The Story Girl (1911)

I love the stories-within-the-story. ( )

Wow. The vocabulary [Lucy Maud Montgomery] uses in this book is quite something. Again, as in her [Anne of Green Gables] novels, Montgomery writes of coming of age in a simpler time, making even their hard work seem worth a day's enjoyment. The narrator of this book is a boy named [Beverley King], not the [Story Girl] herself. I did enjoy it, though I found it overly moralistic. I imagine only a young teen very interested in history would find it's preachy tone acceptable. ( )

Sara Stanley, "The Story Girl", weaves her stories about friendship, life and love while illustrating the lives and traditions of the people of Prince Edward Island.

A group of friends experience a magical summer on Prince Edward Island.

This was one of my very favourite books when I was a youngster - and, what's more, it inspired one of my very favourite childhood TV series. (Road to Avonlea, which I believe was broadcast under a different name in the US). It meant a lot to me when I was little, so I was kind of nervous about rereading it.

It wasn't quite as good as I remembered, but I still enjoyed it very much. I've heard it said that Montgomery's depiction of childhood is trite and idealized; that her children are an adult's conception of youth rather than the thing itself. Had I come to this book for the first time as an adult, I might very well agree with that assessment, but I know what it meant to me when I was young. Yes, the Kings and their friends are rather ideal, and they rarely come up against anything of any great consequence. (There is a brush with death at one point, but it's the odd duck out). Some of them are, perhaps, a little young for their ages. But they were what I wanted to be when I was nine, ten, eleven, even twelve. I loved them for it then, and I love them for it now.

As an adult, I also appreciate the way Montgomery blends the stories into the narrative. Some of the Story Girl's tales draw on myth and legend, but most of them are just the sort of down-home anecdotes that you share with your friends when you sit around shooting the breeze. It is not, perhaps, the most compelling approach, but I had a lot of fun with it. It feels real. This is what you do when you're hanging out with your friends. You share stories and anecdotes and funny sayings, and they become part of what's between you. You refer to them time and again. You share them with others. They're a bond; a means of building community. I love that.

So THE STORY GIRL may not mean as much to me now as it did when I was a wee lass, but I still enjoyed it very, very much. I'd certainly recommend it to young children and to fans of L.M. Montgomery's other books, but to be honest, I'm not sure how much random adult readers will get out of this.

(A much longer version of this review originally appeared on my blog, Stella Matutina). ( )

I just realized that the published date happened to be Canada Day. So that's pretty cool for this Canadian book to be released that date. Anyways, I love Montgomery's narrations. I have ever since I read "Anne of Green Gables" for school back in grade 6 or 7. I ended up convincing my mom to buy me the entire Anne series, and have read the entire series at least 3 times up to this date. However, a few days a go, I decided that I should read Montgomery's other novels. And though The Story Girl hasn't spellbounded me like Anne of Green Gables, I still loved it. The novel is very different from the styles of the novels today. Like Anne of Green Gables, there isn't a real conflict to the story, it's a telling of a child's life and adventures. Nowadays, every plot seems to have to hold a antagonist or life-threatening problem to make it to the press. However, Montgomery's books are ordinary narrations about ordinary Canadians. And I think that's what I love about it. I can't wait to read more of her novels, especially her other series "Emily of New Moon." ( )