“It blooms as if it meant it”
The title of today’s post comes from Anne of Green Gables, by L.M. Montgomery: Anne is talking with Marilla, describing the huge cherry tree outside her bedroom window, which is “radiantly lovely—it blooms as if it meant it,” but she’s also admiring “the garden and the orchard and the brook and the woods, the whole big dear world” (Chapter 4).
On a visit to a lavender farm on Prince Edward Island last week (the Island Lavender Distillery), I spotted a single purple lupine, still blooming long after most of the lupines on the Island had gone to seed. Don’t you think it looks as if this last lupine at the lavender farm is “blooming as if it meant it”?
As my mother and I cut sprigs of lavender at the u-pick, I had the words of Mrs. Elton from Jane Austen’s Emma running through my mind. “I shall wear a large bonnet, and bring one of my little baskets hanging on my arm. Here,—probably this basket with pink ribbon. Nothing can be more simple, you see” (Volume 3, Chapter 6).
If only I had thought to bring a pink ribbon! Glad I remembered to bring a large hat. (And my Beethoven t-shirt, with its “Ludwig Lives!” slogan.)
“We are to walk about your gardens,” says Mrs. Elton to Mr. Knightley, “and gather the [lavender] ourselves, and sit under trees…. Every thing as natural and simple as possible.”
I also have a few links to share with you today. I was thrilled to see my debut novel, The Austens, featured on three lists recently:
From 49th Shelf: Most Anticipated: Our 2025 Fall Fiction Preview
(If you, too, are keen to read The Austens, and haven’t already pre-ordered, you can do so here! Thank you to everyone who ordered after I posted about this last week.)
From Halifax Public Libraries: Jane Austen at 250: The Halifax Connection
This post on the Library’s website also features my friend Sheila Johnson Kindred’s book Jane Austen’s Transatlantic Sister: The Life and Letters of Fanny Palmer Austen and includes a link to the “Austens in Halifax” walking tour Sheila and I created, along with other books to explore in this 250th anniversary year.
From Book Jotter: Reviews, News, Features, and All Things Books for Passionate Readers: Winding Up the Week #433
If you aren’t yet a subscriber to Book Jotter, sign up here! It’s always a treat to discover new books and essays through Paula Bardell-Hedley’s weekly posts.
One more piece of news: I’m thrilled to have been invited to speak at the inaugural Cavendish Literary Festival, September 26th to 28th—more on that soon, once details have been finalized. I’m always glad to have a reason to make the trip to PEI and visit places L.M. Montgomery knew and loved. Maybe some of you would like to come to the Island for this Festival? If you’re interested, you can sign up for the Cavendish Literary Festival Newsletter to find out when tickets launch.
I’ll be back on Friday with photos from my visit to the L.M. Montgomery Birthplace Museum.
If you enjoyed this post, I hope you’ll consider recommending it to a friend. If you aren’t yet a subscriber, please sign up.
Here are the links to the last two posts, in case you missed them:
“And—there was the sea” (quotations from the letters of L.M. Montgomery and photos of beaches in Prince Edward Island)
My novel The Austens is now available for pre-order!
(P.S. If you’re interested in the celebration of “Jane Austen in the Public Gardens” in Halifax on August 17th, rsvp on our Facebook event page. All are welcome!)
Read more about my books, including The Austens, St. Paul’s in the Grand Parade, Jane Austen’s Philosophy of the Virtues, and Jane Austen and the North Atlantic, here.
Copyright Sarah Emsley 2025 ~ All rights reserved. No AI training: material on http://www.sarahemsley.com may not be used to “train” generative AI technologies.
