Anne of the Island

by L. M. Montgomery

[Amber (The Literary Phoenix)]

My heart is so thoroughly tied to [b:Anne of Green Gables|8127|Anne of Green Gables (Anne of Green Gables, #1)|L.M. Montgomery|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1390789015s/8127.jpg|3464264], I did not think I could fall any deeper in love.

I was so deliciously wrong.

Anne of the Island was like finding a piece of my soul tucked away in a a novel.  Anne has always been a kindred spirit, but it still surprises and delights that a novel written a century ago can tug so sweetly at my heart.  I grew up with Anne's story, but did not indulge in the books until recently.  When I read [b:Anne of Green Gables|8127|Anne of Green Gables (Anne of Green Gables, #1)|L.M. Montgomery|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1390789015s/8127.jpg|3464264], I forced myself to be patient as I waited so some of my favorite adventures to appear.  When they did not appear in [b:Anne of Avonlea|77390|Anne of Avonlea (Anne of Green Gables, #2)|L.M. Montgomery|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1305545757s/77390.jpg|63845], I lost faith.

Anne of the Island had all my favorite missing bits from the Anne television program I grew up watching, and so much more!  From the Rollings Reliable Baking Powder Company to all the bits with Gilbert Blythe.... It was all there, every little piece of my melted heart along with prose that grips the imagination and summons forth tears and laughter with equal ease.  I met darling Philippa and delighted in Patty's Place with it's little orchard and two china dogs, and in the three sweet cats.

Most of all, reading Anne of the Island was like meeting a bosom friend deep in a flowering wood, when apple blossoms scent the air and birds flutter softly overhead.  Anne is and ever will be a dear friend.  It seems, sometimes, she knows all my secret worries and wishes, and knows all the right things to say.

If she were flesh and blood I would embrace her tightly, but I am grateful to have her in these pages, and that she has many adventures yet.

I recommend not only Anne of the Island, but the entire Anne of Green Gables series to anybody and everybody.  From her childhood fancies to her mature philosophies, Anne Shirley is the most enchanting character I have ever met.