Does Anyone Know?

I know Jane Austen had achieved popularity in her native England in the last years of her life (though not in the sense that we're familiar with today - she was basically unrecognized as a person), but how long did it take for Americans to catch on? Does anyone know when her books were first available in the US? Just curious.

I was under the impression that no one really knew her name until after her death. The early novels were said to be written by "A Lady" and later would say they were written by "The author of..."

I may be wrong, but not only did people not recognize her, but few knew her name. Some of her acquaintance might not even have known that the books were by her, at least the early books.

I meant that people knew of her books, not her. She was rather private about her writing anyway, as in those days writing was not considered a worthwhile pursuit for a lady.

Wikipedia cites Janet Todd's Jane Austen In Context for the proposition that "athough Austen's novels had been published in the United States since 1832, it was not until after 1870 that there was a distinctive American response to Austen". They also say that, "it was not until the 1930s that Austen became solidly entrenched within academia".

Not vouching, of course, for Wikipedia's accuracy.

The earliest US editions in the Library of Congress seem to be from the early 1830s. Not that that proves anything...

She must have had some degree of renown in her day because the Prince Regent (does that need caps?) requested that her next book be dedicated to him (Sorry, can't remember which book it was). If she was known by the country's ruler, she couldn't have been completely anonymous.

#6- I think it was Emma. I recall Jane Austen wasn't as enthusiastic about this dedication as we'd think she'd be.

Actually, it might have been Persuasion, but I'm not sure. I'll try to remember to double-check when I get home.

I am 98% positive it was Emma. Even though she was anonymous, I think the princes people could have found her.

It is correct that she dedicated Emma to the Prince Regent, even though, right before she began writing Emma, she wrote the following about him in a letter to her close friend, Martha Lloyd:

"“I suppose all the World is sitting in Judgement upon the Princess of Wales's Letter. Poor woman, I shall support her as long as I can, because she is a Woman, & because I hate her Husband -- but I can hardly forgive her for calling herself ``attached & affectionate'' to a Man whom she must detest -- & the intimacy said to subsist between her & Lady Oxford is bad -- I do not know what to do about it; but if I must give up the Princess, I am resolved at least always to think that she would have been respectable, if the Prince had behaved only tolerably by her at first. --"

Also, if you read the following article, you will get an even deeper perspective on why Austen might have taken some special wicked delight in being asked to dedicate Emma to the Prince Regent:

http://www.jasna.org/persuasions/on-line/vol27no1/sheehan.htm