Review by Emma Carton, Age 10

The Beautifull Cassandra was written by the precocious young Jane Austen, and we thought it might be fun to have this edition reviewed by another precocious young lady of our acquaintance, Miss Emma Carton (and yes, she is named for you-know-who). Miss Carton kindly agreed and provided the following review of this edition of the story, illustrated and with an afterword for young readers, by Juliet McMaster.

The Beautifull Cassandra is a wonderful tale about a young mouse that falls in love with a bonnet, places it on her head, and then ventures from her home to seek her fortune. The young mouse leaves her home confident, but becomes discouraged when she does not attain her fortune. At the end she comes home without her bonnet or fortune, and states that it was a day well spent.

I loved this book because it was written by a kid for kids. I loved the illustrations, although I think it might have distracted from the main purpose of the story by turning the characters into animals. I thought the book wasn’t supposed to be funny but learned otherwise when my friends wouldn’t stop laughing until I pleaded with them to stop.

Jane Austen is a wonderful writer and I can’t wait to read more of her books. I would greatly encourage young readers of my age to read this delightful book.