Favourite Montgomery Work?

Montgomery's been one of my favourite authors for as long as I can remember, and I have such a hard time choosing just one book to be my favourite... though I do positively adore both Rilla of Ingleside and Jane of Lantern Hill more than most of the others.

What about you?

Rilla makes me cry every time I read it. I have a hard time choosing too. Maybe the Blue Castle... That's one with a lot of re-read potential for me.

Haha, yes, I cry every time I read Rilla as well... As soon as I reach Walter's letter, I completely lose it.

I have all of the available L.M. Montgomery novels and short story collections. One of my cousins gave me her Anne of Green Gables books and my collection grew from there!

My mom read Anne of Green Gables to me when I was around 9, and I just leapt into the rest of her works. Even now it's a special thing between us--last year (or maybe the year before?) she gave me a really nice first edition Blue Castle.

I *hated* the movie they made from Jane of Lantern Hill, another one of my favs.

I like the Emily trilogy best, especially Emily's Quest, and also The Blue Castle.

Too hard to choose... Story Girl was my first love. But I also love Pat of Silver Bush and Mistress Pat. And the Emily trilogy, and A Tangled Web, and Kilmeny really spoke to me for some reason. Oddly enough, I've never really liked the Anne series much. Go figure. Haven't read Blue Castle yet, but I know I'm going to love it.

I've always been fondest of the Emily series myself. I do love reading LMM's short stories though! Many of them are very similar, but I do think she tells short stories very effectively.

This group reminds me that I need to go home quick and add all my LMM books...I don't remember which ones I have.

I can't choose just one favorite of my L.M. Montgomery books, but out of all of them, these are my favorites:

Anne of Green Gables
Anne of Avonlea
Anne of the Island

Hi to all my fellow Kindred Spirits! :)
My favorite books by L. M. Montgomery are
Pat of Silver Bush and Mistress Pat, I always start getting teary eyed when her best friend dies in the first book. I also really really really like the Emily of New Moon books.

Lucy why??????? why oh why???? Ok, I'll forget you said that.

:\

Why what?
edit: Oh, and I also really like The Blue Castle. I'd forgotten about that one.

Lucy - I think suge may have been referring to the spoiler given out to people who hadn't read that book.

Yes, ryn_books that's right. It's cool Valiant_Lucy. I'm making myself forget!

I've always wanted to read more LM, but I wasn't sure if they would be as good as my beloved Anne series. I'm just so happy to hear that all her books are superb!

*^D
*

Oh, I'm sorry, surge! I didn't even think about spoilers!
I've recently begun re-reading Emily's Quest, and it's as good as it was the last time I read it. =D

Love The Blue Castle! My other favorites would be the first four books in the Anne series... my favorite has tended to change with the stage I'm at in my life, meaning I like the one where she's at an age I can relate to the best. Although it's been criticized as being disjointed (I think it was written "out of order" in the series), I really enjoy Anne of Windy Poplars...she's a young career woman trying to make a success of herself.

The Blue Castle is truly wonderful.

I'm very excited as I just won a first edition copy of Emily's Quest. It's not that it's a first edition that pleases me (at least that's not the main reason). My mom introduced me to L.M. Montgomery and like Eumenides, it was a special bond between us. She died many years ago and my sisters and I divided up her books among us. I got the first two Emily books, both first editions and then I bought a paperback of Emily's Quest to complete the set. But I've always wanted a hardcover to match the other two. Sure enough, I found a first edition, matching my mom's books, on eBay. And best of all...my mom's name was Margaret, and this book is inscribed "From Margaret, for Christmas, 1947".

So cool, I can't wait for it to arrive. I am a happy person. :-)

I love The Golden Road and all of the Anne books, really, though particularly Anne of the Island and Rilla of Ingleside. I think I'm due for a reread, actually. :)

I think for me it's a tie between Anne of Green Gables and Rilla of Ingleside, but I have to admit that back when I was 12 I was quite taken with Magic for Marigold. I don't have that one in my collection, so I'm not sure if on a second venture I'd like it as much, but I thought it was worth a mention.

I love Rilla of Ingleside and Anne of Green Gables too, ladygata. The Blue Castle is another favorite of mine, though really I don't think Montgomery's ever written anything I didn't like. Sometimes she is a bit repetitive, but she's repeating wonderful stories so I can easily forgive her :-)

Touchstones aren't working. Oh piffle.

I think The Blue Castle is probably Maud's best novel. Rilla of Ingleside surprised me when I read it again recently; I had remembered it as stilted and jingoistic, but it isn't that at all. It's honest and heartbreaking, though I wish they hadn't been so hard on that pacifist. All of the Emily books are enjoyable, despite Emily's too-evident Mary Sue-ishness (elf ears? Really? Violet eyes? Everyone in the world desperately in love with her?) but Emily's Quest is probably my favorite, because it turns so dark and frustrated for so long. The whole Anne series is excellent, though it loses steam once Anne gets married (and picks up again with Rilla).

I'm thinking Anne of the Island is my favorite Anne book. Things finally get resolved. :) As far as non-Anne books, I know a lot of people didn't care for Kilmeny of the Orchard but I really liked it. I've had a very hard time getting into The Story Girl. I know I need to give it another chance - someday.

Oh no jannief, I always have liked Kilmeny, actually I wanted to name our first daughter Kilmeny, but my husband just looked at me aghast and said "You're kidding right?" I relented, but have always been a little wistful, wishing I'd stuck to my guns a little more ;)

It's such a sweet, simple little story, I've read it many times.

I'm glad that someone else likes Kilmeny too. :) Other LMM/Anne forums I belong to that book seems to be low on the list. You have good taste, katylit. ;)

*is sad to admit she's never read Kilmeny of the Orchard*

wisewoman, if you can find it try it, it's a very short story, will probably only take an afternoon or two to read it. Just a lovely story, I highly recommend it :)

jannief...great minds think alike ;)

The Blue Castle was my favourite - easily! I completely fell in love with Barney :-)

P.S. And if I recall correctly, it was also the only one of Montgomery's novels that was set in Ontario! Yay Muskoka!

Thanks katylit. I have it on my BookMooch wishlist and I'll snap up the next copy that appears :-)

Hi all!

I would have to say that Anne of the Island, Rilla of Ingleside, and The Blue Castle are my favorite LMM books.

PollyAnnaHP - I'm with you. Rilla of Ingleside and The Blue Castle are my top favorites, followed closely by Anne's House of Dreams and Anne of Green Gables.

I absolutely love Anne's House of Dreams too, but it is sad when baby Joyce dies! I cry everytime I read it! It's soo hard to pick my favorite LMM books b/c I love them all!

We've just been talking about LMM in The Green Dragon (another group) and I was saying that I found it amazing she could write such uplifing books when she was going through such difficult times in her own life. You're right PollyAnnaHP, I love all of LMM's books too, it's very hard to pick just one.