THE JANE AUSTEN REMEDY

When Ruth Wilson turned seventy, she began to have recurring dreams about losing her voice. She had led an arguably privileged life, with a husband, four children and an accomplished career - and yet she could no longer deny the unhappiness that plagued her waking moments as well as her dreams.

Reading had always been Ruth's greatest love, and from the moment she first encountered Pride & Prejudice in the 1940s, Jane Austen's heroines became her role models for the sort of woman she wanted to be. But she no longer saw herself within the pages of her favourite books. So she left her life in the city and moved to a small, sunshine-yellow cottage in the Southern Highlands, and from this 'house of one's own' she resolved to re-read each of Austen's six novels. And slowly but surely, as she reconsidered her life through the lens of Austen's characters and themes, Ruth reclaimed her voice and her happiness. The Jane Austen Remedy is a beautiful, life-affirming memoir of love, acceptance and the curative power of reading. Published the year Ruth turns ninety, it is an inspirational account of the lessons learned from Jane Austen over nine decades, as well as a timely reminder that it's never too late to chart a new path in life. Ruth Wilson is 89 years old and has recently graduated from The University of Sydney with a PhD in reading and teaching Jane Austen. Ruth completed a Bachelor of Arts (English and Education) in 1949. She was a founding member of the theatre society University of Sydney Players, and she met her husband of 67 years, David, in the quadrangle. In 1979, Ruth received a Master of Arts (Hons) from the University of Tel Aviv. In 1981 she returned to the University of Sydney to complete a Diploma of Education. Ruth read her first Jane Austen novel in 1947 and is a longstanding member of The Jane Austen Society.