Review: Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery

First line: Mrs. Rachel Lynde lived just where the Avonlea main road dipped down  into a little hollow, fringed with alders and ladies’ eardrops and traversed by a brook that had its source away back in the woods of the old Cuthbert place; it was reputed to be an intricate, headlong brook in its earlier course through those woods, with dark secrets of pool and cascade; but by the time it reached Lynde’s Hollow it was a quiet, well-conducted little stream, for not even a brook could run past Mrs. Rachel Lynde’s door without due regard for decency and decorum; it probably was conscious that Mrs. Rachel was sitting at her window, keeping a sharp eye on everything that passed, from brooks and children up, and that if she noticed anything odd or out of place she would never rest until she had ferreted out the whys and wherefores thereof.

From the back cover: As soon as Anne Shirley arrives at the snug white farmhouse called Green Gables, she is sure she wants to stay forever … but will the Cuthberts send her back to the orphanage? Anne knows she’s not what they expected – a skinny girl with fiery red hair and a temper to match. If only she can convince them to let her stay, she’ll try very hard not to keep rushing headlong into scrapes and blurting out the first thing that comes to her mind. Anne is not like anybody else, the Cuthberts agree; she is special – a girl with an enormous imagination. This orphan girl dreams of the day when she can call herself Anne of Green Gables.

My thoughts: I first read the Anne of Green Gables series when I was in elementary school and I absolutely loved it! I am now rereading the series for a challenge, but truth be told, I would have reread them again at some point anyway – the challenge just gives me the excuse to do it sooner! I have always loved Anne Shirley and her crazy antics – she is a character that has stayed with me forever. In this first book, we first meet Anne and find out how she came to live at Green Gables. We also meet Marilla and Matthew Cuthbert, the siblings that take Anne in. How I loved how Anne would chatter up a storm all day long, slowly breaking through Marilla’s hard shell. Matthew, on the other hand, was taken with Anne almost from their first encounter at the train station. Watching Anne learn to deal with her active imagination and how to tame that temper of hers brings both laughter and tears. Anne of Green Gables is a heartwarming, funny novel and I can’t wait to reread the rest of the series. This is still the one book I recommend to all young girls I know.

(I borrowed this book from the library.)