Anne of Green Gables / L. M. Montgomery.

This novel, first published in 1908, is beloved by many and is one of my favorite books of all time. It is written for older children or young adults but is an interesting read for adults too as a forerunner of Little Orphan Annie and Harry Potter in its depiction of a powerless orphan, Anne, who through her own efforts ultimately achieves a satisfying life. It also presents a charming, idyllic picture of life in Prince Edward Island in the late 1800s or early 1900s.

Marilla and Matthew Cuthbert are a staid, very conservative brother and sister who arrange to adopt an orphan boy to help in farming. When Matthew, who is extremely shy and retiring, arrives to collect the boy, 11 year old Anne Shirley is waiting for him instead. It is only with the greatest reluctance that he takes Anne home and once there, Marilla tells Anne that “We wanted a boy to help Matthew on the farm. A girl would be of no use to us.” Matthew is charmed by Anne and appeals to Marilla to keep her, saying “We might be some good to her.” Marilla drives Anne back during which she hears about Anne’s background and how she has had to work in some very difficult circumstances to earn her keep as a penniless orphan. She is charmed by Anne too, and when returning her, she hears that Anne’s fate is to be a helper to a mother who is “A terrible worker and driver.” She then decides that she cannot abandon Anne and tells Matthew that they will keep her.

The novel describes how Marilla and Matthew, who are unmarried and childless, deal with having a lively girl in their midst and how Anne, with her vivid imagination and sometimes inappropriate actions, makes a life with the couple and in the community. However, there are several occasions involving Anne that cause the couple to examine their own thinking and beliefs, and even admit mistakes. Anne also grows in coming to terms with her faults, such as her vanity in wishing to get rid of her red hair and inadvertently dying it green! When Anne first arrives, Marilla tells Matthew that he is not to interfere in her bringing up of Anne, but in one of the funniest and loveliest segments of the book, he does intervene at a critical point. He notices that Anne is dressed differently than her friends with her unfashionable, severe clothing as decreed by Marilla. Anne longs for a dress with puffed sleeves. In the chapter “Matthew insists on puffed sleeves,” he overcomes his severe shyness to arrange for a dress with fashionable puffed sleeves for Anne.

Anne may be a powerless orphan but her lively personality and principled ideas change the people around her as she herself is changed. It will likely surprise no one to hear that the relationships in the novel evolve in a very gratifying and heartwarming way, and that Anne’s place in the family and the community becomes respectable and established. L. M. Montgomery continued to write about Anne and the story continues through several books in the “Anne” series. I notice that I have used the words "charmed" and "charming" a lot throughout this review, which expresses my view exactly regarding this series.

Perhaps many KTers have already read this book. Major confession on my part - another famous book for children or young adults is Little Women, but I have never read it.

I was very fortunate a few years ago to visit Prince Edward Island and Green Gables. We loved our visit to this very picturesque and scenic province and I was thrilled to visit Green Gables. I’m including a link for more information about Green Gables and visiting PEI.

Here is a link that might be useful: Green Gables and PEI