The Blue Castle

by L.M. Montgomery, Collett Tracey (Introduction)

Valancy lives a drab life with her overbearing mother and prying aunt. Then a shocking diagnosis from Dr. Trent prompts her to make a fresh start. For the first time, she does and says exactly what she feels. As she expands her limited horizons, Valancy undergoes a transformation, discovering a new world of love and happiness. One of Lucy Maud Montgomery's only novels intended for an adult audience, The Blue Castle is filled with humour and romance.

Genres: Classics, Romance, Fiction, Historical Fiction, Young Adult, Book Club, Historical

272 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1926

About the author

Lucy Maud Montgomery was a Canadian author, best known for a series of novels beginning with Anne of Green Gables, published in 1908.

Montgomery was born at Clifton, Prince Edward Island, Nov. 30, 1874. She came to live at Leaskdale, north of Uxbridge Ontario, after her wedding with Rev. Ewen Macdonald on July 11, 1911. She had three children and wrote close to a dozen books while she was living in the Leaskdale Manse before the family moved to Norval, Ontario in 1926. She died in Toronto April 24, 1942 and was buried at Cavendish, Prince Edward Island.

Reviews

[Hannah · Rating 5 out of 5]

I arrived late to the L.M. Montgomery party, not having grown up with her stories as a young girl, but rather read them for the first time in my late 20's. Knowing what I know now about the beauty and magic of her books, I realize I missed out of some major reading adventures with Anne, Emily, Pat and gang, and will consequently never be able to wax nostalgic about how those books effected my life (which is probably for the best, as I tend to go into sappy, melodramatic overdrive when I really love a book - you know it's true, my GR friends) :P

But in the case of The Blue Castle, it's a good thing I didn't pick this up to read until I was about the age of Valency, because I don't think a younger girl would be able to fully appreciate this story as much a young woman who has lived a little. This is one of Montgomery's only books written with an adult audience in mind, and it wasn't highly acclaimed at the time of publication or for several decades afterwards. It definitely deals with more adult themes, and does so with a very sympathetic hand. I have since learned more about Montgomery's less-then-fairytale life, and it makes me appreciate her talents even more.

If Jane Austen's Persuasion is all about second chances in life, then Montgomery's The Blue Castle is all about allowing oneself to have a chance at all. Valancy's road to independence at the age of 29 is chock-full of convenient coincidences that happen in order for her (and the story) to blossom, but those plot contrivances thankfully don't lessen the appeal of the story. While the majority of the characters are one dimensional and make only a brief appearance, Montgomery perfectly captured the character of Valancy, her mother, Roaring Abel, Cissie, and Barney Snaith. And speaking of Barney Snaith, was there EVER a swoon-worthy hero with a more dumpy name in the history of fiction? Good grief, the man oozes sex appeal, but no reader ever brings him up in discussions of great fictional heros, and I am convinced it's because of his name. Think about it:

Gone with the Wind: Barney Butler....
Pride and Prejudice: Barney Darcy....
Twilight: Barney Cullen....

I rest my case.

[Tadiana ✩Night Owl☽ · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you think your relatives argue too much over Sunday dinner or are just impossible to live with

try Valancy Stirling's family.

Written in 1926 by the author of the beloved Anne of Green Gables series, this is the story of Valancy, a 29 year old timid mouse of a person, considered an old maid by her family and the town generally. She does what everyone asks even when she hates it, quails before her insolent relatives, never talks back (except in her own mind), cries herself to sleep on a regular basis, and overall lives a thoroughly miserable life. Her only solace is the imaginary Blue Castle she lives in when she daydreams, and the poetic nature books of John Foster, which speak to her heart.

One day Valancy, without telling her family, sneaks off to the doctor to find out why her heart has been bothering her. The doctor examines her, but rushes off in an emergency before he can give her a diagnosis. The letter she gets a day or two later from the doctor informs her that she has a severe heart condition, and less than a year to live.

Oddly enough, this death sentence frees Valancy from her miserable existence. With nothing to lose, she starts sassing her ice-cold mother and relatives, begins wearing "unsuitable" clothing, moves out of the family home, and generally starts doing what she wants to without a thought for propriety. It's lovely to see her bloom and gain confidence, and begin to seek out happiness and love on her own terms. And eventually (I won't spoil the story by going into the hows and whys) she finds a home in a cottage by the lake that reminds her of her beloved Blue Castle.



