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The Lucy Maud Montgomery Album
2002 Independent Publisher Book Awards, Finalist, Biography Category This striking collection of Lucy Maud Montgomery facts, lore, memorabilia, and tidings provides a comprehensive look at the life and times of one of Canada's most beloved authors. Containing over 400 photographs and illustrations, and nearly 100 articles, The Lucy Maud Montgomery Album weaves together many sides of Maud's complex and multi-faceted life-journey, from the obscure Maritime teacher to internationally beloved author.
Montgomery's own letters, photographs and newspaper articles help illuminate the persona little known beyond the Anne of Green Gables legend - the young Dalhousie student, the nurturing mother and social arbiter, the cat lover, accomplished thespian and avid photographer.
We meet her many beaux and suitors, learn how she coped with economic difficulty during the Depression, and discover how she challenged the exploitive nature of her first publisher, L.C. Page.
Intriguing essays by leading experts shed new light on this fascinating and sometimes troubled genius. Maty Rubio tells us how the private journals of Prince Edward Island's most cherished treasure ended up in Guelph, Ontario alongside one of Maud's literary ancestors, Edith Katherine Smith explores the complex and often contradictory aspects of the passionate puritan, and Sandra Gwyn discusses Maud's influence on such widely-known contemporary authors, as Kit Pearson, Jane Urquhart, and winner of the 1998 Giller Prize, Alice Munro.
Rounding out this fascinating and eclectic treasure trove is a detailed account of Anne of Green Gables festivals world wide, e-mail addresses to all Lucy Maud Montgomery newsletters, web-sites, and much, much more.
Montgomery's own letters, photographs and newspaper articles help illuminate the persona little known beyond the Anne of Green Gables legend - the young Dalhousie student, the nurturing mother and social arbiter, the cat lover, accomplished thespian and avid photographer.
We meet her many beaux and suitors, learn how she coped with economic difficulty during the Depression, and discover how she challenged the exploitive nature of her first publisher, L.C. Page.
Intriguing essays by leading experts shed new light on this fascinating and sometimes troubled genius. Maty Rubio tells us how the private journals of Prince Edward Island's most cherished treasure ended up in Guelph, Ontario alongside one of Maud's literary ancestors, Edith Katherine Smith explores the complex and often contradictory aspects of the passionate puritan, and Sandra Gwyn discusses Maud's influence on such widely-known contemporary authors, as Kit Pearson, Jane Urquhart, and winner of the 1998 Giller Prize, Alice Munro.
Rounding out this fascinating and eclectic treasure trove is a detailed account of Anne of Green Gables festivals world wide, e-mail addresses to all Lucy Maud Montgomery newsletters, web-sites, and much, much more.
531 pages, Paperback
First published February 1, 1999
3 people are currently reading
71 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
August 11, 2017
Comprehensive and enjoyable. While most would dip into this occasionally, I dove in and read it straight to prolong my sojourn to LMM's beloved Prince Edward Island in June where I purchased this. Great for LMM & Anne fans.
January 8, 2010
Another wonderful, exhaustive resource for fans of all things Montgomery. It's like the Anne treasury for grown ups.
December 29, 2012
A L.M. Montgomery fan treasure trove!
April 21, 2024
I keep trying to make coffee-table books work for me, and keep failing.
This one is a far too text-heavy to make it a casual, flip-a-couple-pages-at-a-time sort of book. And far too (actually) heavy to sit comfortably and read. It has twelve chapters, and each chapter is made up of 7-12 sections, each written by a different author. Some are focused on Montgomery, some on her family members, some on odd little tangents that don't seem to fit well.
There *is* a lot of biographical information to be found here, along with lots of pictures. So if you love a more museum-exhibit style, photos-and-snippets-of-information kind of biography (and have some really strong wrists), this might be a great book for you.
