9 Northanger Abbey - Read By Stephanie Poppins

Northanger Abbey is the coming-of-age story of a young woman named Catherine Morland.

Northanger Abbey" by Jane Austen follows Catherine Morland, a young woman with a passion for Gothic novels, as she navigates the social world of Bath and later Northanger Abbey. Her romantic imagination, fueled by her love for these novels, leads her to misinterpret the people and events around her, particularly at the Tilney family's estate.

In this episode, Catherine has an unexpected date

Transcript

Welcome to Sleep Stories with Steph,

Your go-to podcast that offers you a calm and relaxing transition into a great night's sleep.

It is time to relax and fully let go.

There is nothing you need to be doing now,

And nowhere you need to go.

Close your eyes and feel yourself sink into the support beneath you and let all the worries of the day drift away.

This is your time and your space.

Take a deep breath in through your nose and let it out with a long sigh.

There is nothing you need to be doing now,

And nowhere you need to go.

Happy listening.

Chapter Nine The progress of Catherine's unhappiness from the events of the evening was as follows.

It appeared first in a general dissatisfaction with everybody about her while she remained in the rooms,

Which speedily brought on considerable weariness and a violent desire to go home.

Thus,

On arriving in Poultney Street,

Took the direction of extraordinary hunger,

And when that was appeased,

Changed into an earnest longing to be in bed.

Such was the extreme point of her distress,

For when there,

She immediately fell into a sound sleep,

Which lasted nine hours,

And from which she awoke,

Perfectly revived in excellent spirits with fresh hopes and fresh schemes.

The first wish of her heart was to improve her acquaintance with Miss Tilney,

And almost her first resolution was to seek her for that purpose in the pump-room at noon.

In the pump-room,

One so newly arrived in Bath must be met with,

And that building she had already found so favourable for the discovery of female excellence and the completion of female intimacy,

So admirably adapted for secret discourses and unlimited confidence,

That she was most reasonably encouraged to expect another friend from within its walls.

Her plan for the morning thus settled.

She sat quietly down to her book after breakfast,

Resolving to remain in the same place and the same employment till the clock struck one,

And from habitude very little incommoded by the remarks and ejaculations of Mrs.

Allan,

Whose vacancy of mind and incapacity for thinking was such that as she never talked a great deal,

So she could never be entirely silent.

And therefore,

While she sat at her work,

If she lost her needle or broke her thread,

If she heard a carriage in the street,

Or saw a speck upon her gown,

She must observe it aloud,

Whether there were any one at leisure to answer her or not.

At about half-past twelve,

A remarkably loud rap drew her in haste to the window,

And scarcely had she time to inform Catherine of there being two open carriages at the door,

In the first only a servant,

Her brother driving Miss Thorpe in the second,

Before John Thorpe came running upstairs,

Calling out,

Well,

Miss Morland,

Here I am.

Have you been waiting long?

We could not come before.

The old devil of a coachmaker was such an eternity finding out a thing fit to be got into.

Now it is ten thousand to one,

But they break down before we are out of the street.

How do you do,

Mrs.

Allan?

A famous ball last night,

Was not it?

Come,

Miss Morland,

Be quick,

For the others are in confounded hurry to be off.

They want to get their tumble over.

What do you mean?

Said Catherine.

Where were you all going to?

Going to?

Why,

Have you not forgot our engagement?

Did we not agree together to take a drive this morning?

What a head you have,

Catherine!

We are going up Claverton Dow.

Something was said about it,

I remember,

Said Catherine,

Looking at Mrs.

Allan for her opinion.

But really I did not expect you.

Not expect me?

That's a good one.

And what a dust you would have made if I had not come.

Catherine's silent appeal to her friend,

Meanwhile,

Was entirely thrown away.

For Mrs.

Allan,

Not being at all in the habit of conveying any expression herself by her look,

Was not aware of it being ever intended by anybody else.

And Catherine,

Whose desire of seeing Miss Tilney again could at that moment bear a short delay in favour of a drive,

And who thought there could be no impropriety in her going with Mr.

Thorpe,

As Isabella was going at the same time with James,

Was therefore obliged to speak plainer.

Well,

Mum,

What do you say to it?

Can you spare me for an hour or two?

Shall I go?

Do as you please,

My dear,

Replied Mrs.

Allan with a most placid indifference.

Catherine took the advice and ran off to get ready.

In a very few minutes she reappeared,

Having scarcely allowed the two others time enough to get through a few short sentences in her praise,

After Thorpe had procured Mrs.

