Kathy Wilson: Keep Calm and Read Jane Austen

Historian Kathy Wilson will present her program "Keep Calm and Read Jane Austen" on Saturday, December 2 at 2:00pm at the Marshalltown Public Library. The program will take place in the library's Community Meeting Rooms. 

Her contemporaries paid scant attention to her; Victorians found her passionless and parochial. Yet in the 21st Century, an age where seemingly “anything goes,” the reserve and restraint, modesty and manners of Austen’s characters continue to appeal to many readers. This program looks at her world in an attempt to learn more about Jane Austen and understand not only what influenced her writing, but also why we still love her books 200 years later.

A professional historian and educator, Kathy Wilson believes learning about the past can be fun as well as interesting. To prove that point, she draws on more than 20 years of experience to create programs that engage as well as entertain her audiences. Ms. Wilson received her BA in History from Bemidji State University in Minnesota, before traveling to England where she completed her Masters  at the University of York. She is a former PhD candidate at the University of Iowa and specializes in 18th and 19th century British-American cultural history.

This event is sponsored by the Marshalltown Public Library and free to the community. For more information, please contact the library’s Information Desk at 641-754-5738 ext. 4.