This one is a far too text-heavy to make it a casual, flip-a-couple-pages-at-a-time sort of book. And far too (actually) heavy to sit comfortably and read. It has twelve chapters, and each chapter is made up of 7-12 sections, each written by a different author. Some are focused on Montgomery, some on her family members, some on odd little tangents that don't seem to fit well.
There *is* a lot of biographical information to be found here, along with lots of pictures. So if you love a more museum-exhibit style, photos-and-snippets-of-information kind of biography (and have some really strong wrists), this might be a great book for you.
October 1, 2017
I think the rating depends on how much you paid for the book. If you manage to find a cheap copy then you will find it to be a substantial treasure trove, but if you paid a lot for it you might be disappointed by many of the articles which are of lesser interest.
I wish I had read this volume before I visited Prince Edward Island in 2002, which was not that long after this book was published, when many of the people mentioned might have still been alive and even present at the places I visited. So much of the information it contained might have been of great value in making me aware of people to look out for (relatives of Montgomery and Montgomery specialists) at the different places. It would also have made me aware of what sites there were to be seen, and what items of great significance there were to see at the different places. As it was, I missed seeing so many things through sheer ignorance.
The book is a collection of articles on a whole range of Montgomery-related topics, written by a variety of people, and the quality and interest of the articles does vary considerably. There is plenty of overlapping of information, there are also numerous instances of the writers presenting conflicting information. I'd read practically all of Montgomery's books (including the volumes of letters and Selected Journals), plus several of the biographies of her, but there was still plenty of information here about her which I hadn't come across before. Plus there are many articles relating to things which have happened since she died - information about her descendants and relatives, about the places she lived, museums which have been set out, sites which have been preserved, about TV adaptations of the books, about various important Montgomery scholars, and about events and publications which celebrate and explore the life and work of Montgomery.
For anyone who is keen on studying Montgomery's life and work more seriously, this could provide inspiration for many subjects to explore, and provide lines of inquiry to pursue, with clues of where to look for information and who to try to contact.
The Journals of Montgomery only provided small photographs, and often not of very good quality. In this album you will see many of the same photos again, but this time in a much larger and clearer format, much more interesting and enjoyable to look at. Really it is worth getting for the pictures alone, to supplement the Journals, to allow you to see the photos properly.
I wish I had read this volume before I visited Prince Edward Island in 2002, which was not that long after this book was published, when many of the people mentioned might have still been alive and even present at the places I visited. So much of the information it contained might have been of great value in making me aware of people to look out for (relatives of Montgomery and Montgomery specialists) at the different places. It would also have made me aware of what sites there were to be seen, and what items of great significance there were to see at the different places. As it was, I missed seeing so many things through sheer ignorance.
The book is a collection of articles on a whole range of Montgomery-related topics, written by a variety of people, and the quality and interest of the articles does vary considerably. There is plenty of overlapping of information, there are also numerous instances of the writers presenting conflicting information. I'd read practically all of Montgomery's books (including the volumes of letters and Selected Journals), plus several of the biographies of her, but there was still plenty of information here about her which I hadn't come across before. Plus there are many articles relating to things which have happened since she died - information about her descendants and relatives, about the places she lived, museums which have been set out, sites which have been preserved, about TV adaptations of the books, about various important Montgomery scholars, and about events and publications which celebrate and explore the life and work of Montgomery.
For anyone who is keen on studying Montgomery's life and work more seriously, this could provide inspiration for many subjects to explore, and provide lines of inquiry to pursue, with clues of where to look for information and who to try to contact.
The Journals of Montgomery only provided small photographs, and often not of very good quality. In this album you will see many of the same photos again, but this time in a much larger and clearer format, much more interesting and enjoyable to look at. Really it is worth getting for the pictures alone, to supplement the Journals, to allow you to see the photos properly.
June 20, 2018
For die-hards only.
As a coffee table book to thumb through, it is lovely. To read this one cover to cover is a project.
