Emily of New Moon (Emily, #1) in What's the Name of That Book???

Nov 20, 2006 Elizabeth rated it it was amazing

Shelves: childrensbooks, fiction, canada

This is the first of my favorite trilogy from adolescence. The same author as Anne of Green Gables wrote this series. I prefer the Emily books. Emily is an orphan who grows up with grouchy distant relatives. She dreams of becoming an author and gradually falls in love with her dear friend Teddy; in the third book he becomes an illustrator. The main character is odd and dreamy, with a stubborn streak and a sense of whimsy. She has adventures with the crotchety types that seem to be abundant in Ca This is the first of my favorite trilogy from adolescence. The same author as Anne of Green Gables wrote this series. I prefer the Emily books. Emily is an orphan who grows up with grouchy distant relatives. She dreams of becoming an author and gradually falls in love with her dear friend Teddy; in the third book he becomes an illustrator. The main character is odd and dreamy, with a stubborn streak and a sense of whimsy. She has adventures with the crotchety types that seem to be abundant in Canada, and gets into trouble with the locals whenever a story seems too vivid to be pure fiction.

From Wikipedia:
Similar to her earlier and more famous Anne of Green Gables series, the Emily novels depicted life through the eyes of a young orphan girl, Emily Starr who is raised by her relatives after her father dies of consumption. The series was less romanticized and more realistic than the Anne novels. Montgomery considered Emily to be a character much closer to her own personality than Anne, and some of the events which occur in the Emily series happened to Montgomery herself in real life. Emily is described as having black hair, pale skin, and a unique "slow" smile.

Emily Starr is sent to live at New Moon Farm on Prince Edward Island with her aunts Elizabeth and Laura Murray. She makes friends with Ilse Burnley, Teddy Kent, and Perry Miller, the hired boy, who Aunt Elizabeth looks down upon because he was born in 'Stovepipe Town', a poorer district. Each of the children have special gifts. Emily was born to be a writer, Teddy is a gifted artist, Ilse is a talented elocutionist, and Perry has the makings of a great politician. They also each have a few problems with their families. Emily has a hard time getting along with Aunt Elizabeth, who doesn't understand her need to write. Ilse's father, Dr. Burnley, ignores Ilse most of the time because because of a dreadful secret concerning Ilse's mother. Teddy's mother is jealous of her son's talents and friends, fearing that his love for them will eclipse his love for her. As a result, she hates Emily, Teddy's drawings, and even his pets. Perry isn't as well off as the other three, so his Aunt Tom once tries to make Emily promise to marry Perry when they grow up, threatening that unless Emily does so, she won't pay for Perry's schooling.

Other unforgettable characters are Dean "Jarback" Priest, a quiet, mysterious cynic who wants something he fears is ever unattainable, fiery Mr Carpenter, the crusty old schoolteacher who is Emily's mentor and honest critic when it comes to evaluating her stories and poems, "simple" Cousin Jimmy, who recites his poetry when the spirit moves him, and strict, suspicious Aunt Ruth who yet proves to be an unexpected ally in times of trouble.
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Nov 18, 2009 Snail in Danger (Sid) Nicolaides rated it really liked it

Shelves: children-ya

Giving this a re-read. I think there's a certain writerly maturity here that makes this better than the Anne books. Maybe it's just that LMM poured more of herself into this series. Knowing that her life was quite sad in many ways makes reading this a different experience. (Based on an article about Lucy Maud Montgomery: The Gift of Wings, it was sad.)

May 2010 re-read: My mother sent me my copies of this series. This one was falling apart and will end up being recycled. This has some of the same ...more

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Dec 23, 2008 Kate rated it liked it

Shelves: age-middlegrade, classics, 1993-to-1997

I was given this as a gift, because I had read all of the Anne of Green Gables books and watched "Avonlea," but I wasn't thrilled by this one and never read the rest of the series. ...more

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Jan 21, 2024 Marigold rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: classics, young-adult, canada, child-main-character

Another in the series of "books I read because they were my mom's." My mom had often said this was her favorite mid-childhood book - ahead of Anne of Green Gables, and ahead of The Secret Garden! But I had never read it. Much like Anne of GG, Emily is a compelling child to young adult main character--a reader, a writer who processes her feelings through words, an appreciator of nature, a friend, and a young woman with courage, emotional intelligence, and resilience. I enjoyed reading this. Of co ...more

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Dec 23, 2016 rachelish rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: kiddielit, young-adult, historical

This was five-star right up to chapter 26, but then a thirty-six year old man starts flirting with a 12 year old girl and the whole thing rather lost its charm.

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