Mansfield Park

Mansfield Park, by Jane Austen, reads almost like a fairytale. Three middle-class sisters take very different paths in life. One sister marries a baronet and becomes Lady Bertram. Mrs. Norris marries a clergyman and Mrs. Price marries a poor, working man. A generation later, the family is in such financial straits that Lady Bertram offers to bring up and educate the eldest Price daughter, Fanny, alongside her own four children. The child is transported from her parents and siblings to the vast and bewildering Mansfield Park. In spite of her luxurious surroundings, she is lonely and unhappy, bullied by Aunt Norris and ignored by her cousins—with one exception. However, Fanny is intelligent and strong-willed. She takes advantage of her opportunity and grows to maturity.<br/><br/>When Fanny is 18, the Bertram family is dazzled by the arrival of brother and sister, Henry and Mary Crawford, to the neighbourhood. Humble and clear-sighted, Fanny sees through their worldly glitter. She refuses to be drawn into amateur theatricals and eventually, refuses an offer of marriage from Henry. It takes a tragic event for the Bertram family to see through the shallow Crawfords. By the end of the tale, Fanny has won the hearts of all of her cousins, and won the love of favorite cousin Edmund. Follow http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/45032.Mansfield_Park to read the full tale of Fanny Price.