I am a terrible excuse for a girl named Anne who loves books. I’m embarrassed to put this down in writing, but I have never read Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery. What kind of Canadian book-lover am I? A poor excuse for one, that’s for sure. And instead of going ahead and getting the book(s) out from the library, I’ve waited until a related book ended up on my doorstep to review, so thanks to Candlewick Press for trying to remedy this by sending me a beautifully illustrated biography of L.M. Montgomery. And I apologize for being so lazy.
For those of you who aren’t familiar with this name (shame on you too!) L.M. Montgomery is the famous Canadian author of the well-loved series of Anne Of Green Gable books. These best-sellers feature a precocious redhead who loves books, has an impressive vocabulary and grew up on the east coast of Canada. The series is what made Montgomery a famous writer. This particular biography of Montgomery gives us an easy-to-read (it’s for pre-teens) summary of her entire life, from her birth in 1874 to her death in 1942. It includes an illustrated title page at the beginning of each chapter, and direct quotes from her extensive collection of personal diaries so we literally get snippets of her actual thoughts and feelings in particular moments of her life.
For those parents who are doubtful their 10-14 year old will find any interest in this topic, I see you, and I raise you this; House of Dreams is not just a biography, but a digestible yet detailed look at mental health, it’s power over us, and how it was dealt with (or more like avoided) back in the 20th century. Perhaps it’s well-known now, but Montgomery and her husband both suffered from severe depression, and it’s now thought that her husband was even bipolar. Both of them self-medicated to sometimes disastrous effect, and even though Montgomery enjoyed significant success in her later years, she struggled till her very end with this illness. As we know now, no one is immune to depression, not even the rich and famous. So although your kid may not be interested in Anne of Green Gables (shame on them!) you can still recommend this book because it does have a lot of relatable moments about growing up in it.
There’s lots of fascinating and light-hearted facts about Lucy Maud Montgomery as well. For instance, when she was young and living with her grandparents in Cavendish, Prince Edward Island, a cargo ship ran aground near their home and the captain stayed with them for a few weeks while the repairs were completed. The crew gathered at their house one night to get paid by the captain, and he paid them in gold sovereign coins! This particular instance is described so vividly, but it’s just one of many fun facts we learn about Montgomery. Apparently she would also autograph her books with the sketch of a black cat underneath her signature-I imagine this little tidbit is easier to confirm! One of her favourite quotes of mine:
“The only true animal is a cat, and the only true cat is a gray cat” (p. 229).
A woman after mine own (and Smokey’s) heart! Time to pick up that Anne of Green Gables book after all.
I read and loved all of the Anne books as a child growing up in the States. As an adult I recently read the Emily series and found them equally delightful. In the words of the immortal Mark Twain, Anne Shirley is “the dearest and most lovable child in fiction since the immortal Alice.” …My name is on the wait list for House of Dreams from the library. Glad to hear the book deals with Montgomery’s depression. I was concerned that it might be glossed over in a book for young adults.
Pat of Silverbush is also amazing, only 2 in that series . Anne L. I have the Anne series if you want to borrow it..still trying to get my teens interested.
Oohh i might take you up on that Mere!!! And I’m sure they’ll get interested eventually, it only take me 33 years LOL
It’s definitely not glossed over in this book, but it deals with it in a really digestible way, I hope you like it!
Because your review of this book is so great I will forgive you for not having read Anne of Green Gables. Yet.
Isn’t it crazy how her depression was covered up for so long? I had no idea when I was young. It’s so so sad.
That’s such a great cat quote, isn’t it?
I was thinking of you THE ENTIRE TIME I READ THIS BOOK! I knew it would shock you in particular that i hadn’t read the Anne books yet, but I hope to remedy that soon 🙂
Haha! I’m glad I was there in your head telling you to read Anne. 🙂
you know it!
I enjoyed all the Green Gable books but I particularly recommend “Rilla of Ingleside”. This takes place during WWI when Anne’s sons go off to war and tells what life was like for the women left at home. It was published in 1920 and so was written either during or immediately after the war.
Oh yes, this sounds like a good one! It’s so great, everyone has their favourites, a sign of a wonderful series and a wonderful writer.
Shame on you!! Get that book read straight away or I shall write to Justin and have you stripped of Canadian citizenship! I still model myself on Anne, you know, and I very much suspect you would find her to be a kindred spirit… 😀
haha oh Justin has his hands full with a political scandal at the moment so he’s probably not up on his post LOL
But yes, I am so ashamed of this, and really need to remedy it asap
Yes, we’re all very worried about Justin – he’s the only world leader we like at the moment! And we don’t understand the scandal at all… it seems very…. Canadian… 😉
yup, it’s very Canadian indeed. Not much of a scandal at all, but of course the opposition has jumped on it like a pack of wolves LOL
I’m genuinely shocked that you’ve never read Anne of Green Gables. How is that even possible? I was fanatical about L.M. Montgomery and have read every novel and short story in existence. It always made me sad to know that her own life was not so happy and idyllic as those she portrayed.
I know! I’m truly ashamed, and admitting it on this blog shocked alot of people. Now I definitely need to read them LOL
I’d be really curious to hear your thoughts on reading them for the first time as an adult. I’m not sure it would be the same. Or you could wait until your kids are older and read them together for the first time.
Oh that’s a lovely idea!
I read the Anne books circa 2016. While I loved Anne, I discovered that all the evenly numbered books were not as good. Though that may seem odd, I found that many of those evenly numbered books were actually texts she wrote much later at the demand of her fans, who wanted MORE MORE MORE Anne, even though Montgomery was tired of writing about her. Here is the exception: book #8 is actually my favorite. Rilla of Ingleside drew me in and did not let go. Is it possible I loved Rilla more than Anne? It’s possible. Rilla is a good combo of her mother’s flightiness and her father’s charms.
You aren’t the first one to recommend that! And my gosh you are observant to recognize that pattern re: numbered books!
It was weird when it happened! I kept thinking, surely the next book with an even number has to be good! Then it was very meh.
I think that the right books reach us when we need to read them, so perhaps this is the year that reading the Anne series would be good for you! I read them a couple of years ago and thoroughly enjoyed them- some more than others. On the whole they’re very relaxing reads. I’m glad you found this biography so interesting. Great review!
Thanks Laila! I think the Anne books will have to spread over a few years for me, but I do like the idea of making that a reading goal…
I stopped reading after the second sentence. I’m not sure we can be friends anymore.
Oh nooooooo give me another chance! LOL