Stemming from a single line in a note-book: "Elderly couple apply to
orphan asylum for a boy. By mistake
a girl is sent to them," arose a book that put Canadian literature
and Prince Edward Island on the map. Montgomery worked on writing
the story of Anne Shirley for eighteen months, and experienced rejection
after rejection.
Anne of Green Gables was at last published by L. C. Page Company
of Boston in June of 1908.
It was instantly popular, appealing to a
larger audience than the young girls it was geared towards. Mark
Twain wrote to Montgomery saying that in Anne Shirley she had created "the
dearest, and most lovable child in fiction since the immortal Alice."1 A
sequel was almost immediately demanded. Montgomery continued to
write about Anne Shirley for the rest of her lifetime, and her career
is
irrevocably tied to her success with Anne.
Displaced, orphaned, alone, Anne Shirley weaves her
way into he hearts of not only the fictional characters she comes across
in Montgomery's plots, but also, and most importantly, the readers. Nearly
one hundred years later, her worldwide appeal is untouched.
The Anne of Green Gables series is composed of eight books (the
following contains spoilers, please do not read them if you haven't read
the books and don't want them spoiled):
1) Anne of Green Gables - Anne Shirley finds her home with Matthew
and Marilla Cuthbert at Green Gables in Avonlea on Prince Edward
Island
2) Anne of Avonlea - Anne Shirley teaches at the Avonlea school
3) Anne of the Island - Anne Shirley goes to college and becomes
engaged to Gilbert
Blythe
4) Anne of Windy Poplars (Anne of Windy Willows) - Anne
Shirley teaches and writes letters to Gilbert from Summerside, P.E.I.
5) Anne's House of Dreams - Anne and Gilbert Blythe move to
their "house
of dreams" and
she becomes a mother
6) Anne of Ingleside - Anne and Gilbert Blythe's family is
complete
7) Rainbow Valley - The focus shifts to Anne's children as
they grow up
8) Rilla of Ingleside - Focuses on Anne Blythe's daughter
Rilla Blythe during WWI
We are having a chapter by chapter discussion of the Anne of Green Gables
series at the Anne of Green Gables Message Boards. Click below to join
in.
References:
1. Waterston, Elizabeth. "Lucy Maud
Montgomery: 1874 - 1942." L. M.
Montgomery: An Assessment. Ed. John Robert Sorfleet. Guelph:
Canadian Children's Press, 1976. 9-28.
Created 09.01.99, Last Updated 04.19.09
© An L.M. Montgomery Resource Page and TickledOrange.com
