Another (mostly) wonderful story following the wonderful Anne Shirley. If it weren't for the unexpectedly cruel events of chapters 16 and 17, I would have considered this a perfect book. There's something magical about following along as Anne makes her way in the world, and I find the books so comforting and joyous to read. They are a lovely thing to begin and end the day with, and I almost always put the book down in a good mood, eager to return as soon as possible.
Rather bizarrely Chapter 16, Adjusted Relationships, depicts a stray cat that follows Anne home. Anne decides they must get rid of him, and Phil declares that they will chloroform him. This is attempted, the cat survives and Anne ends up keeping him. This was framed as a somewhat comedic incident, but I just couldn't find it funny. It felt odd that Anne would be so blasé about killing a cat, especially one that appeared to be in good health. While I understand this book is not from recent times, would it not be unheard of to simply try to rehome the cat?
Then, in the following chapter Davy sends a letter that recounts Mr Harrison hanging his dog, which fails on the first attempt but succeeds on the second. Again, this felt like an alarmingly casual depiction of animal abuse.
These were the only parts of the book I didn't enjoy, but I have to say they did lower my enjoyment of the book enough that I can't love it as much as I wanted to. My tolerance for animal abuse varies quite a bit depending on the book in question, so I know it might seem unfair that it bothers me here, while in another type of book it might bother me less, but it felt so out of place. I think it was the fact that it was supposed to be humorous that I found most jarring.
Now that I have addressed that, I will focus on the parts I did enjoy. Horrible as it may sound I enjoyed the way Ruby's illness and death was handled. I thought it was beautifully written and I have thought about those chapters often in the days since I read them.
I liked that Anne continued her friendship with Diana, but was able to strengthen old friendships and make new ones as well. Diana will probably always be my favourite of Anne's friends, but in this book their relationship undergoes a change. By the end of the book Diana is a wife and mother, while Anne is not. She feels happy for her friend, and also a little left behind, something that I think remains utterly relatable. I hope they stay close in the books to come.
Anne's relationship with Gilbert is a strong focus in this book, and I appreciate that there was something of a slow build. Anne is still young, so I love that she was able to take the time to focus on her education, to live in a house with her friends, to be her own person for a while. I even like that she rejected Gilbert's proposal. Wonderful as he is, it felt important that she could take her own time with that. When they actually do get together, I was happy because of course I love Gilbert, (how could you not) but I was also relieved that they wouldn't be marrying immediately. I'm excited to see what Anne does with herself during the time that they are engaged.
This was a buddy read with Carolyn and Leeanne, which always adds to the reading experience. We are still in the early stages of discussion, but I look forward to all that we will have to talk about!