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231st out of 788 books
—
710 voters
Magic for Marigold
The eccentric Lesley family could not agree on what to name Lorraine's new baby girl even after four months. Lorraine secretly liked the name Marigold, but who would ever agree to such a fanciful name as that? When the baby falls ill and gentle Dr. M. Woodruff Richards saves her life, the family decides to name the child after the good doctor. But a girl named Woodruff? Ho...more
Paperback, 274 pages
Published
April 1st 1989
by Starfire
(first published 1929)
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Sep 09, 2008
Vanessa
rated it
3 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
Anne and LM Montgomery fans, YA addicts
Shelves:
2008
I have been an L.M. Montgomery fan since she was the topic of my first-ever research paper in third grade. As a young girl I worshipped at the altars of Anne Shirley and Emily Byrd Star, so when I saw Magic for Marigold on the shelves of a used book shop, I had to pick it up. I have to admit, I was not carried away by this novel in quite the way I was by Montgomery's other works. Some of that might be age and disillusionment, but I think mostly it is the fault of our limited interaction with Mar...more
I can't say that this is one of L.M. Montgomery's best works (namely because of the ending) but it is definitely a solid read. Marigold is a girl with a big imagination, and this book has plenty of delightful adventures, like the day with the princess, or her trips to various relatives' houses and the like along with her dealing with her emotions (anger, fear, the like). It's hard to not like Marigold, she tries to be a good girl and she is so spirited that it makes for a irresistible combinatio...more
I didn’t read Anne of Green Gables somewhere between nine and eleven and love the film version like all the other girls my age. In fact, it took me years after reading Magic for Marigold to finally go through the Anne series. But I wasn’t missing any of the beautiful descriptions and joyful depictions of childhood, PEI or small-town life and family, because Magic for Marigold had plenty of all of those.
The story begins at the very start of Marigold’s life, when she is known only as the still-unn...more
The story begins at the very start of Marigold’s life, when she is known only as the still-unn...more
I will admit that Magic for Marigold is not one of my favorite Montgomery novels. Marigold is a young girl growing up on Prince Edward Island, in a house with her widowed mother and her grandmother. Like all Montgomery heroines, Marigold is imaginative, making "magic" for herself from a variety of sources. The problem is that she's not much more than that -- she lacks the vitality of Anne, Emily, Valancy, or Jane of Lantern Hill. The book is episodic (based on a series of short stories Montgomer...more
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When I first started reading Magic for Marigold (one of the LMM-books I bought at PEI) I wasn't really in a Montgomery-mood, but this book sertainly put me into that mood again.
Marigold is a typical Montgomery-character. A little girl who lives in her own magic world. Lovely. But Marigold isn't like Anne (of Green Gables) even thou both have the great imagination. Marigold is besides younger than Anne, also sweeter and quieter. A real dreamer. The book is really about Marigold's journey to the...more
Marigold is a typical Montgomery-character. A little girl who lives in her own magic world. Lovely. But Marigold isn't like Anne (of Green Gables) even thou both have the great imagination. Marigold is besides younger than Anne, also sweeter and quieter. A real dreamer. The book is really about Marigold's journey to the...more
I remember skimming through my cousin's copy of this as a kid and never getting into it enough to read it. It still didn't grab me this time around - taking Marigold from birth (and really, three characters in this were named Marigold? Really?) through age 12 only. She was a boring, lonely girl, and the episodic nature of the book didn't do much in her favor. She grew up, but mostly in between incidents, so it had less impact. Apparently this was cobbled together from short stories about her, an...more
True to LM Montgomery style, the story is full of interesting characters and stories, fascinating descriptions that come alive on the page. LM Montgomery is a master at descriptions. I have noticed that LM Montgomery has a lot of factors in common between most of her stories– they are usually about a little girl with a vivid imagination, they are full of fantastic characters which play on the eccentricity of real life, and they usually have several phrases or ideas that are re-used. But beyond t...more
Marigold is very sensitive and impressionable, and I enjoy reading about her adventures and mishaps that result.
My favorite chapters are the ones in which Marigold's clan holds a conclave to decide what to name her, and when Old Grandmother talks to Marigold in the orchard the night of Old Grandmother's death. One drawback to the book is that I really miss Old Grandmother for the rest of it.
Montgomery was a master at depicting 'clans' with the quirks, interesting habits, and personalities of its...more
My favorite chapters are the ones in which Marigold's clan holds a conclave to decide what to name her, and when Old Grandmother talks to Marigold in the orchard the night of Old Grandmother's death. One drawback to the book is that I really miss Old Grandmother for the rest of it.
