Tuesday, January 26, 2010

Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery


I haven't read Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery for years.  In fact, I have no memory of the first or last time I read the book.  But I know I HAVE read it.

So in a way, this felt like the first time reading the adventures of Anne Shirley.  Over the years I forgot many of the details and clever sayings of Anne.

But, then again, it also felt like meeting up with an old friend.  Kind of like seeing a college pal after a lot of years and staying up all night talking and laughing.  Yeah, just like that.

In fact, I stayed up after midnight finishing Anne.  I really shouldn't have but I couldn't help myself.

Reading Anne as a grown-up, married and a mom was very different from reading her as a teenager.  I still enjoyed the book and gave a satisfied sigh at the end of it, but some of the romance was gone.

In fact, I found myself skimming a lot of the flowery, must-this-go-on-and-on descriptions that Montgomery uses for everything.  I just didn't find it helpful to my imagination.

I also surprised myself by feeling annoyed with Anne.  I'm all for daydreaming but to forget to put flour in a CAKE?!  Really?!  And the constant chattering, it's enough to wear a mom Marilla out!  (It could be that I'm transferring to Anne my frustrations with a certain 6 year old who talks non-stop and takes 30 minutes to sweep a tiny kitchen because of all his day-dreaming.)

So, while I enjoyed visiting with Anne again, and DEFINITELY plan to share her with my daughter, I won't be in a hurry to head to Green Gables again anytime in the near future.

For more reviews of Anne and other Montgomery books visit Carrie at Reading to Know.

4 comments:

Carrie said...

=D Well, I STILL like you! And I've made up my mind that we can still be friends. (hahaha!) Everyone has their faults and I will allow you this one. ;D

Naturally I'm sorry you don't like Anne. Have you seen the movie yet? Now I'm curious for your thoughts on that. Since the movie kind of combines a few books together, maybe you'll like it a little more as you won't have to read flowery descriptions of the Island - you can just see it for yourself.

Thank you for trying. I honestly consider it an honor. =)

Amy said...

Sounds like a read you don't regret but not quite as good as you anticipated?! Funny how our stage in life really can change what we enjoy. I hear you about daydreaming and constant chatter! :) Wouldn't trade it--but sometime need a little break to appreciate it!

An Almost Unschooling Mom said...

I know what you mean about a change in perception. I found myself drawn to Marilla's character more than to Anne's this time around.

Barbara H. said...

I didn't discover Anne til after I was married, so I always looked at her from the standpoint of a married women, but I've had children since the last time I read her, one very talkative, and I did think that I probably wouldn't be able to stand that in real life. Yet I liked how she learned to rein herself in as she got older. There is one passage where Marilla is noticing that Anne is quieter, didn't use the overly-big words she used to, and another where her teacher helps her tame her imagination and expressiveness in writing, so I liked hoe she matured without losing her imaginativeness all together.

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...