Every angle of this author's life is covered and then some...from the academic to the touristy to the fan to the family. There are recipes, travel itineraries, addresses, look-alikes...we talk about her beaus, her cats, her cars, her gardens...
It will feel somewhat dated, especially in the second half when there's a lot about email listservs and addresses of places to write. Like any fandom, how you connect to this one changes and a 20 year old book isn't really going to help. It also will feel like insider baseball with biographies of biographers.
All that said, for the fans among us, and there are many, this is one you must take a look at. It will bring you closer to one of the most iconic writers of her time and place.
As a coffee table book to thumb through, it is lovely. To read this one cover to cover is a project.
Every angle of this author's life is covered and then some...from the academic to the touristy to the fan to the family. There are recipes, travel itineraries, addresses, look-alikes...we talk about her beaus, her cats, her cars, her gardens...
It will feel somewhat dated, especially in the second half when there's a lot about email listservs and addresses of places to write. Like any fandom, how you connect to this one changes and a 20 year old book isn't really going to help. It also will feel like insider baseball with biographies of biographers.
All that said, for the fans among us, and there are many, this is one you must take a look at. It will bring you closer to one of the most iconic writers of her time and place.
January 18, 2022
L. M. Montgomery is one of my favourite authors! Her life is so interesting! She is mysterious in many ways and there are many contrasts between her life and the life of her characters. This book is very detailed with many interesting pictures.
March 4, 2010
Perfect coffee table book. It has really beautiful pictures in it.
January 31, 2023
A wide collection of photos and articles about L.M. Montgomery. It is filled with over 500 pages of interesting information and stories about her life, her work, and the places she lived.
It includes information about tourist sites and events around PEI and the world.
I found it useful and very enjoyable. The one fault I had with it was in the section that addresses Maud’s prejudices and how they appear in her work. I felt as if it tried to explain them, but bordered on excusing them. It did say that it would now be unacceptable. Well, it was unacceptable then and a shame the publishers and editors didn’t speak up. But, my problem is that it doesn’t address the inflammatory and hateful term she used at the end of A Tangled Web. They didn’t go near it, and really, she wrote a lot of racial and prejudiced taunts, but there was nothing more shocking to me than what she wrote at the end of that novel.
It shouldn’t be skirted around. It should have come right out and said that it was wrong, and it blemishes all the other work she did.
I say this as an avid Montgomery fan. I’ve traveled to PEI just to visit these same places, and that’s where I bought this book. I’ve read everything she’s published except her poetry which will come next, but because I am such a fan, it doesn’t mean she gets a free pass.
I hope she would understand that. So, I give this 4.5 stars rounded down for not having addressed this issue.
It includes information about tourist sites and events around PEI and the world.
I found it useful and very enjoyable. The one fault I had with it was in the section that addresses Maud’s prejudices and how they appear in her work. I felt as if it tried to explain them, but bordered on excusing them. It did say that it would now be unacceptable. Well, it was unacceptable then and a shame the publishers and editors didn’t speak up. But, my problem is that it doesn’t address the inflammatory and hateful term she used at the end of A Tangled Web. They didn’t go near it, and really, she wrote a lot of racial and prejudiced taunts, but there was nothing more shocking to me than what she wrote at the end of that novel.
It shouldn’t be skirted around. It should have come right out and said that it was wrong, and it blemishes all the other work she did.
I say this as an avid Montgomery fan. I’ve traveled to PEI just to visit these same places, and that’s where I bought this book. I’ve read everything she’s published except her poetry which will come next, but because I am such a fan, it doesn’t mean she gets a free pass.
I hope she would understand that. So, I give this 4.5 stars rounded down for not having addressed this issue.
September 25, 2023
I purchased this book at the bookstore at the site of L.M. Montgomery's Cavendish home as a souvenir from my truly spectacular trip to P.E.I. The book is a must-read for Montgomery fans. A fantastic collection of information about her life and works. I highly recommend it.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews