content: Reading this novel was slow going. As a guy, I found the lack of action stultifying, and the flashes of humor were too quaint for me to derive any pleasure from them. The answer to the book's primary riddle--who shall Emma marry?--becomes obvious early on, and everything else is just a tedious pairing off until that riddle is expressly answered. There's a bit of local and historical color, but rarely does the narrative rise above the description of, say, a summer outing. Not one of Jane Austen's best.