Eligible

February 15, 2016

In this charming modern adaptation of Pride and Prejudice, Sittenfeld (Prep; American Wife) deftly brings Austen's classic into the 21st century. Set in 2013 Cincinnati, it features sisters Liz (a magazine editor) and Jane (a yoga instructor), who return from New York to tend to their recently hospitalized father. There they meet Dr. Chip Bingley, lately of the reality show Eligible, and Dr. Fitzwilliam Darcy. The women deal with a host of problems, such as a pair of younger sisters too obsessed with CrossFit to get actual jobs, and a mother with a shopping/hoarding problem who's desperate to see them married off before Jane hits 40. Interwoven into the Bennet family's issues is a fairly faithful adherence to the original plot. Sittenfeld's style is endlessly amusing and, at times, gut-wrenchingly painful. Her take on Austen's iconic characters is skillful, her pacing excellent, and her dialog highly entertaining. Liz, though not quite as sparkling and bright as the original, is still endearing, and Darcy is his usual slightly aloof, stand-up self. VERDICT Austen fans will adore this new offering, a wonderful addition to the genre.--Kristen Droesch, formerly with Library Journal

Copyright 2016 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from February 1, 2016
Sittenfeld (Sisterland, 2013) transplants the beloved characters of Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice from nineteenth-century Regency England to contemporary Cincinnati, Ohio, in this fun, frothy modernization. The Bennet family has similarly fallen on hard times here, thanks to exorbitant medical bills, reckless spending, and the perpetual underemployment of four of the five Bennet daughters. Liz Bennet, the only one holding down a regular job, as a magazine writer, and her older sister, Jane, rush home from New York after their father has heart surgery. Jane is approaching 40 and has decided to have a child on her own, while Liz is pining for Jasper Wick, the feckless married man with whom she's been having an affair. But the two are soon embroiled in new romances. Jane falls for Chip Bingley, a dashing ER doctor who once searched for a wife on a reality show, while Liz fends off the affections of her step-cousin and finds a novel way to channel her feelings of loathing for the elitist but devastatingly handsome Fitzwilliam Darcy. Sittenfeld has updated some of the characters and story lines to better fit a contemporary setting, but her charming retelling is a delightful romp for not only Austen devotees but lovers of romantic comedies and sly satire, as well. HIGH-DEMAND BACKSTORY: Best-selling Sittenfeld plus Jane Austen? What more could mainstream fiction readers ask for? Eligible will be supported by a sweeping, many-faceted media campaign and an author tour.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2016, American Library Association.)