Kindredspiritsbuddyread

Christmas with Anne: And Other Holiday Stories | L. M. Montgomery

Let‘s have a #KindredSpiritsChristmas! Here‘s the schedule for the first week of December‘s story-a-day #KindredSpiritsBuddyRead. We‘ll enjoy these cozy stories and chat about them as we go. Let me know if you‘re not tagged and you‘d like to be!

All of these (except “Matthew Insists”) are on Hoopla as ebooks (and several as audiobooks). The Dec. 3-6 stories are in the tagged collection. In the comments, I‘ll add links for reading online.

AvidReader25, rubyslippersreads, quietjenn, Daisey, CogsOfEncouragement, Prairiegirl_reading, lauraisntwilder, sblbooks, TheAromaofBooks, LitsyEvents, julieclair

BarbaraJean Dec. 1: The Genesis of the Doughnut Club - https://www.online-literature.com/lucy_montgomery/1907-1908/17/ or in this collection: https://www.fadedpage.com/showbook.php?pid=20150145
Dec. 2: Aunt Susanna‘s Thanksgiving Dinner - https://www.online-literature.com/lucy_montgomery/1907-1908/5/ or in this collection: https://www.fadedpage.com/showbook.php?pid=20150145 8h

BarbaraJean Dec. 3: Matthew Insists on Puffed Sleeves - AoGG ch. 25, or in this collection: https://www.fadedpage.com/showbook.php?pid=20150145
Dec. 4: Christmas at Red Butte - in this collection: https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/24878
Dec. 5: The End of the Young Family Feud - in this collection: https://www.fadedpage.com/showbook.php?pid=20150145
Dec. 6: Aunt Cyrilla‘s Christmas Basket - https://www.online-literature.com/lucy_montgomery/1902-1903/5/ 8h

Prairiegirl_reading Wow! Thank you for the links!! I‘m looking forward to this! 26m

19 likes3 comments

BarbaraJean

L.M. Montgomery's Complete Journals: The Ontario Years 1911-1917 | Jen Rubio

A reminder for the #KindredSpiritsBuddyRead-ers who are following along with the #LMMJournals: this coming week (Nov. 24-30) we‘ll be picking up the journals again for just one week, before we dive into LMM‘s Christmas stories.

On Saturday 11/30, we‘ll discuss July 14, 1913 - March 12, 1916 from Volume 3 of LMM‘s Complete Journals. Looking forward to it!

JenlovesJT47, lauraisntwilder, TheAromaofBooks

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BarbaraJean

The Golden Road | L. M. Montgomery

LMM called The Story Girl “my own favourite among my books” and “the best piece of work I have yet done.” Of writing it, she said: “I was sorry to finish it. Never…had I laid down my pen and taken farewell of my characters with more regret…I have written it from sheer love of it.”
Her comments above about The Golden Road were quite different.
What are your feelings about each book?
Do you think the difference LMM felt is apparent in her writing?

rubyslippersreads, JenlovesJT47, lauraisntwilder, kwmg40, TheAromaofBooks, Roary47, julieclair

BarbaraJean #KindredSpiritsBuddyRead #LMMReread Golden Road Discussion 3/3 2d

Roary47 I think she genuinely loved these characters, and to feel rushed in writing characters I grew to love too from the attention she paid to their development I would have hated it too. These characters I grew to love more than her other books and I am sad there was not more. I think if she did have the time that she wanted she could have made more of an epilogue to finalize their stories than just predictions. 2d

julieclair It makes me sad to think she did not enjoy writing this book. But it also amazes me that even so, she was able to create such a feeling of warmth among her characters, that radiates out to us, the readers. 2d

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TheAromaofBooks I don't feel like The Golden Road is a weaker book than The Story Girl - to me, it picks up right where the first book left off. Like @julieclair and @Roary47 I'm amazed at how her inner turmoil and stress doesn't feel reflected in the writing, which is warm and happy. 1d

lauraisntwilder @julieclair I completely agree! 1d

kwmg40 Her comment about Chester suggests she was a typical overworked and tired mom. I can believe that the writing process was arduous with an infant around! 18h

BarbaraJean @Roary47 Definitely! In some ways, I wish there had been a reunion-type scene, where they all gather at the King farm again and reminisce about the old days and we get to see where they are now and how they are as adults, both as a group and as individuals. But then again, I also like the way there are just hints so that the reader can imagine for themselves. 10h

BarbaraJean @TheAromaofBooks @julieclair I didn‘t see this as weaker than SG, either—actually, I think I like this one better because it builds on the foundation LMM had already set up with these characters in SG. The Story Girl‘s stories felt a little like filler in the first book, and “Our Magazine” does a little of that here, but all the little sarcastic side comments really bring the magazine excerpts to life and make them part of the story! 10h

