Best-Ever Teen Novels?

NPR has posted a poll online where readers can vote on their top 10 favorite teen novels. The list contains 235 novels as voted on in a previous poll. It's an interesting list to be sure. There are a few books I expected to be on this list, but were not and also some books that made the list that I honestly don't think should have... but I digress. I am excited to report that not only did the Anne of Green Gables series make the list, but so did my all-time favorite series, the Betsy-Tacy series by Maud Hart Lovelace. So, if you're a BT fan be sure to include it in your list of 10 when you vote!

Go vote.

Romantic Passages from Favorite Reads Part III

I had a difficult time selecting just a single passage for my next pick. In the end I settled for two quotes from two books within the Anne series. I believe these establish not only the romance between Gilbert and Anne as a young couple, but how alive their love was after several children and 15 years of marriage. I hope you enjoy!

The Book: Anne's House of Dreams by L. M. Montgomery, Chpt. 4
The Setting: 1890, Green Gables, Prince Edward Island, Canada
The Scene: Gilbert's and Anne's Wedding

"But it was a happy and beautiful bride who came down the old, homespun-carpeted stairs that September noon--the first bride of Green Gables, slender and shining-eyed, in the mist of her maiden veil, with her arms full of roses. Gilbert, waiting for her in the hall below, looked up at her with adoring eyes. She was his at last, this evasive, long-sought Anne, won after years of patient waiting. It was to him she was coming in the sweet surrender of the bride. Was he worth of her? Could he make her as happy as he hoped? If he failed her--if he could not measure up to her standard of manhood-then, as she held out her hand, their eyes met and all doubt was swept away in a glad certainty. They belonged to each other; and, no matter what life might hold for them, it could never alter that. their happiness was in each other's keeping and both were unafraid."

The Book: Anne of Ingleside by L. M. Montgomery, Chpt. 41
The Setting: 1905, Ingleside, Prince Edward Island, Canada
The Scene: Gilbert and Anne's 15th wedding anniversary

"Anne felt like a released bird... she was flying again. Gilbert's arms were around her.. his eyes were looking into hers in the moonlight. 'You do love me, Gilbert? I'm not just a habit with you? You haven't said you loved me for so long.'

'My dear, dear love! I didn't think you needed words to know that. I couldn't live without you. Always you give me strength. There's a verse somewhere in the Bible that is meant for you... "She will do him good and not evil all the days of her life."'

Life which had seemed so grey and foolish a few moments before was golden and rose and splendidly rainbowed again. The diamond pendant slipped to the floor, unheeded for the moment. It was beautiful... but there were so many things lovelier... confidence and peace and delightful work... laughter and kindness... that old safe feeling of a sure love."

--------------------------------------------
Another romantic passage is Gilbert's proposal to Anne: Anne of the Island, Chapter 41.

Anne of the Island (reviewed)
Anne's House of Dreams (reviewed)
Anne of Ingleside (reviewed)

Anne of Green Gables Timeline

Rainbow Valley by L. M. Montgomery

225 pages
Published 1919, reprinted 1998
by Bantom Books
Harper & Row Publishers, Inc.
New York, NY

At long last I had time to sit down and not only begin reading Rainbow Valley, but time to finish it! Rainbow Valley is the seventh book in the Anne of Green Gables series by L. M. Montgomery, but it isn't really a book about Anne, it's more of a book about her children... and yet it's not entirely about them either.

The Plot:
Anne Shirley is grown up, has married her beloved Gilbert, and is the mother of six mischievous children. These boys and girls discover a special place all their own, but they never dream of what will happen when a strange family moves into an old mansion nearby. The Meredith clan is two boys and two girls--and a runaway named Mary Vance. Soon the Merediths join Anne's children in their private hideout, intent on carrying out their plans to save Mary from the orphanage, to help the lonely minister find happiness, and to keep a pet rooster from the soup pot. There's always an adventure brewing in the sun-dappled world of Rainbow Valley. (Summary courtesy of the publisher)

My Thoughts:
I had mixed thoughts going into this book. On the one-hand I was sad to know this story wasn't really about Anne. Although she is present throughout the book and is definitely a part of the story, Rainbow Valley isn't her story and because of this I did find myself missing Anne. I also truly missed Gilbert. For the first time in the series Gilbert only has one line! And although he is mentioned throughout the book he only makes two or three appearances in the story. Alas!

