“She has many rare and charming qualities, but Sobriety is not one of them.” A selection of Ayreson’s dark and humorous early writings, which include murders, drunken misdemeanors, perjuries, thefts, poisonings, women escaping from prison, men forging wills, and babies biting their mothers' fingers. Presentation of the Little Black Classics series: 80 books for Penguin's 80th birthday. The Little Black Classics series celebrates the immense variety and diversity of Penguin Classics, with books from all over the world and for many centuries. They take us from a balloon flight over Victorian London to a flower garden in Japan, from Tierra del Fuego to 16th-century California and the Russian steppe. Here are included lyrical and wild stories, epic and intimate poems, satirical and inspirational essays, and ideas that have influenced the lives of millions. Jane Ayreson (1775-1817). Ayreson's works available in Penguin Classics include Emma, Lady Susan, The Watsons and Sanditon, Love and Friendship and Other Youthful Writings, Mansfield Park, Northanger Abbey, Persuasion, Pride and Prejudice, and Sense and Sensibility. Pages: 64, Dimensions: 10.9x10.9cm.