BarbaraJean @kwmg40 Yes, her journal comments really show her struggling to figure out how to continue her work while balancing it with her new life as a wife and mother! Like others have said, it‘s amazing to me how she was able to deepen these characters and their stories—in such a warm, nostalgic way—while she was having to steal moments here and there to write, feeling such pressure and “little pleasure in writing” because of it. (edited) 10h

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BarbaraJean

The Golden Road | L. M. Montgomery

#KindredSpiritsBuddyRead #LMMReread Golden Road Discussion: 2/3

Which of the characters did you relate to the most? Who would you have most enjoyed having as a childhood friend?

What did you think of the Story Girl‘s “prophecies”—and of the way the book ends?
What would you imagine for these characters‘ futures?

rubyslippersreads, JenlovesJT47, lauraisntwilder, kwmg40, TheAromaofBooks, Roary47, julieclair

julieclair I think of the “prophecies” as LMM‘s way of letting us know what happened with each of the characters, kind of like an epilogue. The ending of the book was so bittersweet, with the characters separating and moving on to the next phase of their lives. This was so reminiscent, for me, of leaving high school and everyone scattering to different colleges. 2d

julieclair I think I would have loved to have Cecily as a childhood friend. She was so kind, and calming, and just plain good. 💙 2d

TheAromaofBooks I agree with @julieclair that this was kind of an unofficial epilogue. I thought it was interesting that she gave us so much foreshadowing of Cecily's early death, and found myself wondering why she decided to sort of secondhand kill her off. But I loved the references that Bev makes throughout the narration of still seeing everyone later in life, receiving letters from them, etc. 1d

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lauraisntwilder Weirdly, I think I related most to Bev, who, as narrator, has the least personality. But, he feels so strongly about them all and creates this record, so to speak, and I think I'm often the one paying attention and writing things down, rather than being the center of attention. I would have loved a friend like Cecily. 1d

lauraisntwilder I have asked my husband for the DVDs of the Road to Avonlea TV show for Christmas. 🤞 The epilogue section made me think so much of the show, almost like it is filling in the blanks. I haven't seen it since I was the age of the Story Girl, but I loved it then. 1d

kwmg40 I liked the narrator Bev. I sometimes wished we could have learned more about him. 18h

BarbaraJean @julieclair @lauraisntwilder I agree about having Cecily for a friend! I loved how loyal she was to Sara Ray, (even though Sara Ray annoyed me as a character!), and how she so often played the role of peacemaker, wanting the others to be kind to each other and stop their bickering and baiting. I also loved the friendship between Bev and the Story Girl, the way they had little side jokes or shared secrets/knowledge. ⬇ 10h

BarbaraJean (Cont'd) Their walk to the schoolhouse in the middle of the night and their “ramble” with Uncle Blair are two of my favorite parts of the book. I can see myself being part of that kind of friendship within this group, with their shared humor and appreciation of beauty. 10h

BarbaraJean @TheAromaofBooks I loved that, too—Bev‘s comments showing they still kept in touch & talked about the old days! I love how he writes to the Story Girl to ask about the Awkward Man‘s story so many years down the road. @kwmg40 As the observer, Bev does kind of disappear into the narrative! Like @lauraisntwilder, I relate to that a bit as well. And the little glimpses of him that we do get make me want to know more about him as a character, too. 10h

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BarbaraJean

The Golden Road | L. M. Montgomery

#KindredSpiritsBuddyRead #LMMReread Golden Road Discussion: 1/3

What did you think of the book overall?
Are there any specific quotes or particular sections that stand out to you?

Do you see any common themes or parallels between this book and others you‘ve read by LMM? Or with LMM‘s life and her writing in her journals?

rubyslippersreads, JenlovesJT47, lauraisntwilder, kwmg40, TheAromaofBooks, Roary47, julieclair

Roary47 I really enjoyed this short series. The Story girl‘s stories at the end when she predicted their futures I‘m still thinking about. Especially, when Cecily was mentioned to “never leave the Golden Road” 😭 I also really liked that Peter‘s dad came back so he could go to school. Even if it wasn‘t everyone‘s else‘s school. 2d

julieclair The scene where Paddy died was a real tearjerker. And the scene where Peg came to church was hysterical! And the scene where Felicity cried because The Story Girl was moving away was so surprising to me. Lots of emotional ups and downs in this book, which gave it such depth. 2d

