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katebirdie's review against another edition
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
mariahistryingtoread's review against another edition
3.0
Well, we're finally at the end. If you read all of my reviews you'll know it has been a tipsy turvy ride. I am happy to report that Rilla is a good send-off to a mostly solid series. I was hoping for decent so it was a relief that it satisfied my expectations.
The last in the series if reading in chronological order - The Blythes are Quoted absolutely does not count - the story has shifted its focus once again. The last book, Rainbow Valley, mostly followed the exploits of the Meredith children with interjections or passing references to the Blythes. Rilla of Ingleside returns to the Blythe family via the character of the youngest Blythe, the titular, Rilla.
Just shy of 15 years old Anne worries that Rilla is spoiled, self centered and lazy. Everything changes when Canada gets drawn into World War 1. Flighty, irresponsible Rilla is thus forced to grow up in a hurry to do her part for her country.
The Anne books do not have strong arcs. While people do grow, the format of the story means it's not often a central theme in the way it is in other novels. For example in Anne of the Island Anne must overcome her denial to reunite with her beloved Gilbert Blythe. It impacts the story to an extent, but the events of the novel are not expressly arranged in a manner designed to explicitly teach her a lesson. The fact that she does is more incidental as the most important part is merely that she and Gilbert get together, not that Anne experience personal development.
In contrast to all other books Rilla of Ingleside has an actual narrative to follow. While it does still maintain the interconnected short story structure, the backdrop of the war ensures that it stays on theme in a way none of the other books does. Rilla's story is anchored to the progression of the war so unlike other books there is no interjection of other character shenanigans or undertakings. It is all about Rilla grappling with the hardship of war.
It’s a refreshing change that served the novel exceedingly well. Looking at how war massively impacted the women back home just as much as the men was an interesting direction to go in. This kind of media is not uncommon any more (if it ever was, I’m not particularly well versed in classical fiction tropes) so I was not unaware of how much women struggle in wartime. Still, for the Anne series it was a surprising spin and overall, Montgomery did a wonderful job in her depiction. I’m sure women who read this in its debut felt seen.
Following Rilla’s glow up is equal parts fun equal parts frustrating. We’ve come really far in our understanding of mental health and our treatment of minors. While I was impressed Rilla stepped it up not only for her family but for her community as well, I was also vaguely disgusted at all that was imposed on her in the name of ‘keeping a stiff upper lip’ out of a sense of duty to the cause. It meant undue suffering for poor Rilla as she was allowed virtually no outlet for her emotional upheaval. It’s one thing if the adult women make this decision, it’s another thing entirely to expect a teenager to have that same maturity and level of emotional regulation.
Obviously, in times of war everyone has to sacrifice their happiness to some extent. It’s a sad reality of war. But, nowadays we, as a society, at least can recognize the immense burden that it is. Rilla, unfortunately, lives in a time before that cultural shift. As such, I felt tremendous sadness for her unceremonious shove into adulthood.
To give an indication of just how bad it is, Rilla essentially adopts a baby. The baby's mother is confirmed dead and the father is unreachable, though presumed dead as well. When she first chooses to take the little war baby in it’s only intended to be for a few days or so. In this time, the still 14 year old Rilla is left to do absolutely all the chores regarding this baby despite not knowing anything about babies. It’s essentially a punishment for doing a good deed as the baby becomes her ward for the next few years. Her parents are completely comfortable allowing her to do this as in their eyes she’s doing her part to aid the war effort. Nevermind the fact that there are plenty of other ways she can and does help out. Like why couldn’t Anne - a fully grown, adult woman - take this baby on instead?
Rilla has this weird relationship with her closest brother Walter. I don’t mean to malign close opposite sex sibling relationships. I personally am very close to my brother. But, there were moments when the two acted like they were lovers. This was exacerbated by the fact that Rilla had an actual love interest who was lucky to get a tenth of her attention. Walter wrote her long, flowery letters, called her a special nickname, and when he tells her of a life changing decision she literally tells him he’s everything to her.
She does not know Ken Ford that well, but this was the perfect opportunity to have a sweet epistolary romance while fleshing him out. Instead, all of that time is taken up by Walter. Walter is her brother so it makes sense that he’d have more significance to her than Ken Ford in a general sense. However, there needed to be way more of a balance. Especially since Ken Ford is the man Rilla ends up marrying. I know for a fact Montgomery could have managed it since Anne of Windy Poplars is half letters and it comes after this one in publication order.
