"It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife." Jane Austen referred to Pride and Prejudice (1813), the earliest-written of her published novels, as her "darling Child" – and generations of readers have taken it to their heart ever since. The irresistible attraction she portrays between the sparky, independent Elizabeth Bennet and the solemnly austere Mr. Darcy, counts among the greatest, most romantic – and funniest – love stories ever told.