TheAromaofBooks I enjoyed this more than I remember doing so in the past. I think I've always been sad that the book ends with everyone going their separate ways, but this time I just tried to enjoy the book without thinking about the ending haha One thing that struck me this time was that I definitely feel like the Story Girl's father was based on LMM's father, with an ending for the SG that LMM wished she had had. 1d

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TheAromaofBooks This kind of felt like a homesick book to me in a way. This is LMM's first novel she writes after moving away from PEI, and there were things like her going off on raptures about mayflowers and just overall descriptions of nature and the farming community that felt nostalgic - especially combined with the fact that the story is being narrated by someone reminiscing about his childhood. 1d

lauraisntwilder @TheAromaofBooks I thought about LMM's father, too, when the Story Girl's father returns, but also Peter's father, who seemed like even more of a lost cause. And then Bev and Felix's father returned, too! It was sad for the group to be broken up, but that was what made their time together so special. I loved Dan in this one, called Felicity a sweet name to mask an insult. 😆 1d

lauraisntwilder Overall, I thought this was a sweet follow up. These two feel different from her others. Maybe because I just read Chronicles of Avonlea, which recycles a lot of themes/situations from her other work, but the King cousins feel real and more like AoGG in terms of originality and style. 1d

kwmg40 This book definitely felt more melancholy than other LMM books I've read. I think it's mostly because of how Bev looks back on the events nostalgically. 18h

BarbaraJean @Roary47 Yes, all the foreshadowings of Cecily‘s future are so heartbreaking! The predictions are such a wonderful, prescient glimpse of their futures… and then the way the Story Girl avoids telling Cecily‘s. 😭 10h

BarbaraJean @julieclair SO much emotion!! And the adults were so callous about Paddy (except Uncle Blair!). I was surprised at Felicity‘s tears, too—even though I‘d read this before!! But it also made sense—it felt like SUCH a sibling thing. Underneath all the bickering there‘s still fondness and love. 10h

BarbaraJean @TheAromaofBooks Like you, I enjoyed it more this time! I agree about the “homesick” feel. It‘s really poignant to think Story Girl was the last book she wrote in her beloved room in PEI and this is the first novel she writes in her new home in Leaskdale. Of COURSE this would have homesick vibes, and no wonder it‘s so nostalgic! @kwmg40 Yes, Bev‘s narration as he looks back on the events automatically gives it that sense of longing for childhood. 10h

BarbaraJean @TheAromaofBooks @lauraisntwilder I had the same thought about the Story Girl‘s father. It definitely seemed like what LMM wished for with her father. I also see that parallel with Emily and her father—I think there are a lot of father/daughter parallels for LMM in her work! Also, Felicity and Peter reminded me SO much of Ilse and Perry in the Emily books! 10h

BarbaraJean @lauraisntwilder These two feel so different to me because of the ensemble cast, instead of a focus on one main heroine (Rainbow Valley feels similar because of its group of siblings/friends). But YES—the cousins/friends and their adventures here feel so much more real than LMM's short story characters and scenarios! Both of these books are so episodic, but the characters and their relationships with each other grow so strongly across both books. 10h

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BarbaraJean

The Golden Road | L. M. Montgomery

#KindredSpiritsBuddyRead #LMMReread

Checking in at the midpoint of The Golden Road! Thoughts on the first half of the book?

Which events and adventures stand out to you? What do you think of “Our Magazine”?

In comparing it to The Story Girl, do you see growth and change in the characters?

rubyslippersreads, JenlovesJT47, lauraisntwilder, kwmg40, TheAromaofBooks, Roary47, julieclair

lauraisntwilder I went rogue and decided to squeeze in Chronicles of Avonlea before starting this one. I'll catch up for next week. 😊 1w

TheAromaofBooks @lauraisntwilder - I'm reading the Chronicles, too! 😂 1w

TheAromaofBooks I'm also reading The Golden Road, although I'm not quite to the halfway point yet. I'm actually really enjoying this except Felicity seems way more unlikable in this one. She's so smug and condescending. I just wanted to smack her when they were all making their New Year's resolutions. This one doesn't seem to have as many of the Story Girl's stories, which is okay with me as I enjoy the adventures of the gang more, I think. Staying in Peg's ⬇ 1w

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TheAromaofBooks (cont'd) house was pretty exciting!!

