Emma, by Jane Austen, is a novel about youthful hubris and the perils of misconstrued romance. The novel was first published in December 1815. As in her other novels, Austen explores the concerns and difficulties of genteel women living in Georgian-Regency England; she also creates a lively comedy of manners among her characters. Before she began the novel, Austen wrote, "I am going to take a heroine whom no one but myself will much like."[1] In the very first sentence she introduces the title character as "Emma Woodhouse, handsome, clever, and rich." Emma, however, is also rather spoiled, headstrong, and self-satisfied; she greatly overestimates her own matchmaking abilities; she is blind to the dangers of meddling in other people's lives, and her imagination and perceptions often lead her astray. Jane Austen has been unanimously admired for her "miniature paintings of everyday life of the people inhabiting the Regency England" and for her subtle irony, an almost imperceptible satire of all the humbug behind the studied etiquette and manners, and a purely humane delineation of the follies, aspirations, dreams and desires of those who populate her world. These powers, which catapult Miss Austen into another realm of ingenuity, carry her to the lofty heights haunted by literary giants as Tolstoy and the Bronte, and Dickens, and the rest - are displayed in their fullest splendour in her exquisitely penned, and impeccably executed "Emma". While many of her readers find "Pride & Prejudice" the epitome of her impressive magnum opus, critics more frequently cite or quote "Emma" as the one novel that flawlessly describes the world and the morals of the world she lived in. I would highly recommend anyone who has heard of Miss Austen, to give this novel a try, and I promise you, you will be amply rewarded!

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