I guess because of this it almost felt to me as if Rainbow Valley was more of a companion story to the Anne of Green Gables series, like the three Deep Valley books are to the Betsy-Tacy series. (The only difference here of course is that Rainbow Valley is one of the Anne books.)

Nevertheless, once I got over this snag I truly enjoyed Rainbow Valley. The adventures of the Blythe and Meredith children are hilariously entertaining. And like all Montgomery stories, this book had it's sweet and it's sad moments. Of course, what Montgomery novel would be complete without a little romance? Rainbow Valley contained two -- one of lost love that gets a second chance and one of unexpected love, both added greatly to the richness of the story. And in the end I found the book to be a sweet, charming and completely delightful read. Not at all boring, which I must admit I was secretly worried it might be.

Another interesting feeling I had while reading Rainbow Valley was the feeling of familiarity. Although this was my first time reading this particular book so much of the story telling felt familiar, as if Montgomery took some of her best character personalities in all their quirkiness, some of the familiar phrases and humor and gave them a fresh twist. Not to say that the story feels recycled, because it doesn't. Just comfortably familiar and I think a pleasant read for any fan of Montgomery's writing.

For those who have read the Anne of Green Gables series and have never given this book a read, you are missing out. Don't focus on the fact that Anne is no longer at the center of the story, enjoy the story for all the other wonderful characters and adventures that are to be found within.

On a scale of 1-5, 1 being horrible and 5 being excellent I would rate Rainbow Valley a 4.5. I really enjoyed it and am sorry I put off reading it for so long. I am glad to own a copy for my own personal library and highly encourage you to check out a copy at your library or find one at your local book store. This Lucy Maud Montgomery book is a must read!

My other L. M.Montgomery reviews:
Anne of Green Gables
Anne of Avonlea
Anne of the Island
Anne of Windy Poplars
Anne's House of Dreams
Anne of Ingleside

The Blue Castle

And for those interested in reading some or more of L. M. Montgomery's works be sure to check out Reading to Know's L. M. Montgomery Reading Challenge, which will run in January 2010.

Anne of Windy Poplars by L. M. Montgomery

This may sound strange, but while re-reading Anne of Windy Poplars by L. M. Montgomery I was reminded of a sweater I bought in Hawaii... Before my daughter was born, my husband and I took a "5th wedding anniversary" trip to Hawaii. While we were there I found a beautiful cashmere sweater on sale for a really great price at one of my favorite stores. (I know! They sell sweaters in Hawaii???) Anyway, I couldn't wear the sweater at the time because a) I was 7 months pregnant and b) it was too warm outside; so I set the sweater aside to put on post-baby when the weather was cooler. The first time I pulled that sweater out I got a faint whiff of that brand-new-store-bought sweater smell. Immediately I was immersed in a wave of wonderful memories from our trip to Hawaii.

THAT same thing happened when I opened Anne of Windy Poplars (or any Anne book for that matter). I read Anne of Green Gables through Anne's House of Dreams when I was a teenager, and for the last several days as I re-read Anne of Windy Poplars I was immersed in wave after wave of faint, but sweet memories from my high-school years. Cozy winter evenings or sweet summer afternoons when I was free do whatever I like... such as read a book without interuption. Like remembering our trip to Hawaii every time I wear that sweater, reading an Anne book always makes me smile as I remember the "good-ol' days" of childhood.

The novel, Anne of Windy Poplars, picks up where Anne of the Island left off -- Anne and Gilbert are engaged, Anne has graduated with a B.A. from Redmond college, and she is to teach at a private school in Summerside, PEI for the three years that Gilbert is in medical school. While there are some third-person accounts of Anne and her adventures (as most of the novels are written in), the majority of this novel consists of letters that Anne writes to Gilbert during the three years she is teaching in Summerside. The letters are fun to read because they don't read like letters. Anne's letters are more like an ongoing conversation that allow you to hear the conversations or see the adventures (and in some cases the misadventures) as if you were present when they happened. There are some great little stories within this novel, some even made me laugh out loud, resulting in me having to share them with my husband... A true sign of a good read.