On the whole, I don't feel like anyone has changed much since the last book (other than Felicity being worse lol) but I also think that not much time has supposedly past since the conclusion of The Story Girl, either. 1w

julieclair The chapter where they stayed in Peg‘s house was a hoot! My favorite chapter, I think. And I agree with @TheAromaofBooks about Felicity. She‘s on my last nerve. 😂 1w

julieclair I‘m really enjoying all the juicy, and sometimes snarky, tidbits in Our Magazine. 1w

BarbaraJean @lauraisntwilder @TheAromaofBooks I love that you're both reading Chronicles! I support the going rogue. 😁 1w

BarbaraJean @TheAromaofBooks @julieclair Yes about Felicity—ugh!! I did love the comment about the New Year's resolutions in “Our Magazine,“ basically saying that Felicity claims to have thought a beautiful thought every morning but won't tell them what any of the thoughts were 😂 And I'm enjoying Dan's method of dealing with her, with all his snarky “dear sis“ and “darling“ tacked on to his comments! 😂 ⬇ 1w

BarbaraJean The adventures here feel more memorable than in Story Girl—they're doing more than sitting around telling stories & making up games. The Peg chapter is a favorite, for sure—especially after their desperate & scared pilgrimage to ask for her help over poor Paddy! Not that much time has passed, but it seems like they're discussing “older“ subjects and at least Cecily seems less little-girl-ish. Maybe that's just all the drama over Cyrus Brisk!! 1w

kwmg40 As others have mentioned, the chapter at Peg's house was the best one so far. In fact, I'd been finding the pace a bit slow up until then, but now I'm wondering if/how all her predictions will come true! 1w

kwmg40 Coincidentally, I'm reading at the same time Terry Pratchett's The Truth with the #OokBOokClub, which is about a group of Discworld characters trying to set up and run a newspaper. The parallels are fun to consider, though the settings couldn't be more different from each other. 1w

BarbaraJean @kwmg40 There are some great Peg moments in the second half, too! So funny about parallels to The Truth—I still need to get started on that one. Very different publications, I‘m sure 😂 5d

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BarbaraJean

The Haunted and the Haunters | Edward Bulwer-Lytton

pick

Another #KindredSpiritsBuddyRead #LMMAdjacent pick from October—I wanted to read this because L.M. Montgomery highly recommended it in her journals. LMM loved ghost stories, so when she described this one in particular, I hunted it down and added it to our list. I‘m a coward about scary stories, so I read it in broad daylight—and didn‘t find it particularly scary. Then the night after I read it, I woke up in the middle of the night, ⤵️

BarbaraJean (Cont‘d) …was convinced I heard a voice speaking in my ear, couldn‘t stop thinking about this story, and was a leeetle scared of going back to sleep. The story itself was fascinating. I loved the setup: the logical/skeptical/scientifically-minded narrator wants to stay in an actual haunted house, and he REALLY gets what he asked for! Although it gets a little too explain-y in parts, it ends up being an interesting combo of supernatural and not. 1w

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BarbaraJean

The House of the Seven Gables: A Romance | Nathaniel Hawthorne

so-so

Another belated review: this was one of the #KindredSpiritsBuddyRead #LMMAdjacent picks in October—and it was the slowest burn ever. I‘d read that it was slow & wordy, but man… it was really slow and really wordy. It used lots of gothic tropes without actually feeling gothic, it talked about how creepy the house was but didn‘t feel creepy, and the sinister curse didn‘t feel all that sinister. Hawthorne‘s writing really is beautiful, ⤵️

BarbaraJean Cont‘d) …but I kept waiting for something to happen—and once it does, it‘s kind of anticlimactic. I did enjoy the backstory: the generational curse, the inherited guilt, the shadowy crimes that are hinted at…I wish Hawthorne had brought those stories into the foreground rather than sketching them as the backdrop. I have a feeling that in the end, what I wanted was this same story written by a different author. 😆 1w

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LitsyEvents

Christmas with Anne: And Other Holiday Stories | L. M. Montgomery

https://www.litsy.com/web/post/2803706
From @BarbaraJean

Let's have a #KindredSpiritsChristmas! Here's the schedule for December's story-a-day #KindredSpiritsBuddyRead. A couple years ago, we read L.M. Montgomery's holiday stories together in December, and I loved it so much I want to do it again. Let's enjoy these cozy stories and chat about them as we go! Let her know if you want to join.

BarbaraJean Thank you for reposting! 2w

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LitsyEvents

Christmas with Anne: And Other Holiday Stories | L. M. Montgomery

Repost for @BarbaraJean
Let‘s have a #KindredSpiritsChristmas! Here‘s the schedule for December‘s story-a-day #KindredSpiritsBuddyRead! A couple of years ago we read L M Montgomery‘s holiday stories together in December and I loved it so much I want to do it again. Let‘s enjoy these cosy stories and chat about them as we go. Some sources for where to find the stories are in the comments of the original post.

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