Montgomery was a master at depicting 'clans' with the quirks, interesting habits, and personalities of its...more
Aug 09, 2010
Libby
rated it
4 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
Fans of AOGG
Recommended to Libby by:
Petra
Magic For Marigold chronicles the childhood of Marigold Lesley. From the opening chapter, where the Lesley clan argue over what to name the new baby, it is clear this is another beautifully realistic piece of prose from author Lucy Maud Montgomery. In each chapter, Marigold is getting into a scrape, an adventure, or a new friendship. From her close friendship with imaginary friend Sylvia, to being confused for the dead daughter of a neighbour, to having a hankering to be a missionary, each and e...more
A charming book with a charming little heroine. Magic for Marigold is not as well known as L.M. Montgomery's more famous books, such as the Anne or Emily series. After reading it, I'm not even sure why it's not more popular than it is, because I found it quite enchanting. I suppose it's because the book is even more episodic than LMM's other work and so doesn't seem to have as much of a central driving force in the story; and also, the book ends when Marigold is in her early teens and so there's...more
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Marigold isn’t Lucy Maud Montgomery’s most memorable protagonist. But then again she has a great deal to contend with in Anne and Emily. I’ve heard that Montgomery referred to the experience of writing Magic for Marigold as ‘warming over cold soup’. I do think she was being a tad uncharitable, but I also concede the point a little. Marigold is a highly episodic work and there are little elements from her other works thrown in - the family clannishness of A Tangled Web, the cozy sheltered childho...more
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Such a sweet story of a sweet little girl (who for once wasn't spectacularly artistic, if you don't count her imagination). Something in Marigold or in the way she was described kept annoying me a little - maybe her imagination was praised and put forward a bit too much -, but she's nevertheless one of my favourite Montgomery heroines. I also loved the other characters and the humour that was slipped here and there.
Not as compelling as the author's other young heroines, Marigold still has charm. My favourite part of this book has always been the first two chapters, with all the family wrangling over what to name the baby girl. In fact, Marigold's family are frequently more interesting to read about than Marigold herself - especially Old Grandmother, a treasure among feisty old ladies.
I didn't like this as well as some of her other novels, mostly because it felt like a collection of short stories posing as a novel. Each chapter seemed disconnected from the next as we see Marigold having adventures and catastrophes that didn't seem to be related and didn't seem to create character development. Seen as short stories, each chapter contained the trademark Montgomery touch of a sweet girl with an overactive imagination who gets into wonderful scrapes. So the writing was true to fo...more
A sweet book that I enjoyed reading. Not as wonderful as some of her others, but definitely a fun, quick read. I was disappointed to discover that there is no sequel to this book (it ends in Marigold's childhood/early teens), as there is to Emily of New Moon or Pat of Silver Bush.
Happy tweeness about a classic L. M. Montgomery heroine, until the very last chapter, which is called 'The Chrism of Womanhood' and is pretty much as hideous as it sounds. I don't exactly disagree with one of the basic ideas, which is that you have to share the people you love with other people and that's what it means to be grown up. I do object to the other basic idea, which is that it is the fate and sacred duty of Woman to hang around waiting patiently while her man goes off and does whateve...more
Hands down, this was my favourite Montgomery as a child. I don't know why. Maybe because she had the imagination of Anne without getting into quite as drastic of scrapes.
Loved this story. I have read it multiple times, and I still find myself chuckling over Old Grandmother, Princess Varvara and Marigold's antics with Gwendolyn. This is one of the good ones for sure.
Wonderful, You will love marigold and can see a little bit of here in your own sweet little girl. or the one you use to be.
not my favorite l.m. montgomery but really there isn't a book she's written that hasn't been lovely.
The most mawkish heroine Maud ever created. She is cute beyond cute. Diabetics be warned....
Probably my least favorite Montgomery novel; it just seems to have no plot or point.
Jun 26, 2010
Megan
added it
Magic for Marigold (L.M. Montgomery Books) by L.M. Montgomery (1989)
i can't remember this book very well i just remember that i liked it
Delightful story - will pass on to my granddaughters.
This was my favorite L.M. Montgomery book as a kid.
The usual LM Montgomery delightfulness.
Great book Loved it!
This is one of Montgomery's little girl stories. (I almost said orphan story, but only one parent is dead, so Marigold is technically not an orphan.) However, Marigold is younger than either Anne or Emily. The book begins with the naming of Marigold as a small baby and ends when she is 12. There isn't much of an overarching theme to the book, no great focus that drives our Marigold. She has a number of adventures, and she learns about family, friends, and imagination.
I would have given it four stars if it weren't for all of the LONG setting and character descriptions - they were just too long and I found myself skipping them. -Olivia
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Lucy Maud Montgomery was a Canadian author, best known for a series of novels beginning with Anne of Green Gables, published in 1908.
The author of the famous Canadian novel Anne of Green Gables, Lucy Maud Montgomery, was born at Clifton, Prince Edward Island, Nov. 30, 1874. She came to live at Leaskdale, north of Uxbridge Ontario, in 1911 after her wedding with Rev. Ewen Macdonald on July 11, 1911...more
More about L.M. Montgomery...
The author of the famous Canadian novel Anne of Green Gables, Lucy Maud Montgomery, was born at Clifton, Prince Edward Island, Nov. 30, 1874. She came to live at Leaskdale, north of Uxbridge Ontario, in 1911 after her wedding with Rev. Ewen Macdonald on July 11, 1911...more
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