Today would have been Jane Austen’s 240th birthday. More than two hundred years since her novels first reached readers, her stories have remained powerful and popular. Full of timeless wisdom, Austen’s classics have made her one of the most celebrated authors of English literature. But what are some of the books that would inspire Austen…
Fierce Convictions and Amazing Grace
In 1780, during the height of her high-society years in London, [Hannah] More read a book that changed her life. Cardiphonia, sometimes translated by publishers as The Utterance of the Heart or Voice of the Heart, was a collection of letters penned by John Newton, author of the hymn “Amazing Grace.” As was common, Newton’s…