Dearest Jane:
I just wanted to send my best wishes on your 236th birthday! Now, I know that after the first 200 years of life birthdays no longer seem so important, but as one of your best friends I wanted to send you a little token of my love and friendship. I first heard this played by Miss Mary Bennet at the Netherfield ball (I believe I told you about THAT fiasco!), but, in spite of Miss Bennet’s lack of talent, I thought the song itself had potential. I bought it for myself and so enjoyed it that I wanted to share the work with you. It is by Handel…I know, I know, a little old fashioned and stuffy, but you must admit that he CAN compose! And it was SO funny to see his face when he found out that his former patron, the Elector of Hanover, was to become the King of England when GF had been lurking about London for years and delaying his return to Hanover. What a hoot! Well, my dearest friend, I hope you enjoy the music…and keep Mary Bennet away from the pianoforte! 🙂
Love,
C. Allyn Pierson
To find out what else Jane got for her birthday, just visit the surprise party put on by Maria Grazia at My Jane Austen Bookclub, and and Katherine Cox at November’s Autumn and maybe you will win a present too! I am giving away a copy of Mr. Darcy’s Little Sister and the giveaway is open worldwide!
Jane’s other friends who are at the party:
- Sharon Lathan Blog: Sharon Lathan Giveaway : Miss Darcy Falls in Love
- Emily Snyder Blog: O! Beauty Unattempted Giveaway: Letters of Love & Deception
- Laurel Ann Nattress Blog: Austenprose Giveaway: signed copy of Jane Austen Made Me Do It
- Cindy Jones Blog: First Draft Giveaway: a signed copy of “My Jane Austen Summer” and a package of Lily Berry’s Pink Rose Tea by Bingley’s, Ltd.
- Farida Mestek Blog: Regency stories set against the backdrop of Regency England Giveaway: I was Jane Austen Best Friend by Cora Harrison
- Marilyn Brant Blog: Brant Flakes Giveaway : A canvas ACCORDING TO JANE tote bag and a pair of A SUMMER IN EUROPE luggage tags.
- Prue Batten Blog: Mesmered’s Blog Giveaway : Anna Elliot’s “Georgiana Darcy” (Kindle book)
- Erin Blakemore Blog: The Heroine’s Bookshelf Giveaway : a set of Potter-Style Pride and Prejudice notecards
- Blog: vvb32 read Giveaway: Jane Austen’s Little Instruction Book (Charming Petites) By Jane Austen, Edited by Sophia Bedford-Pierce, Illustrated by Mullen & Katz, Introduction by Barbara Paulding
- Karen Doornebos Blog: The Fiction vs. Reality Smackdown Giveaway: 2 Jane Austen Candles and 2 signed DNMD books plus drink coasters and tea!
- Regina Jeffers ReginaJeffers’s Blog Giveaway: An autographed copy of “Christmas at Pemberley “
- Alyssa Goodnight Blog: Alyssa Goodnight Giveaway: Jane Austen Action figure
- Deb Blog: Jane Austen in Vermont Giveaway: JASNA 2012 calendars from the Wisconsin JASNA Region
- Laura Hile, Susan Kaye, Pamela Aidan, and Barbara Cornthwaite
Blog: Jane Started It! Giveaway: One copy of Young Master Darcy: A Lesson in Honour by Pamela Aidan, One set of Frederick Wentworth, Captain (Books 1 and 2) by Susan Kaye, Two copies of Mercy’s Embrace: So Rough a Course (Book 1) by Laura Hile, George Kinghtley, Gentleman (Books 1 and 2) by Barbara Cornthwaite. - Juliet Archer Blog: Choc Lit Authors’ Corner Giveaway: a copy of “Persuade Me” and one of “The Importance of Being Emma”
- 18. Jane Greensmith Blog: Reading, Writing, Working , Playing Giveaway: a copy of “Intimations of Austen”, and Sense & Sensibility (Marvel Illustrated)
- Jenny Allworthy Blog : The Jane Austen Film Club Giveaway: a copy of Northanger Abbey DVD starring Felicity Jones and JJ Feild (The winner will choose region 1 or 2 DVD)
- Sitio Jane Austen Blog: El Salón de Té de Jane Giveaway: – Spanish edition of Sense and Sensibility for the 200th Anniversary + A DVD package with adaptations of Jane Austen
