There are few writers who have as devoted a following as celebrated novelist Jane Austen. But is she really the “first” great English female author?

A rare-book dealer traces the books that Austen admired. Many were by women writers who were the literary stars of their day.

An American rare-book dealer, Rebecca Romney, has managed it, by searching where Austen’s secrets lie hidden in plain sight: ...

Jane Austen’s Bookshelf’ presents women whose writing Austen admired — and how modern author Rebecca Romney found them.

Romney vividly communicates her sometimes surprised enjoyment of the works that shaped Austen, finding them in some ways ...

We all know our share of powerful women. From mothers and grandmothers to teachers and leaders, the women in our lives shape ...

In this nostalgic and fascinating book, Julie Satow, author of The Plaza, writes about the golden age of three now-vanished ...

Looking for a book to read this March? Emma Straub stopped by TODAY to share her recommendations for March 2025.

By chance, Romney, a rare-books collector, comes upon a 1778 novel by a woman who turns out to have been one of Jane Austen’s favorite authors. Suddenly it occurs to Romney that perhaps her beloved ...

Shortly after it begins, Rebecca Romney’s first solo work of nonfiction “becomes something of a mystery novel,” said Charlotte Gordon in The Washington Post. By chance, Romney, a rare-books ...