Friday, June 21, 2024

Anne of Avonlea by L.M. Montgomery (#2)

 I was so swept away into the romance of Anne of Green Gables that I sprang for the whole eight-book set. I couldn't bear to leave Anne and Avonlea so soon. This is the second book in series and I loved it too! My memory of the Canadian production is too vague to know if these stories were a part of it...this was all new material to me. I loved the development of Anne's skill as a teacher...her commitment to never whip her students, her delight in their writing, and her joy in general were so well-described that I think Maud (the name the author went by) MUST have been a teacher at some point.

I also enjoyed the introduction of the twins! What a cool contrast they drew to each other, and how fun to watch Anne see her own history reflected in little Davy. There isn't a lot of Gilbert here, just a few powerful and genuinely winning quotes that foreshadow a deeper relationship. The end of the story is almost like a fairy tale, where the little woman in the woods, Miss Lavendar, meets her long lost love and Anne helps plan her wedding. It's a happy ending, with hints of more to come. I'm excited to be swept away into the third novel, where Anne is off to college. This summer is a perfect time to be swept away...there are some challenges that I am happy to stop thinking about. Chief among them is Leonard's health as we learn more about his prostrate cancer. 

Another reason this series is helpful right now is the healthy and full lives of the single women  in it...which may be my fate as Len's health declines. It's already pretty clear that he can do less and less. Henry has been here almost a week solo, and it's been mostly the two of us. Yes, he's had a bad cold, but even before that, he needed to rest and ...well, I'm grateful he is happy to let us go and do... Anne's hopeful and optimistic attitude is just a good reminder for how I want to live!

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