This really is an old-fashioned, romantic "wish fulfillment" type of tale, and you have to just appreciate it for what it is. A few things kind of bothered me: You have to wade through a fair amount of misery in the beginning of the book before Valancy decides to grow a spine (I recommended this book to my mother, and she texted me for two days whining about the first part and asking me if I was certain she was going to like this book). The plot is also pretty transparent: there are a couple of . . . developments (I can't really call them twists) that I could see coming from almost the very beginning of the book. But the lyrical, loving descriptions of the beauties of nature, a sweet romance and the witty humor touched my heart and won me over. Forget whatever shortcomings there are and just enjoy the ride.

If you like Anne of Green Gables and other old-fashioned books, you'll probably love this one. And you might pick up a few handy insults to use with your relatives when they get insufferable.

4.5 stars.

[Nikola · Rating 5 out of 5]

2020: 4/5
2022: 5/5 Sięgnęłam po inne tłumaczenie (nieskrócone wydanie) i UWIELBIAM!
2025: 5/5 to jedna z tych książek, które mogłabym czytać ciągle od nowa…
2025 wrzesień: 5/5 podpisuję się pod tym co napisałam wyżej. Tłumaczenie Kai jest świetne. Brawo i gratulacje!

[Meghhnaa (On a Review-Writing Break!) · Rating 4 out of 5]

I HAD TEARS AND SMILE THROUGHOUT.

Warning- This novel is endearing and filled with ardour to a dangerous level, that one can risk into crooning and canoodling with the novel throughout!
Nothing could put the 2 of us asunder! 😊
Reading this was like finding a niche in the middle of this gruesome reality!

Quick Plot Summary -
Trying to bring together all the broken pieces of life, coming out of the fear of living, after knowing she has only a year left to live (coz of a fatal heart disease), the 29-year old Valancy Stirling (labelled as an oldmaid) no longer cares about the society, and family members. In short, she decides to stop impressing others, and takes an avowal to start living for herself and experience what all she had dreamt till date for herself!
She wishes to experience being with the man of her dreams and be in her dream house, which she refers to as “The Blue Castle”. Taking the reins of her life in her hands, she decides to live, and be a priority and not an option any more. She finally takes control!!
Post coming out of the clutches of her domineering and imperious family, she lands into a job of a caretaker of one of her former schoolmates, Cissy(who is passing away due to consumption). While working, she develops closeness with Barney Snaith!
After Cissy passes away, Valancy asks Barney to marry her, while confessing that she is about to die soon! Agreeing on the proposal, he takes her to live on his island in the woods, which ofcourse Valancy calls as “The Blue Castle”.
Having spent over a year, her heart health improves, and finally the disease vanishes. In course of events, they realise that the diagnosis was erroneous, and she never had any heart problem. Finally, the family re-unites, and all live happily ever after! 😊
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MY VIEWS-
Epitome of Independence, and being true to one’s own identity, for traversing the path to true happiness, this novel defines adopting escapism vicariously to splinter the shackles of double society standards. Valancy’s family as a unit is metaphorical of this society, who constantly bullies Valancy, belittles and condescends her, and to escape the petrifying reality, Valancy builds her own “Blue Castle” in her dreams.

She is forever made to feel like an outsider, and is called a Doss! Blue castle, as an imaginary place, comes to her rescue, which she finally MANIFESTS!

An enthralling 4-stars for this book of novelty and prose, profusely laden with flora and fauna!

With an atmospheric and vibrant writing, it is an engaging, compelling, and an enjoyable read. Apt as a winter-read for the biting yet romantic season, to be accompanied with a hot cup of cocoa in hand!

From a stifling life to a vibrant life with her dream guy in her dream house, “The Blue castle” propounds about finding life and living it! 😊

Valancy, ultimately finds what she desired for, hope we too!

My fav part is the conversation between Barney and Valancy, which encapsulates the essence of the novel (with teary and smiling eyes 😊)-

"You see--I've never had any real life," she said. "I've just--breathed. Every door has always been shut to me."

My heart almost skipped a beat, when I went through the following lines (These are my favorite lines, I have ever read)-

"Isn't it better to have your heart broken than to have it wither up?" queried Valancy. "Before it could be broken it must have felt something splendid. That would be worth the pain."


Few other notable ones-

"John Foster says," quoted Valancy, "'If you can sit in silence with a person for half an hour and yet be entirely comfortable, you and that person can be friends. If you cannot, friends you'll never be and you need not waste time in trying.'"