(It’s only zone 2, but it’s in Spanish and English ) + blu-ray of the BBC’s Emma with Romola Garai - Kaitlin Saunders Blog : Kaitlin Saunders Giveaway: “A Modern Day Persuasion”
- Becky Rhodehouse Blog: One Literature Nut Giveaway: selection of Austenesque Reads
- Patrice Sarath Blog: Patrice Sarath Giveaway: A copy of The Unexpected Miss Bennet
- Adriana Zardini Site: Jane Austen Brasil Giveaway: DVD – Sense and Sensibility (1995) – English / Portuguese subtitles
- Jane Odiwe Blog: Jane Austen Sequels Giveaway: a mug with one of Jane Odiwe’s illustrations and a copy of her “Mr Darcy’s Secret”
- Courtney Webb Stiletto Storytime Giveaway: Noble Satyr by Lucinda Brant (Regency Romance)
- Jennifer Becton Blog: Jennifer W. Becton Giveaway: An ebook of the Personages of Pride and Prejudice Collection, which contains all of my Austenesque works: Charlotte Collins, “Maria Lucas,” and Caroline Bingley. The giveaway will be open internationally.
- Vera Nazarian Blog: Urban Girl Takes Vermont Giveaway: a copy of Vera Nazarian’s gift hardcover edition of her inspirational calendar and diary, The Perpetual Calendar of Inspiration
- Abigail Reynolds Blog: Pemberley Variations Giveaway: a signed copy of “Mr. Darcy’s Undoing”
- Blog: AustenAuthors Giveaway: Georgette Heyer’s Regency World by Jennifer Kloester
- Katherine Cox November’s Autumn Giveaway :$10 B&N Gift-card (US only)
- Maria Grazia My Jane Austen Book Club Giveaway : A selection of Austenesque reads
Semi-true Stories 
That’s an excellent gift- music! Ha! Keep Mary away from the pianoforte. Too funny!
Thank you for the giveaway opportunity.
sophiarose1816@gmail.com
Thank you for the post and the links! also for making it open to all. Much appreciated.
Oh, I wish I had been more diligent in practicing piano, so now I could have really enjoyed your wonderful music gift to Jane Austen. But, alas, I’m even worse than Mary 😛 Still I thank you for sharing music sheets (maybe I will selfishly insist on my friend’s playing it for me) and for your kind giveaway!
how exciting that we are all celebrating Jane’s birthday worldwide!!!!
thank you for this lovely giveaway!!!!
cyn209 at juno dot com
I’m glad you liked Jane’s present! The drawing for the giveaway is open until December 23! Pardon me while I go practice the piano.
Happy Birthday dear Jane!! I’m so glad I got to know you all these years and that I’m not alone. Thank you Bloggers for feeding my obsession and for the gifts.
Happy Jane’s Birthday! I would love to win your giveaway. Thanks for offering it!
Happy B’day Jane Austen!
Delightful letter and music! Happy Birthday, Jane!
Happy Birthday, Jane Austen!! I would love to win your giveaway.
Lia Freitas
Happy Birthday to our dear Jane! it’s so nice to meet some other great Austen fans. 🙂
Strange, but I haven’t seen Miss Mary Bennet for a while now. Not since the Lucas girls were with her and heading toward the library. I thought that was an odd place to visit but now that I think of it there is that enormous armoire in there and I do believe it locks. Those mischievous girls! I better go check to be sure, although perhaps I will wait until the celebration is nearly over. Just to be on the safe side…..
And what about the eerie wailing coming from that armoire…it sounds a bit like “Slumber dear maid…”
What wonderful fun were all having.I join you in honoring Jane.Please enter me in your giveaway.Denise @knuckled54@yahoo.com Thank you.
This is such a great way to celebrate Jane Austen’s birthday. I had no idea there were so many Ausenesque works out there. I will have to get busy reading! Thanks.
Music is a wonderful Austen-birthday gift. I wouldn’t have thought of it, but it’s so fitting!
