Discussion Post: Anne's House of Dreams

[myr_soleil]

Hi everyone! Welcome to our discussion post for one of my favorite books, Anne's House of Dreams. I hope you liked it as much as I did, and I can't wait to hear what you think!

Comments

[spyglass_]

What I love most about this series is that it grows and at different stages of your life you identify with different books.

It's really interesting, reading the series that I grew up with now that I'm older. I've done Little House and Betsy-Tacy both in the last 18 months, and now AOGG. I love how some things are universal, but that I've grown into a new-found appreciation for the older books in all three series now that I'm older myself.

And I really love that I can still relate to these characters so many years after the books themselves were written/set/published.

[myr_soleil]

I feel like one day when I am in the stage of life that Anne's in now, newlywed, happy in love, new bab(ies) coming etc, I'll feel the same way about AHoD. Oh man, definitely. I just got married a year ago, and we bought a fantastic little house, and I'm going to have a baby in a couple of months - and I just felt so connected to Anne! It was really great. Although it made little Joy's story even sadder somehow :(

[kindness_says]

Hello, it is I, your silly first-time-reading friend, come to respond late to everyone's threads (and I made my own at the bottom, of course!)!

1. What I love most about this series is that it grows and at different stages of your life you identify with different books. Ohhh. I see someone else already quoted this section, but yes, so much. One of the things that makes me really sad about not having read these books as a kid, is I totally feared I wouldn't be able to identify with them in the same way (I think I didn't realize, Anne is not as young at the start of these books as, say, Laura is at the beginning of the Little House books?), because I have friends who read books like Narnia and Little Women and stuff too late and just don't love them like I do? but then, maybe they'd never love these books anyway; I am having no trouble falling in love with Anne in just the same way and I think I'm finding humor in parts I wouldn't have as a kid hahahahaha. I definitely, though, I'm in college right now and felt that about Anne of the

[imaginary_lines]

1. Did you like the book? Do you like the setting of Anne married, or did you miss having her in school

[myr_soleil]

Interesting that you didn't like it at first because it was too depressing! I always ~loved the drama, haha, especially since everything ends well. (I guess as a kid I figured that having Jem "made up" for Joy - I think I know better now. I'm sorry you had to go through something like that, dear ♥ )

[kindness_says]

I figured that having Jem "made up" for Joy

I think I might've felt that way, too, as a child.

[kindness_says]

Hello, it is I, your silly first-time-reading friend, come to respond late to everyone's threads (and I made my own at the bottom, of course!)!

1. I read all these when I was fairly young so this one was always the super depressing one I never wanted to re-read That's so interesting! XD I guess I can see that, when you're a kid. When I was younger, idk if you know the Little House books, but I never liked the later stuff where she goes a-courting and stuff NEARLY as much as I liked it once I was in maybe my teens? and then I started liking marriage stuff more, too, and kidshaving stuff, and so on. And in The First Four Years, I believe her husband gets sick and her son dies or something like that? and I remember liking it but thinking it was SUPER SUPER SAD after the one where she falls in love and gets married? and I never reread it, partly because it was hard to find but also because I don't think I enjoyed it that much because it was so sad. I wonder if I'd have felt that way about this book, too, as a kid?

4. Well to me Leslie

[spyglass_]

1. Did you like the book? Do you like the setting of Anne married, or did you miss having her in school?

I really like the book, and the new setting. I miss Green Gables and the characters we already knew, but at the same time, Anne was starting a new part of her life together with Gilbert. The new setting felt right.

2. How about those new characters? Leslie, Captain Jim, Cornelia, Susan, Jem, Owen - did you like their addition?

Captain Jim! I love him. He's one of my favorites through the whole series. I also really love Leslie and Miss Cornelia. I don't dislike any of them, but those three are my favorites.

3. What do you think of Gilbert in this book? Is there finally enough Gilbert for you? Do you like seeing what happens after the main couple gets married?There is no such thing as too much Gilbert. Ever. But I do love him in this book. It's such a nice change from Windy Poplars, where there is really no Gilbert at all. I love that we get to see what happens after the main couple gets married. It's something that we don't get

[h_loquacious]

Yes. This means a lot for me on a couple of personal levels. It's up to Leslie to make the choice, but Gilbert has to tell give her the options. I completely understand the downside of having the operation and all of Anne's fears, but Gilbert can't make that choice for her. And by withholding information, he essentially IS making the choice for her. Fortunately, things turn out for the best in the end.

THIS. This is what I was sort of trying to say, but you said it, y'know, more eloquently and such.

