I grew up knowing who Anne of Green Gables was. I watched the movies when I was younger (and let me tell you, I hated Anne). Recently, I was helping a friend pack up her apartment (and by "helping" I mean I was there for moral support) and she relinquished her Anne books to me. It's been many years since I have had anything to do with Anne, and after so many people had told me to read these books, I finally caved and did it.
Synopsis
The Cuthberts (Matthew and Marilla, brother and sister) decide that they need help on the farm. They adopt a small boy from Nova Scotia. When Matthew gets to the station to pick up the boy, all he finds is a thin, red headed, eleven year-old girl wearing a wincey dress. He is completely baffled by the mix-up and decides he can't leave the girl at the train station for days while this gets worked out. He takes her home to Marilla. Turns out that Anne is an extremely imaginative, verbose, and talkative girl, and she quickly wins her way into Matthew's heart. Marilla takes a little more winning over, but eventually Anne is allowed to stay at Green Gables in Prince Edward Island. The rest of the book is about Anne's shenanigans at school, having friends over for tea, dyeing her hair, getting stranded in a boat, and pursuing higher education.
Review:
As I mentioned earlier, I hated Anne. I hated her temper and her stubbornness. I have a hard time getting over that. For the first 3/4 of the book, nothing exciting really happens, but somewhere along that line you discover something. You discover that you are starting to like Anne. I was a lot like Marilla. I didn't want to admit it. I really started to like Anne. I really like that she always learned from her mistakes, and I loved that people were just naturally drawn to her. I hate to admit it, but I really enjoyed the book at the end there. I am looking forward to reading the next books. I'm also looking forward to rewatching the movies with a different understanding of the character.
Synopsis
The Cuthberts (Matthew and Marilla, brother and sister) decide that they need help on the farm. They adopt a small boy from Nova Scotia. When Matthew gets to the station to pick up the boy, all he finds is a thin, red headed, eleven year-old girl wearing a wincey dress. He is completely baffled by the mix-up and decides he can't leave the girl at the train station for days while this gets worked out. He takes her home to Marilla. Turns out that Anne is an extremely imaginative, verbose, and talkative girl, and she quickly wins her way into Matthew's heart. Marilla takes a little more winning over, but eventually Anne is allowed to stay at Green Gables in Prince Edward Island. The rest of the book is about Anne's shenanigans at school, having friends over for tea, dyeing her hair, getting stranded in a boat, and pursuing higher education.
Review:
As I mentioned earlier, I hated Anne. I hated her temper and her stubbornness. I have a hard time getting over that. For the first 3/4 of the book, nothing exciting really happens, but somewhere along that line you discover something. You discover that you are starting to like Anne. I was a lot like Marilla. I didn't want to admit it. I really started to like Anne. I really like that she always learned from her mistakes, and I loved that people were just naturally drawn to her. I hate to admit it, but I really enjoyed the book at the end there. I am looking forward to reading the next books. I'm also looking forward to rewatching the movies with a different understanding of the character.
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