I’d love to be entered in the giveaway: irisonbooks [at] gmail [dot] com
What a wonderful gift! This is the best blog hop ever!!
Happy birthday, Jane!
No need to enter my name. I already own your wonderful book!
Ah! Music! What a lovely gift. Of course, as long as Mary Bennet is not around 😀
Thanks Becky C! Glad you are enjoying the blog hop. This music is so easy that even Mary could play it…but without much taste or expression.
[…] Blog: SemiTrue Stories […]
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Happy Birthday, Jane! What a great gift, Carrie! And yes, please keep Mary Bennet away from the pianoforte!
Lovely music, wonder who has a piano forte we can borrow
We are lucky, even though you are an accomplished physician you took a detour to give us more Jane. The book looks like something I would love and I hope to win.
Thank you for the dance.
What a lovely gift for our dear Jane!!:)
What a great gift!! Thanks!
The gift of music is so special. Thank you, Carey, for thinking of it.
The gift of music to be enjoyed by all- Jane would be proud of such a gift!
I know off a barefoot runner here in Winnipeg, Manitoba that wears a kilt to every race event he enters! I’m sure it would come in handy on trail runs when you need to visit the outdoor faiiiltces!
I have tons of weird food things. Not liking plain blueberries but loving them mixed into things make total sense to me. I hope he’s enjoying school and that you have some more time to yourself.The bread look fantastic! I love blueberries in everything so I’m sure I’d love it.
What a wonderful gift you gave Jane. And please enter me in your book giveaway! Thanks in advance!
[…] SemiTrue Stories […]
Maybe instead of keeping Mary Bennett away from the pianoforte, the thing to do is get her a good music master so she can learn to play properly.
Poor Mary, I often thought it would have been appropriate for her to have married the dull Reverend Collins. As my brother used to say, “At least they would not have ruined two couples!” But then again, Lizzie would not have been so willing to go to Rosings to visit Mary as she would have been to visit her friend Charlotte. And then, there would have been no first proposal from the arrogant Mr. Darcy. I wonder if Jane debated that option when she was writing P & P?
Thank you for participating in Jane’s birthday soiree! What a great way to let the world celebrate the birth of our favorite author.
Regards,
Kat
Happy Birthday, Jane! That is a lovely piece of music. 🙂
Happy birthday, Jane!
ladyofnarnia(at)yahoo(dot)com
Lovely music!! 🙂
Happy birthday , Jane AUsten!
Thanks for the sheet music – hopefully I’ll do this better justice than our dear Mary! Happy Birthday Jane!
Love this piece of Handel’s, Carey. In fact, my long-suffering music appreciation students have this on their most recent study CD. The exam has a classical “name that tune” section, which they’ll face Jan 6.
My skill on the piano approximates poor Mary’s. Lack of confidence coupled with lack of coordination results in disaster! I’d rather have a root canal than play anything in public! (Or in private!) Singing in a choir is safer, and would be a better choice for Mary. As with an army, there is strength in numbers! 🙂
Love Handel’s music and Vivaldi’s and Mozart’s. They convey such joy!
I can’t play any instrument. Not an accomplished lady, I know. 🙂
Thanks for joining the fun, Carey, and for contributing to make it even greater with your brilliant gift for Jane.
Happy Birthday Miss Austen!
felicialso @gmail. com
Music to write by. How beautiful.
marypres(AT)gmail(DOT)com
I’m not quite sure how to say this; you made it exelemtry easy for me!
What a nice gift!
Happy Happy Birthday Dear Jane! Please enter me in your giveaway as well. Thanks!
Courtney
Ummm the gift of music!!! My e-mail address is tiernarebeldia@gmail.com
Aww! I think it’s a sweet gesture to send Jane a song for her birthday and I agree, Mary should be kept away from the pianoforte. I’m crazily in love with all thing Jane Austen. Thank you for this great giveaway:)
Sarah
sarah.setar@gmail.com
Happy birthday, Jane! Thanks for the giveaway.
marlenebreakfield(at)yahoo(dot)com
i never played piaono but i would have loved hearing being put on music the notes of ur gift 🙂
that’s remind of elizabeth playing piano in the 2005 movie 🙂
jandia4junpyo@yahoo.fr