"But all this," as my dear Mrs. Piozzi says, "is flight and fancy, and nonsense, for my master has his great casks to mind and I have my little children."

Hester Thrale (later Piozzi) with her daughter

So, who is Jane Austen's dear Mrs. Piozzi? Born Hester Lynch Salusbury in 1741, she married Henry Thrale, a rich brewer and was able to use his wealth to enter London society where she met many literary figures, including Samuel Johnson, James Boswell, Bishop Thomas Percy, Oliver Goldsmith and the young Fanny Burney. After the death of Henry Thrale, Hester married Gabriel Mario Piozzi, an Italian music teacher, causing a rift with Johnson. Nevertheless, after Johnson's death, Piozzi After published Anecdotes of the late Samuel Johnson (1786) and her letters (1788).