Free Printable Mini Book: The Beautiful Cassandra

Jane Austen's hilarious "12 Chapter" novella, The Beautiful Cassandra, is presented here as a printable mini book! You will receive 6 pages to download and print in order to assemble this adorable story, illustrated with vintage images. Included are two pages of text, 2 pages of images, one instruction sheet and one printable cover sheet.

This short, playful piece written by Jane Austen when she was a teenager, and it shows her early sense of humor and satire. It is dedicated, somewhat tongue in cheek, to Jane's own sister, Cassandra.

The story follows a young woman who sets out on a brief adventure after her mother gives her a bonnet. Instead of behaving like a proper, polite heroine (as was typical in sentimental literature of the time), she acts impulsively and selfishly. She eats ice cream without paying, rides in a coach without permission, and generally ignores social rules. All in all, Cassandra behaves badly and is perfectly fine. This playful subversion of the moralistic tales popular in the era, highlights Austen’s early critique of overly tidy, didactic storytelling.