I just blogged about these but it occurs to me that they'd be good background for the Pride and Prejudice read since they're both produced to celebrate the book's 200th birthday. The second one is in 5 parts because it's one of those youtube uploading things. (Which is another reason you should probably watch these quickly in case they get taken down.)

Spoiler warning: the first one definitely has spoilers for the book, the second not as much.

Pride and Prejudice: Having a Ball
YouTube link (90 min long, May 2013)

The Many Lovers of Jane Austen (each around 15min or so long, 2011)
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4
Part 5

(Other links about the content of these at my blog here - I am too lazy to recode them all, sorry!)

And here's the book question:
Austen biographies mentioned in some of the links I read on George Austen were:

Jane Austen: A Life by Claire Tomalin
Jane Austen: A Life by David Nokes
Jane Austen: The Parson's Daughter by Irene Collins

Anyone have any pro/con feelings over any of these? Or an Austen biography or related history book you want to recommend? I figure since I'm adding to my To Read list I should go ahead and add as many as possible.

Clarie Tomalin's biography is the best one I've read, though Nokes' is (I think) the newest one. However, she covered so much territory and provides wonderful historical context and brings in the rich life of Austen's immediate ancestors. It's a great read. However, it's a 400 or so page book, and if you want a shorter, but very insightful biography on Austen, look to Carol Shield's short Penguin Lives biography of Austen. Shields is an award-winning novelist from Canada (who died not long ago, sadly) and who is uniquely qualified to understand Austen, as they wrote about many of the same themes and both were equally talented (not a hyberbole--Shields really is an amazing writer). I might start with Shields and if that leaves you hungry for more, move to Tomalin.

There's also a great book from Oxford World Classics that collects memoirs by her nephew and nieces, fascinating first-hand accounts which are humorous in their attempts to white-wash her memory and make her more Victorian than late eighteenth century as she truly was. It's a short read and you can skim through it--some of the memoirs are more interesting than others. Here's the Amazon link: http://www.amazon.com/Memoir-Jane-Austen-Recollections-Classics/dp/0199540772/ref=sr_1_6?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1384837425&sr=1-6&keywords=austen+oxford+worlds+classics

I agree with joshuagrasso regarding Carol Shields' bio of Jane Austen. It's my favorite bio of Jane Austen. I liked Claire Tomalin's bio, but didn't love it. Paula Byrne's "The Real Jane Austen: A Life in Small Things" is interesting. I think she oversells her points(which I agreed with, for most part)...ie Jane Austen was never "sweet Aunt Jane".(disclaimer: I've chatted with Paula Byrne on twitter) I haven't read Nokes and Collins.

I'm going to add all of these to my list - because I really can't have too many books on Austen! Plus it's always interesting to compare different biography writers' take on the same subject. She definitely doesn't seem like she'd be "sweet Aunt Jane" to me either, but then it's always kinda tricky to figure out exactly what the person was like after they're gone. Especially since she didn't write any autobiography herself.

I managed to root up a copy of the relatives' memoirs - or one of them at least, at Open Library, where you can download it or read it online:

A memoir of Jane Austen by James Edward Austen-Leigh

There's lots of other Austen at Open Library available for checkout (the site lists lots of books, but only a certain percent available as ebooks). And a few "visit to the home of famous authors" books that include Austen's house - it's amazing how early that sort of tourism came into being.

(I've put together a list of the Austen books I found at Open Library that are either downloadable or you can check out: Austen Related)

I love Carol Shields. She is a wonderful writer. I'm adding it to my list to read after I read A Bitch in a Bonnet. I haven't started my re-read of PnP yet but I'm giving thanks early for this group and the opportunity to connect with all you Janeites.

Thanks for all this! I've been looking for a good Jane Austen Biography and I've added three to my list! Here's hoping the library has them.