And we’re back with more of Anne with an E.
Be aware that all 3 books I’m going to be talking about have the title Anne of (somewhere). So, after the first reference of each book, I’m just going to refer to each as whatever place Anne is “of” in that particular book title.
Make sense?
Anne of the Island is the third book in the series, and focuses on Anne’s time away at college. I still maintain that this book picks up where Anne of Green Gables (book 1) ends – and that Anne of Avonlea (book 2) feels almost like an unnecessary detour – but, when there are 8 books in a series, they can’t all be winners.
Green Gables still stands alone as my favorite of the series so far, but The Island felt like an improvement from the previous installment. One reason being that this book felt like it had its own purpose, and it didn’t try too hard to stick to what worked in the first book.
Avonlea fell short in its attempt to continue with the fun adventures of the entertaining Anne, as Anne was no longer the child that I found so perfect in Green Gables.
The Island, however, leaves Avonlea altogether, and takes the reader with Anne as she experiences college, dating, love, jealousy, and heartbreak.
My only complaint about this book is that I still need more Gilbert. I admit that Gilbert got more attention in The Island than he did in the previous 2 books. However, we were introduced to multiple characters who got more time in this book alone than Gilbert has had in all 3 books combined.
I know more about these characters than I do about Gilbert.
Sure, there are things I know about Gilbert from the way he’s talked about by various characters in the series. We all know Anne likes him. He’s smart, hardworking, and romantic. But I want Gilbert to have more time showing me these things himself.
It’s how I imagine it would be like hearing about my daughter’s boyfriend, but never being able to spend a decent amount of time with him. It’s great that you can tell me all these wonderful things about him, but I want to see it myself. I want more time with Gilbert!
Oh, also…they tried to kill a cat in this one. Kind of weird, but I’m willing to overlook it.
Denver Nay Blogs 