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3.77 AVERAGE
3.77 AVERAGE
After Anne of Green Gables I needed more. The story of Pat is a goodmood book that follows through her childhood. Naturally you can find some similarities to Anne but one of the best characters of the book is of course Aunt Judy with her funny stories but quite hard understandable accent.
I'm reading both Pat books in one fell swoop, which I think is the way to do it. In Silver Bush, she doesn't change much, there's very little character growth... but that seems to be a deliberate choice on the part of the author, not simply careless writing. Pat is a girl who is frozen in a lot of ways - and that's not really shown to be a good thing.
I found this a lot harder to engage with than other L.M. Montgomery novels until about partway through. Once I hit that point, Pat's story has the ups and downs of a classic Montgomery coming-of-age story, but going through all the family drama to reach that turn is a bit of a chore. Nonetheless, I eventually enjoyed Pat's character and am glad there's a sequel so I can see what happens to her.
Pat of Silver Bush feels like a bit of an odd-one-out amongst the L.M. Montgomery heroines I've encountered thus far. Many of the familiar & lovely trademarks remain, such as LMM's stunning nature descriptions and the sense of wistful melancholy. But where Pat differs drastically is that she lives with a happy, traditional family, and it just.......doesn't work as well. Sorry Pat.
Most of the side characters feel like outlines of characters, wispy shadows, half-formed with no real personality and no presence. Despite Pat's constant goings-on about how much she loves her family and never wants anything to change, the family dynamic never becomes anything. That being said, I adored Pat herself, her best friends Bets and Jingle, and Judy the housekeeper.
The plot is also hard to grasp -- the first half especially. Things happen and are resolved in such quick concession. There isn't much of a through-line except the idea that Pat hates change, and the many events which indeed bring change and challenge her. But the first half of this book is a bit of a drag, to be honest. Pat doesn't have any real ambitions, which doesn't help to push the story forward -- but she's still a great character. She loves things deeply, and never wants to leave her dear Silver Bush. Her obsession with her beloved home almost gets annoying at times... but I felt the same way by the end of the novel.
The second half picks up, with Pat growing older and her challenges becoming ever more vexing. The end of this book had me sobbing. LMM is unnecessarily cruel to Pat! I hate it but I also love it.
Of course, Silver Bush is a beautifully realized setting on Prince Edward Island. It's up there Green Gables and New Moon. There's a sort of underlying mysticism to Silver Bush, with Pat being told stories of fairies and witches. And the many descriptions of moonlight...lol (if you know you know..)
Definitely recommend to anyone who is fan of L.M. Montgomery's books -- but don't start here!
Most of the side characters feel like outlines of characters, wispy shadows, half-formed with no real personality and no presence. Despite Pat's constant goings-on about how much she loves her family and never wants anything to change, the family dynamic never becomes anything. That being said, I adored Pat herself, her best friends Bets and Jingle, and Judy the housekeeper.
The plot is also hard to grasp -- the first half especially. Things happen and are resolved in such quick concession. There isn't much of a through-line except the idea that Pat hates change, and the many events which indeed bring change and challenge her. But the first half of this book is a bit of a drag, to be honest. Pat doesn't have any real ambitions, which doesn't help to push the story forward -- but she's still a great character. She loves things deeply, and never wants to leave her dear Silver Bush. Her obsession with her beloved home almost gets annoying at times... but I felt the same way by the end of the novel.
The second half picks up, with Pat growing older and her challenges becoming ever more vexing. The end of this book had me sobbing. LMM is unnecessarily cruel to Pat! I hate it but I also love it.
Of course, Silver Bush is a beautifully realized setting on Prince Edward Island. It's up there Green Gables and New Moon. There's a sort of underlying mysticism to Silver Bush, with Pat being told stories of fairies and witches. And the many descriptions of moonlight...lol (if you know you know..)
Definitely recommend to anyone who is fan of L.M. Montgomery's books -- but don't start here!
I love all of L.M. Montgomery's books. Pat of Silver Bush is far from being my favorite of her books, but I still love it enough to reread it every few years or so.
Confession: while I've read almost every other L.M. Montgomery book or short story, (with the exception of The Tangled Web, Magic for Marigold, and The Blythes are Quoted, though not excluding every single short story she ever published; I was an avid reader as a 10-year-old but had an unfortunate lack of good material), I've never completely read Pat of Silver Bush. I've started it multiple times and even attempted to skim it and its sequel but never successfully did (how does one successfully skim a book, anyway?). So it's about time I try again, yes?
I was hesitating between 3 and 4 stars. While the writing still contains quality pasages, there's a bit too much sentimentality jn there, and a heroine too bland compared to L. M. M.'s other characters.
A bit of nostalgic read for lenghtening autumn evenings.
A bit of nostalgic read for lenghtening autumn evenings.
I loved it very much and I want to read it again after I finish the sequel. Ahhhh. This was better than Anne because I can relate to Pat better. This is just a real nice, sentimental book full of changing times but staying true to its old fashioned roots. Ahhh. I love it.
slow-paced