The only thing I missed was getting to see Gilbert and Anne's courtship-engagement play out, as you never get to read the love letters, nor Gilbert's responses. And yes, I did miss Gilbert's presence, but never-the-less Anne of Windy Poplars is a delightful and delicious addition to the Anne series.

Fans of the Kevin Sullivan produced Anne movies will recognize many characters and happenings in this book from the Anne of Avonlea movie, although not all are identical. (The movie compiled characters, conversations, and events from Anne of Avonlea, Anne of the Island and Anne of Windy Poplars.) For example, the character Emmaline in the movie is really Elizabeth in the book Windy Poplars book. While Pauline is Emmaline's aunt in the movie, she is of no relation to Elizabeth in the book, but her experiences are much the same as the movie. Also interesting is that Anne's conversation with Diana just before Di's wedding (the one where Anne talks about becoming a nun or working as a red cross nurse and stroking a feverish brow of a handsome millionaire) are actually said TO Anne by the stary-eyed Hazel More. But don't let these changes stop you from reading the book or watching the movie. They are each enjoyable in their own way and fans of one, should easily enjoy the other.

As I am slowly collecting the series I chose to purchase a copy of Anne of Windy Poplars for my own library... I just wish it didn't have to be one of the mass-market paper backs. (Yuck!) On a scale of 1-5, 1 being horrible and 5 being excellent, I would rate Anne of Windy Poplars a 4.5. I really enjoyed this book. It isn't the best of the Anne books, but it is a great read and not to be missed.

------------------
Note. Anne of Windy Poplars was adapted to the big screen in 1940, I'm curious to know if it was any good. Has anyone seen it?

Closing the L.M. Montgomery Reading Challenge

Today is the end of the L.M. Montgomery Reading Challenge and you can find the links to my reviews of The Blue Castle and Anne of the Island by clicking on the hyperlinked titles or by visiting the closing post at Reading to Know.

In closing I wanted to share a few of my own personal memories of L. M. Montgomery's books and Prince Edward Island.

1. I first was introduced to Lucy Maud Montgomery when I was 12 or so and my older sister was reading the series. She loved the books and although she's never been as avid a reader as I, she read her way very quickly through the entire series. Not long after I started reading them, but only made it to Anne's House of Dreams. Just last fall I set a goal of reading through the entire series -- all the way to the end. At the same time I am working to collect the series for my own personal library.

2. I don't remember the exact date, but I think it was also around this time that I first saw the Anne of Green Gables movie and later Anne of Avonlea, both that I watched again and again with my sister and our best friend and even on my own.

3. In my early teen years my sister and best friend and I had our own Anne of Green Gables tea. We made raspberry cordial and served it with sandwiches and cake. We decorated the table with wild flowers we had picked.

4. When I was 14 and then again when I was 16 my family took a two week vacation to Prince Edward Island. We visited Green Gables and walked down Lover's Lane. We also attended the play Anne of Green Gables that was showing in Charlottetown. We stayed in a cottage near the beach on south side of the island.

5. Our visits to PEI were made by taking a ferry across the Northumberland Strait. During our last visit we met a local family who had moved to PEI from British Columbia. The father was hired to help build the bridge connecting New Brunswick to PEI. He gave my siblings I each a piece of material (a little cement plug) like those used in making the bridge. I still have it stored away as a memorable keepsake.

6. When I was a young teenager I read the Emily of Deep Valley series (a favorite of mine). Inspired by something Emily did in the first book I wrote myself a letter on my 14th birthday to be read on my 24th. I still have that letter. And then later on my 20th birthday I wrote another letter to open on my 30th. Both are tiny personal time capsules.

Anne of the Island by L.M. Montgomery

Anne of the Island is the third in the series of Anne books by L. M. Montgomery. This book follows Anne as she leaves Prince Edward Island to attend Redmond College in Nova Scotia. Over the course of the four school years and four summers Anne makes many new friends (and a few kindred spirits), finds a home away from home at Patty's Place, witnesses her best friend get married and another friend pass away, becomes an author, is proposed to by several men of varying personalities and circumstances and refuses all of them, and yet in the end discovers true love.

