Anne of the Island by L.M. Montgomery – I am really
enjoying these Anne books! Anne of the
Island is when Anne goes to college and it brought back memories of dating,
late night talks, the comraderie between college friends-really, not much has
changed in a hundred years! The book
brought back some painful memories too, as Anne’s relationship with Diana began
to change. Most childhood friendships
change as interests diverge and people grow up, but that doesn’t mean that it
isn’t very painful. It’s a part of the
“growing pains,” I guess. I’ve
experienced it, as I am sure everyone has at some point. For a long time I blamed the growing apart on
my mental illness, so it was nice to be reminded that it is a common
experience. The beginning of the book takes
place approximately in 1903, so it is really quite revolutionary that Anne goes
to college and is supported in her academic ambitions. Not only that, but at this fictional college,
there are enough other women attending that she is able to rent a house with
three other female friends and she had many other female friends who attend
this college. This detail defeats the
stereotype that women were never prized for their brains in the past. I absolutely loved it that Montgomery had the
character that was known for being shallow, indecisive and beautiful, also
being incredibly good at math and winning a math scholarship, which
successfully broke apart the dichotomy of the beauty myth, which has been
around a lot longer than perhaps we have realized. As Naomi Wolf says in her book, The Beauty
Myth, “Culture stereotypes women to fit the myth by flattening the
feminine into beauty-without-intelligence or intelligence-without-beauty; women
are allowed a mind or a body but not both.”
I think reading books that show women being prized for their brains and
their beauty is important; I think reading books that show women being friends
and not just talking about men being important – although talking about men
sometimes is important too!; and I think reading older books that show that
these scenarios happened in the past are especially important, because it shows
us that what the patriarchy is trying to feed us is a bunch of lies. Women can be both beautiful and smart; women
can be friends and loving towards one another; and there is a basis for a
society that values confidant and empowered women.
Anne of Windy Poplars by L.M. Montgomery – Now we finally
get to the book that the second movie is loosely based on, which I should watch
soon, because it’s been too long a time!
Anne gets her first “real” job as a principal of a private school in a
small town. She has to figure out her to
get into the good graces of the Pringles, which are the snooty family that
controls the town. This book is
interesting, because it’s written in a different format from all the other
books - for the most part it’s in the form of letters to Gilbert, who is away
attending medical school. The book is
also interesting, because it hardly references Davy and Dora, who I think are
L.M.M’s most annoying characters ever. And
call me a softie, but I do really like the story of how Anne befriends the
bitter, cranky teacher in town and gets her to loosen up. Again, I am amazed at how progressive these
books are-a female teacher is nothing new, but a female principal, who is even
over a male teacher is something else.
Anne is smart, bold, resourceful, clever, and kind, all of which are
qualities not usually put together in one woman.