Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.67 AVERAGE
3.67 AVERAGE
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
An unexpected and unique addition to the “Anne” series, I strongly connected with the characters. I liked how the stories rounded out and expanded the world of the Blythe family. I found the poetry and conversation snippets very moving. For me, this was a much more satisfying end to the series than Rilla of Ingleside. Written in a very different style than other books, I still strongly recommend it.
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
relaxing
medium-paced
It’s been a long time coming…I feel like this took me over a year to finish (ops 🙊). I absolutely LOVED this book. It’s no secret that I’m an Anne of Green Gables fan, so call he biased, but this was a top-notch read.
The book was comprised with a bunch of poems and short stories that take place where—or at least in close proximity to—the Blythes live in Ingleside. Though not the centre of the short stories, I loved how the author creatively interconnected Anne and Gilbert Blythes subtly into the stories without taking away from the main characters in that narrative.
One of my favourite aspects of this book was all the small details I got about the Blythes’ lives. For instance, I discovered that the Blythes are Presbyterians! Additionally, I forgot how sharp and witty Gilbert Blythes was as a character. His sarcastic and quick humour shone through the parts that he was on.
Overall, I really enjoyed this book! Would highly recommend anyone to read it… even if you’re not an Anne of Green Gables Fan
The book was comprised with a bunch of poems and short stories that take place where—or at least in close proximity to—the Blythes live in Ingleside. Though not the centre of the short stories, I loved how the author creatively interconnected Anne and Gilbert Blythes subtly into the stories without taking away from the main characters in that narrative.
One of my favourite aspects of this book was all the small details I got about the Blythes’ lives. For instance, I discovered that the Blythes are Presbyterians! Additionally, I forgot how sharp and witty Gilbert Blythes was as a character. His sarcastic and quick humour shone through the parts that he was on.
Overall, I really enjoyed this book! Would highly recommend anyone to read it… even if you’re not an Anne of Green Gables Fan
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
So.... Mixed feelings.
Pros:
It's L. M. Montgomery. It's hard to go wrong.
Anne, Gilbert, Jem. Rilla, Susan, etc.
Loving the dialogue after the poems.
Romance
Comedy
The poems are AMAZING.
Cons:
It's a little dark.
A little confusing at times.
I can't say I love the short story format.
It's just a little annoying when the Blythes are dragged into EVERYTHING.
I can't stand people saying bad things about the Blythes.
But really, it's Anne. You can't help but at least like it. Also, what's with the pajamas?
Pros:
It's L. M. Montgomery. It's hard to go wrong.
Anne, Gilbert, Jem. Rilla, Susan, etc.
Loving the dialogue after the poems.
Romance
Comedy
The poems are AMAZING.
Cons:
It's a little dark.
A little confusing at times.
I can't say I love the short story format.
It's just a little annoying when the Blythes are dragged into EVERYTHING.
I can't stand people saying bad things about the Blythes.
But really, it's Anne. You can't help but at least like it. Also, what's with the pajamas?
3 stars?
Of all of the author's books I've read (10 so far) this is the darkest. The first story is especially unsettling... for some reason it didn't bother me when I read it (I was about 11/12) but whenever I remember it now I'm quite creeped out.
Besides that I don't remember much... just some stories about the Blythe's neighbors and liking/finding a few of them intriguing. In all candidness I think I prefer Maud's prose to her poetry :)
CWs, or things that caught my attention: mentions and/or descriptions of blood, murder, killing animals, and probably more I've forgotten.
6/18/24
Of all of the author's books I've read (10 so far) this is the darkest. The first story is especially unsettling... for some reason it didn't bother me when I read it (I was about 11/12) but whenever I remember it now I'm quite creeped out.
Besides that I don't remember much... just some stories about the Blythe's neighbors and liking/finding a few of them intriguing. In all candidness I think I prefer Maud's prose to her poetry :)
CWs, or things that caught my attention: mentions and/or descriptions of blood, murder, killing animals, and probably more I've forgotten.
6/18/24
reflective
medium-paced
Hrm.
