Tuesday, January 9, 2007

Kindred Spirits

Since it appears I have a few Kindred Spirits reading my blog (Hi Kat!), I thought perhaps I would chat about LMM today. I admire Bronte, love Austen, but I adore Lucy Maud Montgomery. I think that without a doubt she is my favorite author. Emma asked if I had read Kilmeny of the Orchard. I have two copies! My love (obsession?) with LMM developed slowly, though, and I'm ashamed to say I owned many of her books (The Story Girl, Magic for Marigold, and The Blue Castle) along with the Anne series long before I ever read them. I distinctly remember receiving the three above-mentioned books for a birthday from my friend Colleen when I was 12 or 13, but they were never taken from my shelf. Oh, the folly of my youth!

Like many other, I suspect, I was won over my Maud through the Sullivan adaptations of Anne of Green Gables. I am ashamed to admit it because they are so poor and scorned by many who love Montgomery's work. I still love the movies (not Anne 3!), but try to think of them as separate from the books.

Once I actually picked up a book and read, there was no going back! I can't actually remember what I read first. It may have been Anne of the Island or The Story Girl. I know it wasn't Anne of Green Gables. Funnily enough, AoGG still isn't my favorite book. The Blue Castle, A Tangled Web, and Anne of the Island are my top three, I think. I especially love ATW with its interwoven story lines about the Dark and Penhallow clan. The Blue Castle is just such a sweet romantic story, and Anne of the Island I love because of my fondness for my college years.

I also enjoy the short story collections. They are great to pick up when you need an LMM "fix." "The Doctor's Sweetheart" is just the most charming little take! I haven't finished reading the journals yet, although I do own Volumes 1-4. One day...

The pride of my collection are a 31st impression of Anne of the Island from 1931 and a third impression of The Story Girl from 1911! I’m not sure where I picked them up, but possibly a used and rare book store in Cooperstown. Wherever it was, the seller didn’t realize the treasure!

3 comments:

  1. Hello, Courtney! Sorry for the long absence. What a delightful post. I, too, am a Montgomery fan. Instead of taking up all your comment space, I'm going over to my blog and posting about my love of all books Montgomery.

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  2. Hello, Courtney! Sorry for the long absence. What a delightful post. I, too, am a Montgomery fan. While I enjoyed everything she wrote, my favorites are Pat of Silverbush and Mistress Pat. I had a copy of _The Delineator_ magazine from the early 1900's and came across a short story of hers in there once. Also, when I worked at JC Penney, management had a sale of all the decorative props they used to show off merchandise. There were lots of books. I actually came across a copy of _Kilmeny of the Orchard_ from the 1930's!!!! What luck. I paid only 50 cents for it. As for the Anne movies: I loved them! The only thing I didn't like was the fact that the dating was all wrong, which is why (I think), they had to take such liberties with the third. I never saw the third one, though. After reading a summary/review, I decided to not even bother.

    My favorite Anne book would have to be Anne of Windy Poplars. I like it so much because I never had the opportunity to live away from home like Anne did in that story. I guess I sort of live vicariously through the book when I read it.

    Are you familiar with the Anne of Green Gables Treasury? If you are, isn't it lovely?

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  3. I was just thinking I need to read some LMM soon! I actually have a first edition of Rilla - I found it in that used bookstore in a yellow house in downtown Great Barrington, and convinced my father to buy it for me for Christmas that year. :-)

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