The epitome of LOVE-

After the meal was over they would sit there and talk for hours--or sit and say nothing, in all the languages of the world, Barney pulling away at his pipe, Valancy dreaming idly and deliciously, gazing at the far-off hills beyond…

The epitome of ROMANCE-

"Not lovelier. But a different kind of loveliness. There are so many kinds of loveliness. Valancy, before this year you've spent all your life in ugliness. You know nothing of the beauty of the world. We'll climb mountains--hunt for 192 treasures in the bazaars of Samarcand--search out the magic of east and west--run hand in hand to the rim of the world. I want to show you it all--see it again through your eyes. Girl, there are a million things I want to show you--do with you--say to you. It will take a lifetime. And we must see about that picture by Tierney, after all."

A laudable work by LM Montogomery, not set on Prince Edward Island, like all her other works! 😊

Nb- I have docked a star, wishing if Barney Snaith was introduced earlier, or the romance quotient, was increased a tad more. This is a plea from a die-heart romantic like me!! :P

[Carolyn Marie · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Blue Castle is without a doubt a new all time favorite classic of mine. It is also further proof that L. M. Montgomery was (and still is) a literary genius and icon!

L. M. Montgomery’s humor in this story is exceptional. Her (or should I say the main character, Valancy’s) wit and sarcasm made me genuinely laugh out loud multiple times while reading. In a way, it reminded me a lot of the humor found in the works of Jane Austen (who I adore, of course).

I’m overjoyed to say that I love this book just as much as I love the Anne series. Although they are very different in many ways, both stories have the same magic, wonder, imagination, and beauty… L. M. Montgomery’s literary landmarks! Finally, I can’t forget to mention how gorgeously she captures the places her stories are set. Every tree, sunset, and glimmer of light is always described in full detail, honoring the extraordinary beauty of the natural world around us.

This book is a must read, especially if you love the Anne series and the works of Jane Austen!

[Alexis Hall]

Hello one of my favourite books of all time, recently re-read to get me through what was a fairly stressful week, even for someone an ocean-away from the stress epicentre.

The Blue Castle just a goddamn fucking balm. Always.

The heroine, Valancy Stirling (my stars, what a name), is unmarried and twenty-something at a time when being unmarried twenty-something means your life is a total waste. Her family are repressive and awful beyond belief. Then she receives the news that she has a fatal heart condition and will die within a year.

Queue Valancy Now-Voyagering out and deciding to spend her last year actually living. Sliding down bannisters. Trying to shape for herself a life that actually makes her happy. Telling her awful family exactly what she thinks of them. And, as it happens, impulsively marrying a mysterious, wood-dwelling man called Barney Snaith (my stars, what a name in A BAD WAY). It’s kind of a pity-fuck marriage in the sense that Valancy is in love with him and Barney is trying to be a good person. But they move into his cottage on an island and proceed to be very, very happy together.

There’s some HIGHLY DRAMATIC twists and revelations in the final third which should dbe too pat, too perfect but … are actually just right for the story. Needless to say, spoilers ho, Valancy doesn’t die. Barney does fall in love with her. The blue castle—Valancy’s metaphor for her happiness—is real.

What I love about this book is that its simultaneously sweet as pie and sharp as fuck. The scene where Valancy lays the almighty smackdown on her family is worth the price of admission alone. But, in general, it’s full of hope, optimism, whimsy and the beauty of things both big and small. The other thing I’m kind of very here for is Valancy’s commitment to her own happiness. She’s not ambitious, she longs for romance, she doesn’t want to change THE world, just HER world. I think it’s fairly rarely to find a protagonist who is allowed to have such personal goals. Rare still that she allowed to achieve them.

Read this book when you need to be reminded that love is important, your own happiness is worth striving for, ambition can begin and end with yourself, and sometimes you just gotta tell vile people exactly what you think of them.

[Piyangie · Rating 5 out of 5]

When I came across The Blue Castle a few years ago, I thought it was merely a young adult romance. I don't read romance novels now. I've read them enough for a lifetime when I was a young adult myself. :) But recently when it came to my notice again, I thought I'll give it a try. I told myself that I would endure it because it was a work of L.M. Montgomery and because my bookshelf is in want of Canadian literature. The first few chapters, however, were enough to set me straight. This wasn't a romance novel. Of course, it has romance but the story goes deeper than that. I was pleasantly surprised and a tad bit annoyed for judging a book too hastily by its cover.

The Blue Castle is a story of courage, of finding one's inner strength to fight fear, of standing up to family bullying and oppression, of finding life and living it on one's own terms, and finally of healing with the help of nature and love. The story is simple, perhaps too simple, but that didn't in any way impede the strong message of hope that is conveyed. In the present trying times, there are moments that our courage fails us when we lose hope that there could be better times ahead for us. In these moments of despair, Valancy Sterling gives us hope to journey through life amidst many adversaries.