[spyglass_]

I was going to pull in Jed and Abbey's conversation from Swiss Diplomacy and/or a quote from the ER pilot, but then I decided that might be overkill? :P

I love Gilbert all the more for the way that he goes about this. He does the right thing, even though it's also the hard thing. Not that all of the fears and concerns that Anne and Cornelia have aren't valid, but you know what I mean.

[h_loquacious]

Well, I wouldn't have recognized the ER pilot, but I feel like Jed would think that one can never have too much overkill when it comes to eloquence.

Also, for all the talk about Anne being the possible Mary Sue, I think Gilbert may really be the mroe likely candidate. Perfect boy.

[gabsy]

1. Did you like the book? Do you like the setting of Anne married, or did you miss having her in school?

I really did love the book. And since we hadn't gotten to see Anne in school for a while (those 2 pages set at Summerside High School don't really count), I didn't miss it. I do love seeing Anne married, but I especially like seeing her growing up. I love that the fact that she was raised by Marilla shows in the way she keeps house. I love that she's still Anne, but older.

2. How about those new characters? Leslie, Captain Jim, Cornelia, Susan, Jem, Owen - did you like their addition?Pretty much love them all! I think that Leslie is an absolutely tragic character, and I do like that she gets not only her happy ending, but she gets to grow and learn and BE too, even before she gets married again. The Captain is probably one of my favourite character EVER. He's so caring and interesting

[gabsy]

8. "But there was something in the smile that had never been in Anne's smile before and would never be absent from it again." How terrible is that? How much did you cry at Joyce's story? Be honest.

It's the most terrible thing. It broke my heart and brought tears to my eyes. I had forgotten about that (also, it reminded me of Les Filles de Caleb, go figure). It was the worst part to read, for sure.

9. Canadian readers: how annoyed are you that the Blythes are intensely Conservative? (By the way, even if it later messes with the Rilla of Ingleside timeline, it seems the election depicted in this book is Sir Wilfrid Laurier's, after 18 years of Conservative governments.)

I'm annoyed a little, but then I remember that Conservatives then were not lead by Harper, so I'm a little better. (it's a bit like when people say they were hardent Republicains in the US: during the 19th century it was a very different party) (from what I understand) (simple Canadian here)

[kindness_says]

8. Les Filles de Caleb? -googles-

9. Are there just more Canadians than I realize around, or are there more Canadians that have AoGG as a staple? (P.S. for the longest time I didn't know the books were Canadian)

[h_loquacious]

There are huge numbers of Canadians who haven't read these books, but it is definitely a Canadian classic. Still, not uncommon for a Canadian not to have read it.

[kindness_says]

1. Did you like the book? Do you like the setting of Anne married, or did you miss having her in school?fjdkslgajdsklfljesd!!!! As you can tell, it took me about two weeks to get through this book, for some reason - STUPID REAL LIFE, DON'T YOU KNOW I HAVE LIVEJOURNAL HOMEWORK, GOD - but I did like it! I think I really loved it, actually, but it's hard to tell sometimes when I don't read things in one sitting? I very very very much like the setting of Anne married; especially as I get older, those later grown-up chapters of books like Little Women and the Little House series, I tend to love more than the ones from when they're four or twelve or whatever? but then I have very traditional hopes and dreams in some ways, too, so maybe that contributes. I don't really miss Anne as a student/teacher, because I think those phases in her life had their place and now she's outgrown them? but I do love seeing cameos by the familiar old characters. Jack "St. Clair" Donnell! A carpenter! Dora's beau! I just read the first page of Anne of Ingleside

[beth_shulman]

LOLOL CALLED IT DUH SOMEONE HAD TO GET TOGETHER

LOL YUP.

[h_loquacious]

I think Owen might be a little flat for me? either that or I can't remember what they tell us about his personality because it was like last week, but I did like him!

You know, now that you mention it, I don't remember much about his personality either. I feel like he might just be a bit generically good. Perfectly nice, great guy, smart, a bit dreamy/romantic, but nothing really jumps out.

I mean, I don't like the like illogical-women subtext of that whole section

Oh, that bothered me too. As a logical woman myself.

I don't think Leslie and Owen's rings as true to me sometimes because I was like LOLOL CALLED IT DUH SOMEONE HAD TO GET TOGETHER, but I did very much want her to end up happy OF COURSE.

I believe my reaction when I first read this was, "OH, THAT'S CONVENIENT." I was not very romantic at 14 I don't think. :)

[kindness_says]

I am a pretty illogical woman, actually, but I certainly know many who are NOT. Like my two closest female friends, are much more like "boys" in that sense.

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA. I love pairing the spares, though!!!!!!!!!!!! as TVtropes would say.