The traditional favorite Jane Austen novel—her enduring story of pride and prejudice When Elizabeth Bennet meets Mr. Darcy she is repelled by his overbearing pride, and prejudice towards her family. But the Bennet girls are in need of financial security in the shape of husbands, so when Darcy's friend, the affable Mr. Bingley, forms an attachment to Jane, Darcy becomes increasingly hard to avoid. Polite society will be turned upside down in this witty drama of friendship, rivalry, and love—Jane Austen's classic romance novel.  • "Like Irvine Welsh, I am a great admirer of Jane Austen." --Alexander McCall Smith  • "Another question I've been regularly asked over the past year is what models I had in mind when writing Curious Incident . Was it To Kill a Mockingbird ? Was it Catcher in the Rye ? In fact, the book most often in my mind was Pride and Prejudice ." --Mark Haddon Jane Austen  (1775-1817) is the author of  Emma , Mansfield Park , Northanger Abbey , Persuasion ,  Pride and Prejudice , and  Sense and Sensibility .