Adult Book Discussion: Jane Austen's 'Sense and Sensibility'

The Adult Book Discussion group meets at the Lawrence Branch of the Indianapolis Public Library on Tuesday, December 15, from 10:30 AM to 11:30 AM. This month, they're talking through Jane Austen's Sense & Sensibility, and the timing is a little nod to the author herself: the meeting falls one day before Austen's December 16 birthday.

If you're not familiar with the branch, it's at 7898 Hague Road in Indianapolis. The Lawrence Branch has a bit of a story behind it. It first opened in 1967 on North Franklin Road in a storefront that used to be the Lawrence Post Office, which made it the first branch to open within an incorporated town in Marion County. A larger, permanent 13,500-square-foot facility followed in 1983, and that building was renovated in 2020. The Adult Book Discussion is a monthly program for adults at the branch, so if you're looking for a regular spot to talk books, this is one of them.

Sense & Sensibility is a good one to start with if you've never read Austen. It's her first published novel, and it centers on the Dashwood sisters—Elinor, the sensible one, and Marianne, the romantic—as they navigate family, money, and love in the English countryside. The title does most of the heavy lifting, setting up the tension between the two sisters' very different ways of handling life. It's a story about learning when to lean on your head and when to listen to your heart, and it's the kind of book that usually gives a group plenty to disagree about.

It's a free program, and it runs from 10:30 AM to 11:30 AM on Tuesday, December 15, at the Lawrence Branch.