What this simple story with its powerful message did to me is beyond the power of any word. I both laughed and cried over it. It is very rare in a book to arouse emotions of opposite poles. It also transported me away from this burdensome reality, and away from this mundane life and the claustrophobic surroundings into the magical realm of nature with its breathtaking lake views, the wilderness of the woods, and the pleasant atmosphere of peace and quiet and oneness. Sometimes books have the healing power which none other has. It uplifts your spirits and makes you more optimistic. The Blue Castle falls into that lot. Perhaps it is my present mood that makes me feel so strongly about this book, but honestly, I loved it. I feel I read it at the right moment when I needed to be reminded that despite the present chaos around you there is hope yet for better and happier times.

More of my reviews can be found at http://piyangiejay.com/

[Marquise · Rating 4 out of 5]

Moral of the story, short version: YOLO.

Moral of the story, long Marquise version: Doctors' misdiagnoses, when they don't get you killed, are motivational.

This is one of those books you judge by the ending, and that's what I'm going to focus on. But first, I have to say that the ending doesn't bother me, and my critique is more based on what I believe would have been a better development of the climax rather than the outcome itself. I don't believe the ending ruins the story; at best it makes it a tad too sentimental and too convenient to be realistic.

Going straight to the point, I don't think Valancy not having the disease she thought she had is, in itself, fine. It's the how she came to believe that I am not fine with. I'll explain my reasoning with spoilers ahead.

You see, I think Valancy should've believed that because of a doctor's misdiagnosis, and not because of a doctor's correct diagnosis getting mixed in the mail and sent to her by mistake. That is what I find non-credible and its implausibility stretches credulity. "Oh, the letters were sent to the wrong address and you're healthy now!" How possible or common is that, really? I have never heard of such a case, which isn't to say it has never happened, but if it has, it must be a millions-to-one event.

I have, however, heard numerous cases of doctors' misdiagnoses. I have experienced one myself. When I was a child, I had frequent stomach trouble, and my poor mother took me from one physician to the next until my mid-teens, and all of them told her a different thing. Some gave us ridiculous diagnoses and some gave us more serious diagnoses, but none of them was correct, and I spent years taking all sorts of pills and vitamins to no avail. Until my mother, fed up with all those doctors, took me to the capital's top gastroenterologist, one of the best in the country, which examined me and laughed at everything my mother told him the other docs had told her. My stomach problem was a common issue, he said, not frequent in children but easy to treat, and he derived me to an American colleage that was visiting those days. I got treated, and my stomach has never troubled me again. I have iron guts that can withstand everything, even the spiciest Mexican and Asian food you can throw at me.

Point being, Valancy's heart disease should've been a true misdiagnosis. Dr Trent's mistake should've been in diagnosing her wrongly, not in sending her the letter meant for another patient.

I mean, a diagnosis of a life-threatening condition turns your existence upside down and is deeply traumatising. How many of you know about a relative, a friend, a neighbour, etc., that got a cancer diagnosis, for example? I'm sure many of you have, and thus know how deeply affecting it is. A person that is told they have a lethal condition and not much time left to live is forever changed. Some for the better, some for the worse. Some break down completely and never recover, some go to their grave fighting courageously. Even when it appears to outsiders that the person is the same, they never are. A chronic or fatal illness never leaves you the same on the inside, never.

So, imagine how much more affecting it would be if you were to find out that your doctor screwed it up and told you a lie, be it from human error or incompetence?

What then? What would you do? Surely some of you do also know of cases where a person was misdiagnoses something very serious and somehow survived or beat the odds to live much longer than the doctors predicted. It needn't be a case of misdiagnosis, either, because there's people who will prove the doctors wrong and defeat the odds to live when they were told they wouldn't.

For me, it would've been more realistic and impactful if Valancy had confronted Dr Trent and he had realised and admitted to his misdiagnosis. She already had gone to him thinking he must've been mistaken in his diagnosis, so for him to tell her it was a mail switcheroo didn't sit well with me. Valancy had braved familial condemnation and social ostracism in order to live her last months on this Earth like she wanted, had grabbed the bull by the horns and became independent, finding love in the process, only to learn that it was a problem with the letters?

No, it takes away the emotional impact of her fatal disease as a motivator to improve her lot in life to die happy. Imagine what it would be like if you were told you had cancer and only 6 months to live, and next you go to the doc, he tells you the diagnosis was for the old bat down the street from you and that you're just a silly healthy chit.

