Anne of Avonlea. L.M. Montgomery. 1909. 304 pages. [Source: Bought]
First sentence: A tall, slim girl, "half-past sixteen," with serious gray eyes and hair which her friends called auburn, had sat down on the broad red sandstone doorstep of a Prince Edward Island farmhouse one ripe afternoon in August, firmly resolved to construe so many lines of Virgil.
Premise/plot: Anne Shirley, a YOUNG Anne Shirley, assumes the responsibilities of school teacher and big sister while resuming her roles as kindred spirit, best friend, and daughter. At the end of Anne of Green Gables, Gilbert gallantly offers the Prince Edward Island school to Anne Shirley so that she can remain closer to home so she can care for (an aging) Marilla while she saves money for college. Anne of Avonlea chronicles about two years. She's a teacher...with some memorable students, notably Paul Irving. She's a friend...Mr. Harrison, a grumpy neighbor, is one new friend. But most importantly perhaps, she becomes a "big sister." Marilla takes in TWO children--twins--Davy and Dora. Davy is a HANDFUL and delight. Never a dull day with his troublesome, mischievous adventures/misadventures. Dora is a saint. By the end of the novel, Anne Shirley is ready to head off to college....
My thoughts: I really LOVE, LOVE, LOVE this one. Is it as good as the first book or last book in the series? Probably not. Is it as good as Anne of the Island? Well. It's a toss-up. Because as much as I love and crazy love and adore aspects of Anne of the Island, Anne of Avonlea is just MARVELOUS. And Anne of the Island has its duller moments. Definitely less comedic.
Mr. Harrison about Mrs. Rachel Lynde:
"I detest that woman more than anybody I know. She can put a whole sermon, text, comment, and application, into six words, and throw it at you like a brick."
"I never was much of a talker till I came to Avonlea and then I had to begin in self-defense or Mrs. Lynde would have said I was dumb and started a subscription to have me taught sign language."Fun with Davy:
"Anne," said Davy, sitting up in bed and propping his chin on his hands, "Anne, where is sleep? People go to sleep every night, and of course I know it's the place where I do the things I dream, but I want to know WHERE it is and how I get there and back without knowing anything about it...and in my nighty too. Where is it?"
"I wish people could live on pudding. Why can't they, Marilla? I want to know."Paul Irving to Anne:
"Because they'd soon get tired of it."
"I'd like to try that for myself," said skeptical Davy.
"I've prayed every night that God would give me enough grace to enable me to eat every bit of my porridge in the mornings. But I've never been able to do it yet, and whether it's because I have too little grace or too much porridge I really can't decide."
Favorite quotes:
"You're never safe from being surprised till you're dead."
“One can't get over the habit of being a little girl all at once.”
“After all," Anne had said to Marilla once, "I believe the nicest and sweetest days are not those on which anything very splendid or wonderful or exciting happens but just those that bring simple little pleasures, following one another softly, like pearls slipping off a string.”
“Anne had no sooner uttered the phrase, "home o'dreams," than it captivated her fancy and she immediately began the erection of one of her own. It was, of course, tenanted by an ideal master, dark, proud, and melancholy; but oddly enough, Gilbert Blythe persisted in hanging about too, helping her arrange pictures, lay out gardens, and accomplish sundry other tasks which a proud and melancholy hero evidently considered beneath his dignity. Anne tried to banish Gilbert's image from her castle in Spain but, somehow, he went on being there, so Anne, being in a hurry, gave up the attempt and pursued her aerial architecture with such success that her "home o'dreams" was built and furnished before Diana spoke again. ”
“…I think,' concluded Anne, hitting on a very vital truth, 'that we always love best the people who need us.”
“When I think something nice is going to happen I seem to fly right up on the wings of anticipation; and then the first thing I realize I drop down to earth with a thud. But really, Marilla, the flying part is glorious as long as it lasts...it's like soaring through a sunset. I think it almost pays for the thud.”
“It takes all sorts of people to make a world, as I've often heard, but I think there are some who could be spared,' Anne told her reflection in the east gable mirror that night.”
"If we have friends we should look only for the best in them and give them the best that is in us, don't you think? Then friendship would be the most beautiful thing in the world."
"In this world you've just got to hope for the best and prepare for the worst and take whatever God sends."
© 2023 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews
2 comments:
I was always kind of annoyed with Davy. He struck me kind of like cousin Oliver on the Brady Bunch! I can't quite remember how I felt about this one; I always really liked Anne's House of Dreams.
I had not thought of Oliver in years! I hope I can un-see the connection. Hee hee.
Post a Comment