Monday 29 October 2012

Anne of the Island - L.M. Montgomery

The Story...

New adventures lie ahead as Anne Shirley packs her bags, waves goodbye to childhood, and heads for Redmond College. With her old friend Prissy Grant waiting in the bustling city of Kingsport and her frivolous new friend Philippa Gordon at her side, Anne tucks away her memories of rural Avonlea and discovers life on her own terms, filled with surprises... including a marriage proposal from the worst fellow imaginable, the sale of her very first story, and a tragedy that teaches her a painful lesson. But tears turn to laughter when Anne and her friends move into an old cottage and an ornery black cat steals her heart. Little does Anne know that handsome Gilbert Blythe wants to win her heart, too. Suddenly Anne must decide whether she's ready for love.

A Reader's Experience...

As Anne Shirley grows up, she learns to challenge the girl she once had been. Romance becomes more real, memories more cherished, and humor more invigerating. She shows us all what it is to trade the vivid fantasies of youth for a reality that can be just as exciting, equally surprising, and a lot more satisfying.

I love how Montgomery's pursuit of romance, in the character of Anne, is both a struggle and an ideal. Readers are kept happy by the fairy tale illusions and eventual outcomes of many a character, yet we are presented with all of the false hopes and heartbreaks, the misread signals and revealations, and the imposed expectations and frustrations which must be confronted along the way. The experience of finding romance - recognising it, holding on to it, letting it go - is complexified and heartfelt. As far as love goes, such experiences allow us as readers (and when living it in real life) to recognise and appreciate the real deal whenever it comes along.

Anne has a very dear way of rekindling her old memories and feeling her way through waves of nostalgia. She is willing and able to re-live the story club days of her girlhood, the promises she made to Diana in sacred friendship, her images of Gilbert as a boy, her mishaps, her laughs, and her tears. Memories of older days add for her a sweetness and appreciation to the new, and this adds to my understanding of Anne as a character who takes nothing for granted - she lives her life fully and completely with everything it has to offer.

I love Montgomery's ironic sense of humor. The visit of Anne's latest suitor and his family with resulting destruction of Pricilla's cake, the precocious feline companions, the embarassing marriage proposals and the publication of her first literary masterpiece, baking powder and all. Like the previous novels, Anne's compromising positions add to her intrigue and charm and make her a more likable, down to earth character. Montgomery, through Anne, is able to take situations which may seem ordinary to us and liven them up naturally, without the need for overdramatic secrets or life altering thrills. The best part is that Anne will always still remain true to Anne, if all the wiser for it.

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