I have been re-reading my beloved Anne of Green Gables Books which I have held onto since I was a kid. One reason (I rarely re-read books,) is because I was also rewatching the Anne of Green Gables TV series which has conveniently been recorded on our direct TV. I wanted to see how true the series hold to the books. I fount that although the series is great overall, they do mix up a few things compared to the actual story- for example, in the fourth book they combine three characters into one and rearrange the chronology, not to mention they change key elements of the plot entirely, like the way Gilbert and Anne get engaged (third book)- But overall I dont have many complaints. I cant blame them for avoiding introducing too many characters. The crux of the story is told well (that Anne is an orphan but finally gets a loving home,) that Matthew and Marilla are the kindest people, and that Anne is not too bad herself. The acting is also quite good.
As for the books, they still beat out the series- which is my usual vote: the book over the movie. They can just fit in so much more description and the thoughts the characters have. I love these books. I love Anne's character. She's so colorful -I love her obsession with puffed sleeves, and she has such a huge heart. The stories are littered with times when she helps others regardless of the huge sacrifices required. I love it when she gives a friend a day off from watching her invalid Mother, loans her a dress and everything, allowing her to attend a friend's anniversary celebration...
There's one quote that I like and that reminded me of the discussion we had at our recent book club. We were talking about Aron Ralston- the guy who amputated his arm to get out of a rock and a hard place- the book '127 Hours'- he sorta let his passion for hiking run wild- without taking precautions, and found himself stuck in a tough predicament. Anne says to her daughter in the last book, 'my dear foolish dear, an imagination is a wonderful thing to have. But like every gift we must possess it and not let it possess us.' Anyway, there's Anne. A nice, fun, and calming read, even better than the TV series.
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4 comments:
Yeah, thats a great thought about not letting our passions run wild. Moderation in all things is the best way to go.
It's great to revisit favorite books. They take on different meanings at different stages of our lives.
Need I say how much I have enjoyed the Anne books - started reading them I believe Grade 6/7. She motivated me to go to university - not many girls from Willingdon went. I love LM Montgomery's 'Anne' books. When we visited the Atlantic provinces we visited PEI & the Anne museum.
Glad you are re-reading them.
How many books in the series?
Just read The Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand, Lovely.
Happy reading
Mom
I also love the Anne series and have read them through many times. And, like you Lindsay, I like the movies but think the books are head and shoulders above. And when I say 'movies' I'm not including that travesty bordering on sacrilege that is the 3rd movie. ;)
Dad- yes, good point! Like the scriptures!
Gran- that's so cool she was an inspiration to you.........I'll have to check out your book recommendation too.
Nora- Yes, I thought about mentioning the 3rd in this blog post but was too ashamed of how they slaughtered the story! Yikes!! Besides having the same actors as the previous movies, it has nothing to do with anything to do with Anne!
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