Along the way Montgomery wove in many delightful scenes of beauty and comedy through the settings of Prince Edward Island, Nova Scotia, and Redmond College and the endearing characters readers have come to love in the earlier books.

I really view Anne of the Island as the culmination of the coming-on-age books in the series, which began with Anne of Green Gables. From this point on in the series Anne is grown and the story takes on a different path, yet the books are just as special. While Anne of the Island doesn't hold as much action as Anne of Green Gables, it does have more of a plot than the second book, Anne of Avonlea did and for that reason Anne of the Island ranks a little higher in my opinion, almost equal to Anne of Green Gables. (To see my reviews of the first two books click on the hyperlinked title.)

This was my second reading of Anne of the Island, the first being during my high school years. And I found that I enjoyed it just as much now as I did then. Many wonderful memories from my own childhood and college years surfaced as I read this book, particularly those from the lazy yet pleasant summer days where two of my own kindred spirits and I explored the woods near our homes. There is something special about a book that can do that.

Interestingly I found myself reminded of another set of books I read during my high school years, The Betsy-Tacy series by Maud Hart Lovelace. While they are not to be compared with each other I think it is safe to say any fan of the Anne series looking for some new reads should take the time to read through the Betsy-Tacy series, they were a favorite of mine and equal my feelings for the Anne series.

As I've mentioned before, until recently I did not own any of the books from the Anne series, shocking I know! I started off listening to Anne of the Island on audio book, but found the reading too slow going, so on a whim I decided to start collecting my own copies. I bought Anne of the Island on Wednesday evening and finished off the book in a few evenings. While I do enjoy the multi-tasking that an audio book allows, I just didn't have the patience to listen to this story, I wanted to read it myself.

Readers familiar with the Kevin Sullivan Canadian film adaptations will find in this book a story that is vaguely familiar, yet different from the Anne of Avonlea film. The movie plot is a mix of stories from Anne of Avonlea, Anne of the Island, Anne of Windy Poplars, and also Sullivan's own imagination. However in spite of this casserole of plots and scenes, the astute reader will recognize a few quotes and scenes in the book that are also in the movie... and yet even in those only a few are verbatim or said by the same character. While I have always loved the Sullivan adaptations I have come to love the original books even more. As good as they are, the movies are missing a certain richness (in characters, scenes, and dialog) that is only found in the books. I can't help but hope some day another adaptation of the series will make it to the screen, something a little truer to the books that will reintroduce them to the next generation. In the meantime, I think watching the movies is a great way to enjoy the books when reading isn't possible.

On a scale of one to five, one being horrible and five being excellent I would rate the book: Anne of the Island a 4.5. I really enjoyed this book, I almost think I loved it. This is definitely a book for every readers personal library and one that can be read over and over through a life-time. It is a great read aloud or book to share with younger readers, yes even some boys.

----------------------------
Note: Anne of the Island was the second book I selected for the the Lucy Maud Montgomery Reading Challenge. I plan to read the next in the series Anne of Windy Poplars, but not in time to include it in this challenge. Look for my review of it sometime in the next month.

The Blue Castle by L. M. Montgomery

As I mentioned previously in my post about the Lucy Maud Montgomery Reading Challenge, I've only ever read her Emily series, half of the Anne series, and Kilmeny of the Orchard. Why I haven't read more is beyond me. I have truly missed some great reads!

I chose The Blue Castle as my next Montgomery read as part of the Reading Challenge for two reasons: first, it is a favorite of my friend Carrie at Reading to Know (who's hosting the reading challenge), so much so she named her photography business after it. And second, because I was given a copy when my friend Alison was cleaning out the duplicates from her personal library. So The Blue Castle came with high recommendations and was easily accessible, both signs that I had to read it soon... Unfortunately I managed to misplace it for a week and a half, so my reading was delayed, but once I got started I almost couldn't put it down!

