Maria attended the Sitting With Jane launch at Oakley Hall, a place the author visited regularly. Jane Austen was born in Steventon and Basingstoke was her local town for more than half her life.

Sitting With Jane is a Jane Austen inspired trail of BookBenches. The benches are shaped like an open book, and each is uniquely designed and painted by a professional artist in a style inspired by Jane Austen’s life and times in Basingstoke, Steventon and the surrounding area. The Bench trail will help to connect visitors with the area in which Jane grew up and began her writing career. The trail will open in mid-June 2017 and be in place until late August, following this the individual benches will be auctioned for a local charity leaving a lasting legacy in the area.

There will be 25 BookBenches, with a dedicated website and app to guide you around the area, with a chance to visit some interesting locations, linking together places to give an insightful tour.
 
Maria said; "Jane Austen is a writer of worldwide repute. Born in the Borough, she  is  a women who broke the mould in her generation. I am delighted that the book benches emphasise her local connections and trace her journeys within the Borough .  I am also delighted that local Artist Adam Roud is to create a permanent memorial to her, a life size Sculpture to be sited in the market square in Basingstoke. Two hundred years since her death she lives on in her work .”

All BookBenches have free access, and the app is free to download from the web site www.sittingwithjane.com