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!
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.
ReplyDeleteHello, 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.
ReplyDeleteMy 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?
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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