The Blue Castle begins... "If it had not rained on a certain May morning Valancy Stirling's whole life would have been entirely different. She would have gone, with the rest of her clan, to Aunt Wellington's engagement picnic and Dr. Trent would have gone to Montreal. But it did rain and you shall hear what happened to her because of it..."

That is a fantastic opening to a book! So much intrigue, it just pulls the reader in begging to know more of Valancy and her adventures. In summary and without any spoilers, the story of The Blue Castle is the story of a 29 year-old "spinster" Valancy Stirling who has spent her entire life living under the thumb of her overbearing mother and meddlesome and judgmental relatives. It is only when she discoverers a shocking truth about herself that Valancy takes matters into her own hands (i.e. rebels) and breaks free to create a new and fresh life for herself. A life that is filled with adventure, beauty, friendship, and even love.

I loved, loved, LOVED this story. The Blue Castle is set in the 1920s in a rural part of northern Ontario, Canada (the only novel written by Montgomery to be set entirely off Prince Edward Island). This is not Anne of Green Gables, but that's fine, I didn't expect nor did I want it to be. The Blue Castle is a quirky, witty, down to earth, but romantic story. Montgomery's writing is still beautiful and refreshing to read. Throughout the novel she paints vivid pictures of nature and the characters that allows the reader to not only see it in their own imagination, but almost feel as if they have been there and it is a personal memory.

As far as the characters, Valancy may not have Anne Shirley's temper, but she does have a clever dry wit and sarcasm that gives her character a delightful spark. Her family once referred by Valancy as being part of a "snobocracy" are quirky, meddlesome, obnoxious, and somewhat ridiculous, but still a key element to the story. The hero of the story has much more detail and personalization to his character than some of the heroes in Montgomery's other books. He is easily the perfect match for Valancy.

Woven into the romance of Valancy's dreams and new life Montgomery included a few subtle lessons, social commentary if you will. Lessons in friendship, charity, generosity, and true Christian brotherly love for a neighbor. Not all the characters in the book learn these lessons, but those who do are forever changed. At the beginning of the novel Valancy's life is dreary and depressing, but that changes, she changes. Some readers may consider the ending "contrived", but I thought it very L.M. Montgomery-ish and the end was justified by the twists and turns of the plot. It wasn't exactly how I expected it to end, but I closed the book with a smile on my face. It is a very satisfying read.

My only objections would be that the introduction to the story did seem to drag on several pages longer than it should have, but the richness for the story makes up this and it is really just a minor fault if it could even be called a fault. Also, (and not at all Montgomery's fault) I disliked the artwork on the cover of my paperback. As is the case with several of the recent printings, the book cover artwork a picture of Valancy with a man, but neither look remotely like their characters in the book, or even like people looked in the 1920s. Between the cover and the fact my brain was stuck in Anne of Green Gables mode I had some difficulty picturing Valancy in the right time period. Again, this isn't Montgomery's fault, more a fault of my own imagination added to by the poor choice in artwork by the publisher and illustrator.

The Blue Castle was L.M. Montgomery's first attempt at writing an adult novel. In my opinion she succeeded, although it has never had the success of her novels intended for younger readers. Montgomery was able to tell a story that entertained, but also addressed adult themes (i.e. alcoholism, illegitimacy, female independence, romance, etc.) in a tasteful and appropriate way. She dealt with them realistically, but didn't gloss over or romanticize the issues, nor did she delve into gritty details or graphic scenes. My friend Alison remarked to me the other day how much she appreciate a love scene penned by Montgomery. It is more romantic in its simplicity than any detailed love scene from a modern novel could ever hope to be. All this to say, while this was intended for adults, it could be appropriate for younger readers (teenagers).

On a scale of one to five, one being horrible and five being excellent I would rate The Blue Castle a five. I loved this book, it was a breath of fresh air after my most recent read. For those interested this is definitely a book to be added to a personal library, but if you aren't able to buy, be sure to borrow a copy from your local library.

-------------

Note: Be warned the article about The Blue Castle on Wikipedia contains the entire story plot from start to finish. A reader should not view this article unless they are planning to cheat and spoil the fun of reading this great story.