her life, this book has been my standout read by far! It is a thoroughly researched and richly detailed graphic biography of Jane Austen, brought together by a patchwork quilt. Kate Evans has sewn a masterpiece that is a comedic, touching and dramatic retelling of Austen's own life, but also of Regency England at the time. Evans does not shy away from the poverty, colonialism and slavery that underpinned middle and upper class life at that time. Tenderly telling these stories through embroidered artwork and beautiful prose, adding it to the patchwork story of the world Austen inhabited. There are so many mind-blowing historical details within the artwork that bought it to life before my eyes, it is a complete masterpiece. I will cherish this book and I am very likely to re-read it many times. I would thoroughly recommend to fans of Jane Austen, those with an interest in Regency England, biographies, or anyone who would like an absolutely gorgeous book to treasure.

This is a really quirky biography of Jane Austen which would make an amazing gift for a Janeite. Normally I must confess I am not much of a fan of the graphic format (Too many doe eyes and noses are too pointy) but here the charming illustrations work so well with the mix of biography, fiction and social history to give a fascinating insight into the life and world of Jane Austen. I particularly liked the way Kate Evans points out the connections between Jane's life and family and her novels. The title is particularly apt as Evans stitches together the fragments we have about Jane's life with her works and the Georgian England she inhabited. The comic strip format makes it easy to read but on examination there is a wealth of research and detail in here and I guarantee you will find a little factoid you didn't know before. What comes through clearly is the strong passion Kate has for her subject and there is nothing like love for making a work sing. thanks to Verso books for a review copy in exchange for an unbiased review.

This book can be summed up as a large hardback A4 size graphic novel biography of Jane Austen in the illustration style of Georgian caricature. So much work has gone into this book!, both in the sheer number of detailed illustrations and the research to be as accurate as possible. Which makes for a very interesting read, for fans as well as the wider public to learn all about her life, rather than read reams of printed words. Some things you would already know as a fan and somethings are new. It covers her early life and friends and family and the different places she lives as well the weaving into the timeline the stories, their inspiration and publishing dramas. Art is very subjective, and the nod to the Georgian style of illustration is not completely to my taste, but that didn't stop me appreciating and enjoying the all encompassing content of Jane Austen's life. A book I will dip into often. I would like to thank the publishers for a pre publication copy in return for an honest review.