One of Austen's lesser-known books, "Mansfield Park" is also probably one of the more debated novels among diehard Austen fans. The novel, first published in 1814, tells the story of Fanny Price, a young woman from an impoverished family who is taken in and raised by her much-wealthier cousins — although they never let her forget her "inferior" status. Quiet and humble, Fanny tries her best to please her capricious relatives and to live up to her own moral code with only her cousin Edmund as a true friend.
As young adults, Fanny and her cousins have their placid lives thrown into excitement with the arrival of new neighbors, including a lively brother and sister determined to shake things up. Fanny finds herself torn between doing what others want her to do and doing what she believes to be right.
"Mansfield Park" is not as frequently adapted, although it was made into a 1999 feature film starring Frances O'Connor and Jonny Lee Miller.