Of course, it would've been even better if Valancy had simply beat the odds and lived longer than the condition allowed. But maybe that would've been even less convincing and more convenient plotline than the mail switcheroo? Probably. And that leaves us with the misdiagnosis as the best outcome.

As I was saying, it didn't bother me to the point of ruining the book, but there's no convincing me it couldn't have been better than what it was.

Another point from the ending that I didn't find convincing was Barney Snaith's backstory. No, I don't mean the famous writer identity but the true identity. That was completely unnecessary, in my opinion. That "poor little rich boy" infodumpy monologue by the end was overkill. He could've kept his mystery writer arc perfectly well, but to add the rest to it was too much for me. I liked Valancy the most and that he treated her kindly and was always thoughtful to her already helped endear him to readers, so he didn't need more sugar heaped on top.

To conclude, I enjoyed this book and had a good time reading it, the imperfect ending didn't overturn that.

[Kate · Rating 4 out of 5]

An independent story from the author of Anne of Green Gables, written for an older audience. An important and underrated part of the Montgomery collection -- in this story, a young woman (young by our standards, an old maid in her time) rebels against her oppressive family and a conservative society to achieve a few basic but essential moments of happiness. On the surface this may look like flowers and fluff but, for the time, this was a subversively pre-feminist novel. Valancy becomes psychologically and sexually independent, finds her own voice and claims a corner of the world (and its scruffy male inhabitant) for herself. This book had a big impact on me in college, and is still important as realistic fantasy for women living in strict conservative societies (patriarchal Japan, for example). Montgomery's work is constantly under-estimated, and the way the books are marketed doesn't help (the flowery script, the swoony illustrations). There are many layers at work in her stories, and some pioneering feminist concepts tucked in between the deep appreciation of nature, the commentary on the stuffy contemporary society of her day, and the delightful, well-drawn characters.

[Melindam · Rating 5 out of 5]

4,5 stars (Covid quarantine read)

Escapism at its best. This was my very first book by L.M. Montgomery and I loved it!

I guess there's hardly anyone who doesn't entertain a wishful thinking of "Just-Getting-Away-From-It-All" time and again especially during this time of crisis and quarantine!
Woods, water, pure air, a lovely cabin, no demands from society or from tiresome family members, experiencing the change of seasons on your doorstep. BLISS, right?



And 29-year-old Valancy Stirling, the long-suffering grey-mouse and overlooked old-maid of the Clan Stirling has all the reasons in the world to try to escape into a fantasy world of her own.

“Valancy herself had never quite relinquished a certain pitiful, shamed, little hope that Romance would come her way yet—never, until this wet, horrible morning, when she wakened to the fact that she was twenty-nine and unsought by any man. Ay, there lay the sting. Valancy did not mind so much being an old maid. After all, she thought, being an old maid couldn’t possibly be as dreadful as being married to an Uncle Wellignton or an Uncle Benjamin, or even an Uncle Herbert. What hurt her was that she had never had a chance to be anything but an old maid.”

If you think Fanny Price is lonely, downtrodden and has a hard time of it, away from her Family, among her relatives in Mansfield Park, you ain't seen nothin'. Clan Stirling can give a run for their money to all them Bertrams and Mrs Norris any time and teach a thing or two about how to make someone feel like a nonentity.



PLUS, believe it or not, Valancy may very well be even more shy and quavering than Fanny.

“The only thing she really enjoyed was a funeral. You knew where you were with a corpse. Nothing more could happen to it. But while there was life there was fear.”



She has no love, no prospects, no hope things will get any better. The only consolation she has is her fantasy place, which she calls The Blue Castle, and occasionally reading the books of John Foster on nature, though even something like reading is frowned upon by her mother, who considers this -as most things in life having anything to do with joy and happiness- a sin.

It is quite a turn up for the books when Valancy (after much hesitation and further quavering she decides to sneak off to the local doctor her family disapproves of, because she has some alarming chest pains) finds out from the doctor that she has only a year to live. This has all the deliberating effect on the girl she and the readers could wish for and the first time in her life, Valancy starts to live and shakes off all the terrifying people, things and conventions as well as her fears that kept her shackled to a life of misery.

“Rebellion flamed up in her soul as the dark hours passed by – not because she had no future but because she had no past.”

She finds friendship, love and peace and her Perfect Blue Castle and ..... - I don't think I need to put this under a spoiler tag, because you can all see it coming from almost the very beginning - things just turn out all right at the end.

HAPPY SIGH.

[Em Lost In Books · Rating 4 out of 5]

There's reason some books are called "Classics", and this one has everything to make it one of those.

Highly recommended.