Anyways, if you’re thinking of undertaking this series I’d say go for it. There are definitely things I dislike - characters are pushed out at will never to be heard about again, the meaningless minutia about social convention can grate, it’s maddening to read about Anne abandoning her career goals after so much effort put forth and there are a lot of awful societal standards being strictly enforced at the expense of the women involved. In spite of it all, I can't help loving it. There’s a lot of charm underneath all the traditionalism. Anne has gumption even in her most matronly moments. Her kids are a chip off the old block. The wish fulfillment is in full force, but there are many poignant moments of loss as Anne ages that makes it feel painfully realistic at times.
The point is if any book character deserved a happy ending it’s her - I’m glad I made it far enough to see it.
The last in the series if reading in chronological order - The Blythes are Quoted absolutely does not count - the story has shifted its focus once again. The last book, Rainbow Valley, mostly followed the exploits of the Meredith children with interjections or passing references to the Blythes. Rilla of Ingleside returns to the Blythe family via the character of the youngest Blythe, the titular, Rilla.
Just shy of 15 years old Anne worries that Rilla is spoiled, self centered and lazy. Everything changes when Canada gets drawn into World War 1. Flighty, irresponsible Rilla is thus forced to grow up in a hurry to do her part for her country.
The Anne books do not have strong arcs. While people do grow, the format of the story means it's not often a central theme in the way it is in other novels. For example in Anne of the Island Anne must overcome her denial to reunite with her beloved Gilbert Blythe. It impacts the story to an extent, but the events of the novel are not expressly arranged in a manner designed to explicitly teach her a lesson. The fact that she does is more incidental as the most important part is merely that she and Gilbert get together, not that Anne experience personal development.
In contrast to all other books Rilla of Ingleside has an actual narrative to follow. While it does still maintain the interconnected short story structure, the backdrop of the war ensures that it stays on theme in a way none of the other books does. Rilla's story is anchored to the progression of the war so unlike other books there is no interjection of other character shenanigans or undertakings. It is all about Rilla grappling with the hardship of war.
It’s a refreshing change that served the novel exceedingly well. Looking at how war massively impacted the women back home just as much as the men was an interesting direction to go in. This kind of media is not uncommon any more (if it ever was, I’m not particularly well versed in classical fiction tropes) so I was not unaware of how much women struggle in wartime. Still, for the Anne series it was a surprising spin and overall, Montgomery did a wonderful job in her depiction. I’m sure women who read this in its debut felt seen.
Following Rilla’s glow up is equal parts fun equal parts frustrating. We’ve come really far in our understanding of mental health and our treatment of minors. While I was impressed Rilla stepped it up not only for her family but for her community as well, I was also vaguely disgusted at all that was imposed on her in the name of ‘keeping a stiff upper lip’ out of a sense of duty to the cause. It meant undue suffering for poor Rilla as she was allowed virtually no outlet for her emotional upheaval. It’s one thing if the adult women make this decision, it’s another thing entirely to expect a teenager to have that same maturity and level of emotional regulation.
Obviously, in times of war everyone has to sacrifice their happiness to some extent. It’s a sad reality of war. But, nowadays we, as a society, at least can recognize the immense burden that it is. Rilla, unfortunately, lives in a time before that cultural shift. As such, I felt tremendous sadness for her unceremonious shove into adulthood.
To give an indication of just how bad it is, Rilla essentially adopts a baby. The baby's mother is confirmed dead and the father is unreachable, though presumed dead as well. When she first chooses to take the little war baby in it’s only intended to be for a few days or so. In this time, the still 14 year old Rilla is left to do absolutely all the chores regarding this baby despite not knowing anything about babies. It’s essentially a punishment for doing a good deed as the baby becomes her ward for the next few years. Her parents are completely comfortable allowing her to do this as in their eyes she’s doing her part to aid the war effort. Nevermind the fact that there are plenty of other ways she can and does help out. Like why couldn’t Anne - a fully grown, adult woman - take this baby on instead?
Rilla has this weird relationship with her closest brother Walter. I don’t mean to malign close opposite sex sibling relationships. I personally am very close to my brother. But, there were moments when the two acted like they were lovers. This was exacerbated by the fact that Rilla had an actual love interest who was lucky to get a tenth of her attention. Walter wrote her long, flowery letters, called her a special nickname, and when he tells her of a life changing decision she literally tells him he’s everything to her.
