★★★★☆ Another mischievous girl

Anne of Green Gables

LM Montgomery

I read Anne of Green Gables not when I was a kid, but somewhat late in life. It is possible that my sister subtly discouraged my interest when we were kids. In our home we generally upheld the principle "Books are for everyone." In practice, this meant that no one in the house owned a book. You were expected to lend it to anyone who wanted it. My sister was not 100% behind this idea, and since she owned the Anne of Green Gables series, she might not have been entirely thrilled with my reading them. I somehow picked up the idea that Anne was a high-falutin society dame, and my interest consequently was muted.

Eventually I realized that books as popular as these are must have something to recommend them, and having become a confirmed reader of so-called childrens' books, I tackled them after grad school. Well, they're good, obviously. And just as obviously, Anne is no high-falutin society dame, but an appealing young girl. So that was good. But I lost interest as I proceeded in the series. I'm sure I read the second book, and I think I read the third, as well, but I could not make myself continue. There are so many good books to read, and these failed to hold my devotion! I think the problem is that they did not really distinguish themselves (in my mind -- your mileage may vary) from the many other excellent books about girls growing up: The Little House books, Caddie Woodlawn, Ramona, Little Women and its successors... Anne just seemed a little flat in that illustrious company.

It is of course possible that my problem is simply that I came to know her too late in life.

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