[Izabela Górska · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nie spodziewałam się, ale pierwsza książka we wrześniu przyniosła pierwsze pięć gwiazdek w tym roku AAAAAA

[Rowena · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Valancy had lived spiritually in the Blue Castle ever since she could remember. She had been a very tiny child when she found herself possessed of it. Always, when she shut her eyes, she could see it plainly, with its turrets and banners on the pine-clad mountain height, wrapped in its faint, blue loveliness, against the sunset skies of a fair and unknown land. Everything wonderful and beautiful was in that castle. Jewels that queens might have worn; robes of moonlight and fire; couches of roses and gold; long flights of shallow marble steps, with great, white urns, and with slender, mist-clad maidens going up and down them; courts, marble-pillared, where shimmering fountains fell and nightingales sang among the myrtles; halls of mirrors that reflected only handsome knights and lovely women--herself the loveliest of all, for whose glance men died. All that supported her through the boredom of her days was the hope of going on a dream spree at night. Most, if not all, of the Stirlings would have died of horror if they had known half the things Valancy did in her Blue Castle."- Lucy Maud Montgomery, The Blue Castle

This is the sort of book that makes me so glad to be a reader. Montgomery is an EXTREMELY talented and beautiful writer. Recently I've been finding myself wanting to read more of her work because it's honestly like a balm. There's a feeling I would get very often as a child when I was discovering the world of literature and everything was fresh and new; it's a feeling that as an adult I rarely get close to reliving, but in this book I did see some glimmers of it.

I'd never read any Montgomery books outside of the Anne series and anyone who's read those books knows how special they are. This story took me back to my preteens in Africa when I was first introduced to Anne by my aunt who then lived in the Maritimes (Nova Scotia). Now that Canada is my home, and because I've visited Prince Edward Island, Montgomery's beloved home, I have to say I feel even more attached to Montgomery now, knowing first-hand where she got much of her inspiration from.

This is the story of 29-year-old spinster, Valancy Stirling, the old-fashioned and archaic word for single woman being used because those were conservative times where a woman who was single after a certain age was considered to be a loser. As the book said, "She was twenty-nine, lonely, undesired, ill-favoured--the only homely girl in a handsome clan, with no past and no future." Our heroine is single, miserable, and part of a large clan where she sees herself as invisible, has a lot of fear, has no friends, and has never really known happiness in her life. In her sad existence, all she has is her blue castle: her imagination. A pivotal experience in her life (no spoilers), however, changes her life forever.

I loved the new Valancy; I fully support women who have thrown off their shackles, decided enough is enough, and have decided to live authentically. Recently I've been reading a lot of feminist texts that have reminded me what this empowerment means and just how important it is. Rereading Audre Lorde and rediscovering her famous quote, "My silences had not protected me. Your silence will not protect you", made me think of how apt it was in Valancy's case, and how life-giving it is when we realize that we can totally be free:

"'I've been trying to please other people all my life and failed,' she said. 'After this I shall please myself. I shall never pretend anything again. I've breathed an atmosphere of fibs and pretences and evasions all my life. What a luxury it will be to tell the truth! I may not be able to do much that I want to do but I won't do another thing that I don't want to do. Mother can pout for weeks--I shan't worry over it. 'Despair is a free man--hope is a slave'"

The freedom and life that Valancy experiences after the big turning point in her life warmed my heart. And it made me laugh to read how Valancy's relatives thought she had gone mad because of course free-thinking women have clearly lost it.

What I also adored about this book was Montgomery's veneration of nature. Although the book is set near Muskoka, Ontario, Montgomery got her nature-writing muse from PEI which is, in my humble opinion, one of the most beautiful places in Canada. Montgomery's descriptions of nature makes you want to be in it:

“...the woods, when they give at all, give unstintedly, and hold nothing back from their true worshippers. We must go to them lovingly, humbly, patiently, watchfully, and we shall learn what poignant loveliness lurks in the wild places and silent intervales, lying under starshine and sunset, what cadences of unearthly music are harped on aged pine boughs or crooned in copses of fir, what delicate savours exhale from mosses and ferns in sunny corners or on damp brooklands, what dreams and myths and legends of an older time haunt them. Then the immortal heart of the woods will beat against ours and its subtle life will steal into our veins and make us its own forever, so that no matter where we go or how widely we wander we shall yet be drawn back to the forest to find our most enduring kinship.”