Here's my recommendation: If you hold L.M. Montgomery's books enshrined in your heart and the Anne books have taken you to a happy place from childhood on, then stick with the 8 Anne books, and perhaps the short story collection "The Road to Yesterday," but don't feel bad about not reading "The Blythes Are Quoted."
Here's why: "The Blythes Are Quoted" is the same book as "The Road To Yesterday," except with some depressing stuff added.
L.M. Montgomery put this collection of stories together right before she died, but then it wasn't printed till the 1970s, when the darker parts had been excised.
None of the stories are ABOUT the Blythes; rather, they're about any number of their neighbors. But mention of the Blythes is dragged in at every possible moment... hence the title. Much as I adore the entire Blythe family, I have to admit that this plot device is a little tiring, especially when at times it's literally, every paragraph, "Susan Baker says," "Mrs. Dr. Blythe says," "Walter Blythe says," "Dr. Blythe says," etc. One can tell that L.M. Montgomery was thereby doing what was expected of her by giving the public more Blythes, however indirectly.
Some of the stories are very sweet, but as I said, you can get them in "The Road to Yesterday." The only story that is NOT in that volume is the first one, which is a pretty creepy, dark tale (that ends up with a reasonable explanation), but which had an ending I disliked.
The other bits that are exclusive to "The Blythes Are Quoted" are the interludes that describe Anne reading her own and Walter's poems to her family at Ingleside, and then usually two or three of the family offer a brief remark on the poem. Some of the poems are nice and home-like, but others are decidedly disturbing. The saddest thing to me is the family's realization at the end, that the Second World War was upon them and that the sacrifices and lives lost in the First World War were utterly in vain. L.M. Montgomery died in 1942, so that sense of uncertainty and failure was the last thing she knew.
It's sad.
I prefer my Blythes in their original 8 books.
Here's my recommendation: If you hold L.M. Montgomery's books enshrined in your heart and the Anne books have taken you to a happy place from childhood on, then stick with the 8 Anne books, and perhaps the short story collection "The Road to Yesterday," but don't feel bad about not reading "The Blythes Are Quoted."
Here's why: "The Blythes Are Quoted" is the same book as "The Road To Yesterday," except with some depressing stuff added.
L.M. Montgomery put this collection of stories together right before she died, but then it wasn't printed till the 1970s, when the darker parts had been excised.
None of the stories are ABOUT the Blythes; rather, they're about any number of their neighbors. But mention of the Blythes is dragged in at every possible moment... hence the title. Much as I adore the entire Blythe family, I have to admit that this plot device is a little tiring, especially when at times it's literally, every paragraph, "Susan Baker says," "Mrs. Dr. Blythe says," "Walter Blythe says," "Dr. Blythe says," etc. One can tell that L.M. Montgomery was thereby doing what was expected of her by giving the public more Blythes, however indirectly.
Some of the stories are very sweet, but as I said, you can get them in "The Road to Yesterday." The only story that is NOT in that volume is the first one, which is a pretty creepy, dark tale (that ends up with a reasonable explanation), but which had an ending I disliked.
The other bits that are exclusive to "The Blythes Are Quoted" are the interludes that describe Anne reading her own and Walter's poems to her family at Ingleside, and then usually two or three of the family offer a brief remark on the poem. Some of the poems are nice and home-like, but others are decidedly disturbing. The saddest thing to me is the family's realization at the end, that the Second World War was upon them and that the sacrifices and lives lost in the First World War were utterly in vain. L.M. Montgomery died in 1942, so that sense of uncertainty and failure was the last thing she knew.
It's sad.
I prefer my Blythes in their original 8 books.
If you've only ever read Anne, this probably isn't going to do it for you. If you've read a lot of her other works, and the short stories, this fits right in. I had already read the 1974 abridged edition of this (The Road to Yesterday) so I appreciated the interleaving of poetry and Blythe vignettes. The stories are on the darker end, but not that much darker than some of the other short stories in other collections. Do note that, like the Chronicles of Avonlea, the stories are not about Anne and her family, but rather about other local characters, and the Blythes pop up as minor dialogue at best.