This weekend, I was telling my author friend Hilary about Nikki Payne’s amazing retelling of Pride and Prejudice called Pride and Protest. Our conversation naturally shifted to the 2005 movie adaptation of Pride and Prejudice with Keira Knightley, and Hilary gave me some movie insight that ended up being super important to my reading experience.
Mr. Collins’ 2005 Potato Line
While movie chatting, Hilary recalled Mr. Collin’s meme-worthy dialogue in a dinner scene:
“What a superbly featured room and what excellent boiled potatoes! Many years since I’ve had such an exemplary vegetable.
To be honest, I have terrible movie memory and had completely forgotten about this quote, but later that night, I was oh so grateful for Hilary’s recap! With the “excellency of potatoes” humor fresh in my mind, I caught Nikki Payne’s big nod to this famous movie quote in Pride and Protest. In her adaptation, there’s a whole chapter titled “Boiled Potatoes,” and it’s written with impeccable humor and attention to detail. Nikki Payne doesn’t just resurface the potato joke. She takes it to the next level.
Nikki Payne’s Potato Joke Expansion
Low Spoiler Warning
What I love about Nikki Payne’s nod to the 2005 movie quote is the irony she packs into it. Turns out, this bland main entrée can be the perfect catalyst for some spice!
In the chapters titled “Boiled Potatoes” and “Self-Checkout,” Liza, Dorsey, and Dorsey’s chef BFF decide to ditch a boiled potato dinner party in Alexandria. They head back to Dorsey’s loft in Georgetown to whip up some flavorful food and brainstorm for a project.
The hour turns late, and thanks to those flavorless potatoes, Liza and Dorsey finally get some late-night alone time. Nikki Payne delivers a much-anticipated great first spicy scene at the end of “Self-Checkout,” and let’s just say Dorsey didn’t like the taste of the potatoes, but he sure did like the taste of Liza. 😉
Dare I Say This?
Jane Austen’s original text is bland like boiled potatoes when it comes to sex scenes. This is one big way Nikki Payne departs from the original text. Pride and Protest is a spicy, modern day homage. It is such a good read! If you are a Jane Austen fan, you need to check this one out.
How To Annotate This
At the end of “Self-Checkout,” there is generous white space on the page. This is where I chose to write out some notes on the connection between the original text, the 2005 movie, and what Nikki Payne did here with a nod to both in this book.
Here’s A Suggested Note for That Space:
The chapter title and plot of “Boiled Potatoes” is Nikki Payne’s nod to Tom Hollander’s famous line in the 2005 movie adaptation: “What excellent boiled potatoes!” The movie scene and Payne’s “Boiled Potatoes” chapter correspond with Chapter 13 of Pride and Prejudice.
The bland potatoes are the reason this spicy scene happens! Dorsey didn’t like the taste of the potatoes, but at the end of the night thoroughly enjoyed the taste of Liza. 😉
Annotate With Sara 