Highly recommended! One of my favourite reads of the year <3

[Shaghayegh · Rating 5 out of 5]

چقدر قشنگ می‌شد اگه عشق به موقع به سراغ هر آدمی می اومد^‿^
والنسی عزیزم ، حالا که داستانت رو به پایان رسوندم ، قطعاً دلم برات تنگ میشه ؛ تو درست میگی ، زندگی رو باید زندگی کرد ، از اینکه یادم دادی جسور بودن چه شکلیه ، ازت متشکرم. به نظرم همه ی ما تو زندگی به یک بوته ی گل رز نیاز داریم که گل نده ، اونوقت ما هم مجبور میشیم تیکه تیکه اش کنیم تا یادش بیاد باید زندگی کنه.
( من این کتاب رو از نشر افق و با ترجمه خانم حاجی علیرضا خوندم)

[Behin · Rating 5 out of 5]

قصر آبی بی شک یکی از قشنگترین کتاباییه که خوندم😍
این لامصب همه چیزش قشنگ بود و آدم واقعا احساس همدردی میکرد، چیزی که عجیب بود اینه که عموی ولنسی به طرز فجیعی مثل عموی منه😑واقعا سخته خندیدن به جوکایی که اصلا جوک نیستن و من اینو از اعماق وجودم درک میکنم😂
خیلیییی برام جالب و جذاب بود این کتاب، واقعا چیزی بود که احتیاج داشتم😍
همین دیگه، در وصف شاهکار بودن این کتاب چیزی نمیگم چون واقعا نمیشه حسمو با کلمات توصیف کنم🗿
پ.ن: از آموزه های این کتاب در زندگی واقعیمم استفاده کردم:)
یه آموزشگاه تیزهوشان طور که سالای قبل میرفتم(😑، دیگه سبک زندگیمو عوض کردم) زنگ زد که آره بهین امسالم بیا کلاسای تیزهوشانی،یعنی باور کنین حدود ۲۰۰ باره دارن زنگ میزنن هر دفعم مامانم با آرامش بهشون میگه که نه دیگه بهین نمیاد، دیروز وقتی داشتم اینو میخوندم زنگ زدن منم گوشیو از دست مامانم گرفتم گفتم ممنون میشم دیگه زنگ نزنین، بسه دیگه!!😂

[Alex.andthebooks · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ta książka powinna zawierać dedykację: „Dla grzecznej i stłamszonej małej dziewczynki, którą nosi w sobie każdą z kobiet” 🥹

[Sarvenaz · Rating 5 out of 5]

فوق العاده زیبا بود🥲🥲
مونتگمری توی این کتاب خط بطلان می‌کشه بر کلیشه‌هایی که توی اون زمان بوده و این حرکتش خیلی زیاد قشنگ بود واسم.
دختر داستان صبر نمیکنه تا کسی بياد و نجاتش بده خودش، خودش رو نجات میده.
این کتاب از اون دسته کتاباست واسم که هرچند وقت یبار باید دوباره بخونمش و لذت ببرم از قلم زیبای مونتگمری.
پ.ن: خوندنش همراه با گوش کردن به آهنگ خواب ستاره عارف عجیب خیلی خوب بود.
به کسایی که اهل کتابای کلاسیک هستن حتما توصیه‌اش میکنم.

[°•.Melina°•. · Rating 5 out of 5]

اگر لوسی مونتگمری میدونست که ۹۶ سال بعد یکی چقدر داره از خوندن این کتابش لذت میبره و احساسات مشابهی رو تجربه میکنه احتمالا خیلی به زندگیش امیدوارتر میشد.‌.

شاید اگر تو هر دوره‌ی دیگه‌ای از زندگیم این کتابو میخوندم به اندازه‌ی الان برام معنی‌دار و قابل لمس نبود.اینکه تو زمان درست کتاب درست رو پیدا کنی یه خوش‌شانسیه کم‌یاب تو مسیر کتابخونی و زندگیته.چون به شدت برات به یادموندنی میشه.

شش هفت سال پیش روحیه‌ی خودمو تو روحیه‌ی انی‌شرلی پیدا کردم،پارسال این موقع هم که زندگیم با زندگی امیلی همزادپنداری میکرد و دفترخاطرات خود مونتگمری هم که عمیقا به وجودم رخنه کرد و حس کردم اون واقعا روح همزاد قدیمیه منه.و امسال هم که ولنسی.
کلا انگار هر تابستون ملودی زندگیم با کتابای مونتگمری هماهنگ میشه.

این کتابو وسط دشت و تپه‌های تابستونی و درختای بلند سبز و نارنجی و برکه‌های چندصدساله خوندم و تنها کسی که راز دلمو درک میکرد ولنسی بود چون خودش هم داشت همین مسیرو میرفت.

