L. M. Montgomery’s Anne of Green Gables series has been one of my favorite stories since I was a little girl. I have always admired Anne’s courage and optimism. With such a strong attachment to Anne, I cautiously dove into The Emily Trilogy (a series picked for our February bookshelf).
Like Anne Shirley, Emily Starr is an orphan who has a vast imagination. Unlike Anne, Emily has relatives to take her in after her father dies. Her family, however, prove to be a stern, disappointing bunch. They are not particularly fond of Emily and see her imagination and storytelling as something wild. As Emily grows up, she is discouraged more often and by more people to give up her writing and pursue something more productive.
Emily’s friends Ilse Burnley, Teddy Kent, and Perry Miller proved to be her saving grace throughout the series. Each character has a special talent and the group of kids grow up together, encouraging one another to pursue what they do best, what gives their life purpose.
Emily, however, is not as striking of a character as Anne (forgive me for the constant comparison, it cannot be helped). However, upon further reading, I found it most interesting that Montgomery considered Emily to be a character closer in line with her own personality than Anne. Anne is rash and loud and colorful while Emily takes time to meditate on matters and processes things internally.
If you loved Anne and are looking for a new series, I highly recommend Emily. It is not the same experience, but the writing style is the same and Montgomery’s prose is both beautiful and comforting. Although considered children’s literature, Montgomery’s work can (and should) be enjoyed by readers of all ages.
I found many quotations to be so wonderful throughout the series. In my opinion, the second book (Emily Climbs) had the most striking passages. I listed a few below:
“Emily hated being told she was too young to understand. She felt she could understand perfectly well if only people would take the trouble to explain things to her and not be so mysterious.” – p. 117
“[O]ften I can’t tell what makes me do things. Sometimes I do them just to find out what I feel like doing them. And sometimes I do them because I want to have some exciting things to tell my grandchildren.” – p. 131
“Outgrowing things we love is never a pleasant process.” – p. 303
“Nothing ever seems as big or as terrible – oh, nor as beautiful and grand, either, alas! – when it is written out, as it does when you are thinking or feeling about it.” – Chapter One
“Books are not written about proper children. That would be so dull nobody would read them.” – Chapter One
“Some of us can recall the exact time in which we reached certain milestones on life’s road – the wonderful hour when we passed from childhood to girlhood – the enchanted, beautiful – or perhaps the shattering and horrible – hour when girlhood was suddenly womanhood – the chilling hour when we faced the fact that youth was definitely behind us – the peaceful, sorrowful hour of the realization of age.” – Chapter Three
“[E]very experience, no matter whether it is pleasant or unpleasant, has something for us if we are able to view it dispassionately.” – Chapter Four
“Don’t try to write anything you can’t feel – it will be a failure.” – Chapter Six
“Nobody with any real sense of humor can write a love story.” – Chapter Six
“It might be a nice world if nobody ever said a disagreeable thing, but it would be a dangerous one.” – Chapter Six
“The world is always young again for just a few moments at dawn.” – Chapter Thirteen
“A woman who has a sense of humor possesses no refuge from the merciless truth about herself. She cannot think herself misunderstood. She cannot revel in self-pity. She cannot comfortably damn anyone who differs from her. No, Emily, the woman with a sense of humor isn’t to be envied.” – Chapter Sixteen
“For, disguise the fact as we will, when friends, even the closest – perhaps the more because of that very closeness – meet again after a separation there is always a chill, lesser or greater, of change. Neither finds the other quite the same. This is natural and inevitably. Human nature is ever growing or retrogressing – never stationary. But still, with all our philosophy, who of us can repress a little feeling of bewildered disappointment when we realize that our friend is not and never can be just the same as before – even thought the change may be by way of improvement?” – p. 6
Happy Reading!
(Get your own copy of this trilogy here.)
Live, Love, Learn,
Candice & The Write Teacher(s)