For the Love of Anne

Anne of Green Gables

Reviewed by Shanna Bernier

If you have read my column before—or if you know me—you know I have two daughters, now seven and four years old. We enjoy reading out-loud as a family very much and I have a deep fondness for children’s literature. Some books go beyond the common classifications and achieve accessibility and enjoyment for all ages. This is one of the many things which stands out to me as I re-read the Canadian literary treasure, Anne of Green Gables by Lucy Maud Montgomery. Critics have often diminished this book because its audience has been primarily young and female. Despite being relegated to fluffier and less “serious” genres, LM Montgomery’s works are international best sellers. Her books have been translated into not only many different languages, but also adapted into musicals, plays, films and television series. The most recent CBC adaptation, “Anne with an E” is a masterful show, which delves into some of the deeper issues from the first of the Anne books. While diverting a tad from canon, it takes the viewer deeper into a character through an important contemporary lens.

If you have never had the pleasure of being exposed to this Canadian classic set in rural PEI, allow me to summarize. Anne of Green Gables is the story of a young orphan girl who is adopted by Mathew and Marilla Cuthbert, unmarried siblings, who, after requesting to have a young boy to help on their family farm, accidentally receive a precocious 11-year-old girl named Anne. She is surprising in every way.

“You’re not eating anything,” said Marilla sharply, eying her as if it were a serious shortcoming.

 Anne sighed.

“I can’t. I’m in the depths of despair. Can you eat when you are in the depths of despair?”

“I’ve never been in the depths of despair, so I can’t say,” responded Marilla.

“Weren’t you? Well, did you ever try to IMAGINE you were in the depths of despair?”

“No, I didn’t.”

“Then I don’t think you can understand what it’s like. It’s very uncomfortable a feeling indeed.”

After initially hesitating—and almost sending her back— the siblings agree to keep and raise this Anne, and the story unfolds from there. It is a story of growing up. It is a story of love growing in unsuspecting hearts. Anne of Green Gables is the first of several books which detail the life and adventures of Anne Shirley Cuthbert. This first novel tells of her arrival at Green Gables as a girl, and concludes 5 years later when she returns to her community after completing her course at teacher’s college.

If I were able to tell a humorous anecdote today, and know that it would remain funny for over 100 years, I would find that to be an amazing feat. There are many hilarious moments in this book, as Anne manages to find herself in many scrapes and mischief. These include accidently making her best friend drunk, dying her hair green by mistake and putting medicinal liniment in a cake for the local minister. This book has made me laugh aloud, just as many times when level-headed but snarky Marilla responds with an eye-roll or a quip after Anne shares a poetic soliloquy about flowers or frost or other natural wonders. The dynamic between the characters is alive with the full spectrum of human emotions.

 “Why must people kneel down to pray? If I really wanted to pray I’ll tell you what I’d do. I’d go out into a great big field all alone or in the deep, deep woods and I’d look up into the sky—up—up—up—into that lovely blue sky that looks as if there was no end to its blueness. And then I’d just feel a prayer.”

This book, which is more than 100 years old, remains progressive and important in the commentary it makes on society. Certainly some of the ideas are comically outdated (like the idea that no woman could ever be a church minister) but for the most part, Anne challenges norms at home and at school in ways which are still relevant in 2020. The books puts a big emphasis on education and doesn’t exclude any of the characters from its benefit. The Avonlea students experience two teachers during their tenure: the first is a hot headed and arrogant man who, distracted by his inappropriate infatuation with a senior student, often neglects the class. The second is a broad-minded woman who challenges the students to set high goals, takes them on trips to explore the forest as a part of their education and provides them with the emotional and spiritual support they need to achieve greatness. Her “modern” approach to education upsets the status-quo but facilitates an enthusiastic class of scholars who care deeply about learning.

I love this book from many angles. I love it as a girl with a heart connected to nature who sees the magic and divinity of flowers and trees. I love it as a mother who knows the power of love growing in one’s heart when you see your child blossom. I love it as an educator who sees how often the system does not work for kids and how doing something different might help kids but still inspire resistance. I love it as feminist, for its strong female role models, and its complex and three-dimensional characters.  I love it because it celebrates oddness and eccentricities and being your whole self.  Finally, I love it as reader, for it is a compelling story, which has been enjoyed for generations and remains a delight to share as I read it to my children.