She does not know Ken Ford that well, but this was the perfect opportunity to have a sweet epistolary romance while fleshing him out. Instead, all of that time is taken up by Walter. Walter is her brother so it makes sense that he’d have more significance to her than Ken Ford in a general sense. However, there needed to be way more of a balance. Especially since Ken Ford is the man Rilla ends up marrying. I know for a fact Montgomery could have managed it since Anne of Windy Poplars is half letters and it comes after this one in publication order.
Anyways, if you’re thinking of undertaking this series I’d say go for it. There are definitely things I dislike - characters are pushed out at will never to be heard about again, the meaningless minutia about social convention can grate, it’s maddening to read about Anne abandoning her career goals after so much effort put forth and there are a lot of awful societal standards being strictly enforced at the expense of the women involved. In spite of it all, I can't help loving it. There’s a lot of charm underneath all the traditionalism. Anne has gumption even in her most matronly moments. Her kids are a chip off the old block. The wish fulfillment is in full force, but there are many poignant moments of loss as Anne ages that makes it feel painfully realistic at times.
The point is if any book character deserved a happy ending it’s her - I’m glad I made it far enough to see it.
appaloosa05's review against another edition
5.0
I love this story of the Canadian home front during WWI. Rilla's character arc is believable and I love all the other characters as well. Montgomery has a talent for writing people in all their humanity..
laurendeen's review against another edition
4.0
After reading Rainbow Valley (and being disappointed by how little Anne or her family appears), I really enjoyed Rilla of Ingleside. While Anne of Green Gables is really lighthearted, Rilla of Ingleside is much darker. This last book follows Anne's youngest daughter during World War I. I got really emotional reading this book, but it was a good end to the series.
karisbirchett's review against another edition
emotional
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
evelynnnn33333's review against another edition
funny
hopeful
inspiring
sad
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
4.5
Content Warnings
Minor: Death, Grief, Toxic friendship, and War
ninnguyen's review against another edition
2.0
2.5 stars
-yeah? Davy's your effin' favorite of the twins? the one who locked his sister for hours while she was scared, cold n hungry? and you like the quiet good-kid Dory who does everything right less? because she's boring and too-good for you? you think she needs you less? she's a kid.
I don't hate Davy like some, he's a kid as well, n I'm glad he started to act better. I just hate their favoritism over him and not caring about Dora.
-that whole paragraph about Anne being "not like other girls". ew. so THAT'S why you like Anne?
-where's Diana? come on.
-Anne even favors one of her pupils at school and says one of em isn't "original" or sth. so what? you're their teacher, be nice, do your job n go home. you shouldn't care that much about them being special and interesting enough for you.
-this was in general less entertaining than the first book.
-I find this one funny was well.
-very problematic n misogynistic at times. I remember getting mad over stuff.
-I really wanna go to Echo Lodge.
-what's with the whole the princess being rescued by her prince thing
-yeah? Davy's your effin' favorite of the twins? the one who locked his sister for hours while she was scared, cold n hungry? and you like the quiet good-kid Dory who does everything right less? because she's boring and too-good for you? you think she needs you less? she's a kid.
I don't hate Davy like some, he's a kid as well, n I'm glad he started to act better. I just hate their favoritism over him and not caring about Dora.
-that whole paragraph about Anne being "not like other girls". ew. so THAT'S why you like Anne?
-where's Diana? come on.
-Anne even favors one of her pupils at school and says one of em isn't "original" or sth. so what? you're their teacher, be nice, do your job n go home. you shouldn't care that much about them being special and interesting enough for you.
-this was in general less entertaining than the first book.
-I find this one funny was well.
-very problematic n misogynistic at times. I remember getting mad over stuff.
-I really wanna go to Echo Lodge.
-what's with the whole the princess being rescued by her prince thing
rchulin1's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
A very beautiful way to end the series this book was. This book is the most sad out of all of them since World War One occurs but it shows how strong the Blythes truly are. The main character is the youngest of Anne’s children Rilla and she is very loveable we get to see her truly grow through out the duration of the novel. And that last line was truly heartfelt
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Death, Violence, Alcohol, Religious bigotry, Animal death, Animal cruelty, Blood, Child abuse, Classism, Cursing, Hate crime, Death of parent, Genocide, Medical content, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Pandemic/Epidemic, Police brutality, Racism, Sexism, and War
votesforwomen's review against another edition
5.0
Heartbreaking and beautiful. One of the few fiction books out there in World War I, and so worth it.