Information
Goodreads: Darcy Swipes Right
Series: OMG Classics
Source: Gift
Published: 2016
Summary
Pride and Prejudice, one of the greatest love stories ever told . . . in texts?!
Imagine: What if Lizzy Bennet and Mr. Darcy had smartphones and dated IRL (in real life)? A classic is reborn in this clever adaptation of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice!
A truth universally acknowledged: a rich guy must want a wife.
A terrible first impression.
A couple that’s meant to be . . . if they can just get over themselves. #hatersgonnadate
Don’t miss: Lydia taking selfies with soldiers, Mrs. Bennet’s humble-brag status updates, Lizzy texting from her long walks, and Darcy swiping left on a dance card app.
tl;dr Jane Austen’s most famous novel told through its characters texting with emojis, posting photos, checking in at locations, and updating their relationship statuses. The perfect gift for any teen (or any reader with a sense of humor)!
A glossary and cast of characters are included for those who need it. For example: tl;dr means too long; didn’t read.text
Review
One might wonder what the point of reading Jane Austen’s classic Pride & Prejudice reduced to texting and emojis is, and when I first started reading Darcy Swipes Left I wondered myself. It felt like a novelty book, something someone thought was an amusing idea and would sell but…might not really be worthwhile reading. I changed my mind by the end of the book, however.
To be clear, this is a book I can only imagine reading once, unlike Pride & Prejudice or the other classic books that the author has given the text message treatment to. However, I did enjoy it–and I think that’s largely because Austen’s story is just so compelling that any sort of retelling or adaptation can’t help but be engaging, as well. I know how the story goes (and I think you’d have to in order to even understand Darcy Swipes Left), but I still wanted to keep reading to see how everything played out. It’s just always interesting to see Charlotte choose to marry Mr. Collins, to see Darcy and Elizabeth change their minds about each other, to see Mr. Bennett’s well-timed quips.
Carbone’s decisions while turning the story into text messages and social media channels are hit or miss. At times, they are extremely amusing, which I think is what appeals to many readers. If you aren’t an Austen purist who will be aghast at the idea of turning her beautiful prose into LOL’s and OMG’s, then watching the characters text each other and send emoji reactions and block each other is just funny. However, I do think some of the adaptation seems a bit forced. I don’t think I’ve ever seen anyone text with as many emojis the character use in the book, and I don’t think I’ve seen them used quite that way. I don’t know anyone who writes out a work and then puts the emoji for that word right after it, but I got the impression that the author just really needed to cram in the emojis to make her vision for this book work.
Overall, this is fun. I wouldn’t buy it because, as I said, I don’t see the point of ever rereading it. But if you’re the kind of person who would think this is amusing and not a desecration of Austen’s great art, it’s worth checking out.
Pages Unbound | Book Reviews & Discussions 
I also thought this was a fun spin. I kept my copy cuz I have a massive Austen collection so it’s cute on the shelves. I don’t really see myself rereading it though.
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Yes! It was entertaining, but definitely a one time deal for me. I’ll keep it for now, but if I move again and do a big book unhaul, I have a feeling it will be high on the donate list. 😀
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This is definitely the sort of book I’d read once.
To your point on having to know the story of Pride and Prejudice in order to follow the text— I have been finding that more and more often with P&P retellings lately. Either you find characters making choices to the dumbest reasons that are poorly explained, the story doesn’t fully make sense, or it’s nothing like P&P. It’s hard to find a good retelling of Austen.
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My friend read my copy of this and thought some of the characterizations weren’t quite right, so there’s that. I also think a lot of it isn’t funny if you don’t know the plot, like the memes that Mary chooses to post to her social media.
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Characterizations changing is another pet peeve of mine with retellings. Either change all the characters and call it “inspired by” or stick to it. You can’t make Kitty someone else because in your plot she’s extraneous.
I do like the idea that Mary posts memes — but all memes are about understanding context. Yeah, I can see how that would fall flat.
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