Posted on July 25, 2018 at 9:28 AM by Sadye Scott-Hainchek

The future King George IV was a bit of a hipster, in a way — a Ph.D. student has just discovered that he was a Sense and Sensibility fan well before it was cool.

The Guardian reports that Nicholas Foretek, a doctoral student at the University of Pennsylvania, found a bill of sale for Jane Austen’s debut novel in papers at Windsor Castle.

George IV, then the prince regent, made the purchase in October 1811, a few days before the first public advertisement ran, and well before positive reviews helped the novel sell out of its first run (which happened in summer 1813).

Austen, for her part, immensely disliked George IV, though of course had to humor her royal fan in various ways. 

Check out her subtle (and heavy-handed) zings in The Guardian’s story.

 

Categories: Today in Books

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