Allan's admiration of his gig.

And then,

Receiving her friend's parting good wishes,

They both hurried downstairs.

My dearest creature,

Cried Isabella,

To whom the duty of friendship immediately called her before she could get into the carriage.

You have been at least three hours getting ready.

I was afraid you were ill.

What a delightful ball we had last night.

I have a thousand things to say to you,

But make haste and get in,

For I long to be off.

Catherine followed her orders and turned away,

But not too soon to hear her friend exclaim aloud to James.

What a sweet girl she is.

I quite dote on her.

You will not be frightened,

Miss Morland,

Said Thorpe as he handed her in,

If my horse should dance about a little at first setting off.

He will most likely give a plunge or two and perhaps take the rest for a minute,

But he will soon know his master.

He's full of spirits,

Playful as can be,

But there's no vice in him.

Catherine did not think the portrait a very inviting one,

But it was too late to retreat and she was too young to own herself frightened.

So,

Resigning herself to her fate and trusting to the animal's boasted knowledge of his owner,

She sat peaceably down and saw Thorpe sit down beside her.

Everything being then arranged,

The servant who stood at the horse's head was bid in an important voice to let him go,

And off they went in the quietest manner imaginable,

Without a plunge or a caper or anything like one.

Catherine,

Delighted at so happy an escape,

Spoke her pleasure aloud with grateful surprise,

And her companion immediately made the matter perfectly simple by assuring her it was entirely owing to the peculiarly judicious simple manner in which he had then held the reins.

The singular discernment and dexterity with which he directed his whip,

He said.

Catherine,

Though she could not help wondering that with such perfect command of his horse he should think it necessary to alarm her with a relation of his tricks,

Congratulated herself sincerely on being under the care of so excellent a coachman,

And perceiving that the animal continued to go on in the same quiet manner,

Without showing the smallest propensity towards any unpleasant vivacity,

And,

Considering its inevitable pace was ten miles an hour,

By no means alarmingly fast,

Gave herself up to all the enjoyment of air and exercise of the most invigorating kind in a fine mild day of February with a consciousness of safety.

A silence of several minutes exceeded their first short dialogue.

It was broke by thoughts saying very abruptly,

Old Alan's as rich as a Jew,

Is he not?

Catherine did not understand him,

And he repeated his question,

Adding in explanation,

Old Alan,

The man you are with?

Oh,

Mr Alan,

You mean?

Yes,

I believe he's very rich.

And no children at all?

No,

Not any.

A famous thing for his next heirs,

He is your godfather,

Is not he?

My godfather?

No.

But you're always very much with them?

Yes,

Very much.

Ay,

That's what I meant.

He seems a good kind of old fellow,

Though,

And has lived very well in his time,

I dare say.

He's not gouty for nothing.

Does he drink his buckle a day now?

His bottle a day?

No,

Said Catherine.

Why should you think of such a thing?

He's a very temperate man,

And you could not fancy him in liquor last night.

Lord help you,

You women are always thinking of men's being in liquor.

Why do you not suppose a man's over said by a bottle?

I'm sure of this,

That if everybody was to drink their bottle a day,

There would not be half the disorders in the world there are now.

It would be a famous good thing for us all.

I cannot believe it.

Oh lord,

It'll be the saving of a thousand.

There's not the hundredth part of the wine consumed in this kingdom there ought to be.

Our foggy climate wants help.

And yet I've heard there is a great deal of wine drank in Oxford.

Oxford?

There's no drinking to Oxford now,

I assure you.

Nobody drinks there.

You hardly meet with a man who goes beyond his four pints at the utmost.

Now,

For instance,

It was reckoned a remarkable thing at the last party in my rooms,

That upon an average we cleared about five pints a head.

It was looked upon as something out of the common way.

Mine is famous good stuff,

To be sure.

You would not often meet with anything like it in Oxford.

And that may account for it.

But this will give you a notion of the general rate of drinking there.

Yes,

It does give a notion,

Said Catherine warmly.

And that is that you all drink a great deal more wine than I thought you did.

However,

I'm sure James does not drink so much.

This declaration brought on a loud and overpowering reply,

Of which no part was very distinct,

Except the frequent exclamations amounting almost to odes which adorned it.

And Catherine was left,

When it ended,

With rather a strengthened belief of there being a great deal of wine drank in Oxford,

And the same happy conviction of her brother's comparative sobriety.

Reviews

I wish I could awake as refreshed as she and forget all the worries of the day before 😂😭 thank you dear!❤️🙏🏼