Through the Looking Glass Children's Book Reviews
Anne of Avonlea Audio
Fiction
For ages 12 and up
Blackstone Audio, Inc., 2000 ISBN: 978-0786195800
Anne is no longer that awkward little red-headed girl who came to Avonlea five years go. She has finished her schooling and is now a teacher herself. Anne had planned on going to college but a number of unexpected events made her decide that she needed to stay in Avonlea. First dear Uncle Matthew died, and then Marilla began to lose her eyesight. The deterioration in her vision would only stop if she rested her eyes, giving up sewing and reading. Under these conditions Anne did not feel that she could leave the woman who had taken her in and given her a loving home.
So now Anne is a schoolmarm, and she is a happy one. She loves her students and rejoices in the funny and odd things that they do and say. Then Dora and Davey arrive, two orphaned children whom Marilla, with Anne's encouragement, decides to adopt. Davey is a constant source of worry and amusement, getting into all sorts of scrapes f. Keeping up with Davey is practically a full-time job.
Most of Anne's friends are still living in the area, and she has wonderful times with them, setting up a neighbourhood beautification club, going to concerts and talks, and generally finding any number of things to do.
One thing has not changed about Anne, and that is that she is still prone to getting into scrapes and awkward situations. There is the time when Anne gets stuck in a roof, and one must not forget the day when Anne ended up dyeing her nose red!
Always endearing and often funny, Anne is a constant source of entertainment, and her activities and schemes never seem to lose their fresh enthusiasm. With her big and generous heart Anne is forever loveable.
Once again L.M. Montgomery has created a book that will never lose its ability to delight listeners, even if it is old-fashioned in some ways. At its end all one can say is "what is going to happen next?" Susan O'Malley's narrative perfectly captures Anne's quirky and delightful personality.
