The Life and Works of Jane Austen

Surprisingly entertaining and informative, even for a lifelong Austen fan like me who's read so many biographies on the author. This didn't rehash tired old tidbits about Austen's life, but in fact challenged a lot of our modern preconceptions about Austen (that she was relatively penniless and anonymous during her lifetime, that she led a boring, sheltered life holed up at her writing desk, that she was a prim spinster with a stiff collar that wouldn't have flirted a storm at balls).

The lectures didn't just concentrate on Austen and her life, but also talked about each of her six novels in detail, gave some socioeconomic contexts of that era, and also delved into her legacy and how our image of Austen has been curated and molded by her nieces and nephews, who themselves were the sources of Austen's first biographies.

Definitely recommended for anyone who is an Austen fan or at least curious about the author. Be warned though, that in discussing this lecture series will spoil just about every thing that Austen has ever written, including her lesser-known works like Sanditon and Lady Susan.