Chambers at Large in Edgeworthstown, County Longford, Ireland

Recently the novelist Amelia Chambers visited the Maria Edgeworth Center and gives an wonderful account of the time she spent at the Center and in our town – below is the opening paragraph of her blog post, an image she took and a link to the rest of the article which we heartily recommend reading.

The name Jane Austen would be familiar to many, bringing to mind perhaps rural landscapes, stately homes and an assortment of characters attending tea parties and balls. It was therefore somewhat surprising to discover that the Anglo-Irish author, Maria Edgeworth, who lived for much of her life in the small town named after her, was far more popular, and sold far more books in her lifetime, than Austen. In fact, between 1800 and 1814 she was the most highly paid author writing in English. So why has she almost disappeared, whereas Austen’s work is the subject of TV programmes and film remake after remake?

To read more visit her blog here