Based on the theme "The Power of Reading", the sixth year of the Jane Austen Literacy Foundation short story writing competition attracted a higher standard of entries than ever before–any of the top 12 stories could have been a winner!

After careful considerations, our three winning stories for 2025 were chosen by the special Jane Austen Literacy Foundation judging panel, including Caroline Jane Knight (Jane Austen’s fifth great niece and the Founder of the Jane Austen Literacy Foundation), Helena Kelly (Author of The Worlds of Jane Austen 2025) and Natalie Jenner (International bestselling author of Austen At Sea 2025), and published online for a public vote to choose the overall winner.

"Story Time" by Lisette Abrahams, the winning story, is a beautifully layered tale of a man who discovers the power of words through a children's library session. "The Book Armoury" by Janine Harris is a gripping story of one woman's fight to preserve books in a world where they've been outlawed, and "Wandering Off" by Jo Bardsley reminds us how stories can comfort and connect us when we need them most.

Beautifully read by award-winning Austen narrator and Jane Austen Literacy Foundation Ambassador, Alison Larkin.

100% of the proceeds* received by [ALISON LARKIN PRESENTS] from this audiobook will be made available by the [ALISON LARKIN PRESENTS] to [THE JANE AUSTEN LITERARCY FOUNDATION].

The Foundation was started by Jane Austen’s family in 2014, working to support literacy programs in developing and at-risk communities around the world.