Margaret Dashwood

Quiet, observant Margaret Dashwood becomes the steady center of a household unsettled by loss, money troubles, and the strange comedy of country society. After her father's death, the Dashwoods leave Norland for Barton Cottage, where Margaret begins to learn the rules of manners, reputation, and the hidden meanings behind every glance and conversation. As Elinor's attachment to Edward Ferrars deepens and the new Norland family settles in, Margaret watches love, status, and family feeling collide in ways both painful and amusing. At Barton, the warm but intrusive world of Sir John Middleton, Mrs. Jennings, and their neighbors turns courtship into social sport, while John Dashwood's self-important maneuvering helps place the agreeable Mr. Atherton in the parish. His arrival brings fresh complications, as do his vanity, his meddling advice, and his habit of talking about travel, theatre, and literature with more confidence than knowledge. Amid picnics, gossip, and plans for an amateur performance of Milton's Comus, Margaret's calm wit and practical intelligence help keep the fragile social web from unraveling. This edition has been fully restored with modern typesetting, custom cover design.