November’s Jane Austen Reading Challenge prompt is to read Jane Austen nonfiction. My nonfiction reading occurs by spells, even though I’ve got an entire bookcase dedicated to nonfiction. This is a season where there is not much nonfiction reading happening, which might be why the book I selected is taking so long to read {I’m not officially finished yet, shh!}. It’s also been a hot minute since I read literary criticism, and Wild for Austen feels more like that than expected. That being said, I have read a decent amount of Jane Austen related nonfiction in my day and have several volumes on my shelves.

Not all of these have been read {yet!}, and the Kindle holds a few more, but even a quick glance shows the range of nonfiction available for the Janeite. I’ve even got a couple devotionals that didn’t make the picture. Just as there is a Jane Austen variation for everyone, there is likely a nonfiction approach for most readers.

Between the unread books in my collection, and a handful of titles I’ve tagged at the Library, it feels as if I may need to extend A Very Jane Year … but then, every year is a good year for Jane Austen. This might be getting ahead of myself somewhat, but maybe a reading focus and/or goal for 2026 should be to liberally sprinkle more nonfiction into the mix. Things to think about for sure.

Do you read nonfiction?
Have you read any Jane Austen related nonfiction? If so, what’s your favorite?