Column: A servant's view of Austenland

I adore Jane Austen.

I’ve read all her books, and I’ve watched the movie adaptation of “Pride and Prejudice” an embarrassing number of times.

I’ve even enjoyed some of the more off-beat adaptations of her works such as Seth Grahame-Smith’s “Pride and Prejudice and Zombies,” or the admittedly poorly acted “Sense and Sensibility” movie adaptation “From Prada to Nada.”

So, when Jo Baker’s “Longbourn” was released last week, I was excited to reenter Austenland and revisit some of my favorite Austen characters.

But, when I started Baker’s novel, I found the world of “Longbourn” was completely different than the world I expected.

“Longbourn” is an adaptation of one of Austen’s most famous novels, “Pride and Prejudice,” but this time the story is told from the point of view of the Bennets’ servants.

Housemaid Sarah spends her days peeling apples, washing petticoats and emptying chamber pots, not dancing with Mr. Darcy at Netherfield Park.

She and the other servants — second housemaid Polly, housekeeper Mrs. Hill and manservant/chauffeur Mr. Hill — watch the Bennets’ “upstairs” joys and dramas with a mix of vague amusement and distant exasperation.

They have their owns concerns “downstairs.”

When Mr. Bennet hires the mysterious footman, James Smith, Sarah experiences a drama all her own in this distinct historical novel.

Readers who expected Austen’s traditional romantic, flowery language may be shocked by the blunt realism of “Longbourn.” 

Baker’s novel is a lot darker than the original “Pride and Prejudice” — a change that correlates with the change in the narrator’s perspective.

A maidservant’s life would be harsher and grittier than the lives of ladies like Jane and Elizabeth Bennet.

Despite the novel’s more realistic portrayal of life in 19th century England, I still enjoyed “Longbourn.”

Sarah is an endearing heroine — a practical cynic who, as much as she tries, cannot quite crush the longing for something different and exciting in her mundane life.

Her love interest, James, is the classic Byronic hero — brooding, cryptic and secretly wounded.

Their relationship is sweet and relatable, and though it’s not nearly as glamorous and dramatic as Elizabeth and Darcy’s, it will keep readers rooting for them until the last page.

­— jenfagan@indiana.edu

Follow columnist Jenna Fagan on Twitter @jenna_faganIDS.