L.M. Montgomery's Emily of New Moon, Emily Climbs, and Emily's Quest
It's been years since I read these and I remembered absolutely nothing about them. The first one is pretty great, though very much in the mold of Anne of Green Gables--an orphan goes to live with some middle-aged relatives, one super stern, the others kind and loving, and she turns their worlds upside down with her imagination and irrepressible personality. Fine and dandy. The second two are not as fun--I don't like how Montgomery jumps back and forth between 1st and 3rd person narration all the time, and the third is really just a really long and melodramatic love quadrangle that you know is going to turn out just how you expect, so all the twists and turns just seem like a big waste of time. Also, my favorite character gets his heart broken b/c of course he's not the right love interest for Emily. Whatever!
This is what I mean about those books! I can never decide what I think about them. Jarback creeps my shit out, even though I do feel bad for him. I don't understand why everything has to be so drawn out either. Aunt Elizabeth - despite her not-so-niceness - is actually my favorite character, I think. Or maybe Uncle Billy?
ReplyDeleteHaha, I really liked Jarback--except it is a little creepy how he's totally into 12-year-old Emily. I just found him to be totally a tragic figure or something. Much more interesting than Teddy, at any rate--a world traveler! Aunt Elizabeth is a great character--very Marilla-ish (though of course no one is as awesome as Marilla).
ReplyDeleteShe was more tragic than Marilla, but I guess that's the whole thing with the Emily books. Her teachers, and friends, and family are all darker and more depressing than Anne's. Her life is just less wholesome overall, which I guess is how she can write a great novel, and Anne could only write "sketches for children."
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