چیز بیشتری نمیتونم بگم که داستان کتاب یا خودمو اسپویل کنم،فقط اینکه خیلی شیرین بود:">

[✨Julie✨ · Rating 4 out of 5]

✩ 4 stars ✩

What to Expect:
➼ Self-Discovery
➼ Live Like You’re Dying
➼ Romance Subplot
➼ Slow Burn
➼ Overbearing Parents
➼ Secret Identity
➼ Forced Proximity
➼ Marriage Arrangement
➼ Standalone
➼ Canadian Classic
➼ Third Person POV

At the age of 29, Valancy’s unmarried status and lack of marital prospects has already earned her the label of spinster in the late 1920s. She lives a drab repetitive life in her family home where she is never allowed to truly choose anything for herself. Her days are planned out for her from the moment she wakes up and she isn’t even allowed the freedom to decorate her own room. She is miserable and feels stuck. She’s also been experiencing heart pains that she knows she needs to consult with a doctor about. Her birthday provides the perfect opportunity to sneak away, but unfortunately, the news the doctor has to share is dire. He tells Valancy that she likely only has a few months to year left to live. She is devastated by the news, but the knowledge that she is going to die inspires her to truly live for once. I loved joining Valancy on her journey of self-discovery as her confidence grew and she learned to say no to her family and yes to life. There is a romance subplot that initially felt very unromantic, but we do get a grand gesture in the end! Gonna leave it at that to not give away too much of the plot.

✼　 ҉ 　✼　 ҉ 　✼　 ҉ 　✼　 ҉ 　✼　 ҉ 　✼　 ҉ 　✼

Pre-read: Classic pick for February! 💗 I loved Anne of Green Gables so much that I had to read another title by this author!

[Danielle The Book Huntress · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a delightful book! Who could not love this story about a woman who gains the courage to break free from the smothering yoke of her family and to make the most of the life she has left?

This book was hilariously funny in some parts, always inspirational, and sometimes pretty sad. It was intensely readable, and I loved Valancy and Barney. I could empathize very deeply with Valancy's situation, and I cheered her on when she stopped being afraid, and decided to be true to herself. Life is too short to be hemmed and caged by others' expectations. If you can't be happy with who you are, then what is the point of living? It took a life-changing event to get Valancy to see this, and I was glad she did.

The romance was lovely in this book. I liked how Valancy and Barney's relationship started and would always be built on their friendship. There was a deep, romantic love there, no doubt. But, the person that one chooses as their life partner needs to be one that they can be happy to be around, and comfortable enough to not feel the need to fill the silences, but to cherish them. They found a connection as soulmates through the doorway of respect for each other and friendship. A great way to start a great lifetime love, in my opinion.

The metaphor of the blue castle spoke to me. We all need a blue castle in our lives, a place where we can go to feel true happiness, a retreat away from the disappointments and expectations of the world, and others' judgments and requirements for us. As I read this book, I wondered where my blue castle was. I got the answer to that question, and it made me smile.

This book gave me some wonderful hours of entertainment, but also encouraged me to life my life to its fullest. In the end, the quiet, shy, plain Valancy is a huge role model to readers who find themselves in a similar situation to hers. This is my first book by L.M. Montgomery, and I'm eager to read more of her.

[Bahar · Rating 5 out of 5]

به به چه کتابی، انقد خوب بود که یه روزه تمومش کردم و واقعا لذت بردم، مثل "آنی شرلی" دوست داشتنی و صمیمی بود، البته من فقط "آنی شرلی" رو در قالب تصویر دیدم کتابش رو نخوندم، ای کاش فیلم اینم ساخته می‌شد، هر چی تصور می‌کنم خیلی کار عالی ای از آب در میومد، عجیبه که تا الان نساختنش:(

[Sana · Rating 5 out of 5]

خیلی خیلی قشنگ بود.
توصیفات و شخصیت‌ها عالی بودن. تعریف این کتاب رو خیلی شنیده بودم و انتظار نداشتم اینقدر قشنگ باشه
بشدت پیشنهادش میکنم.

[Mina · Rating 5 out of 5]

معمولا همه با خوندن آنشرلی شروع به خوندن کتابای مونتگمری‌ می‌کنند اما قصر آبی همیشه بیشتر برای من دلبری می‌کرد برای همین اومدم سراغ این بزرگوار.👀 به شدت زیبا، دوست داشتنی،گوگولی، بامزه و روون بود!
من اهل خوندن توصیفات نیستم معمولا هم دقتی نمی‌کنم اما مهارت نویسنده توی توصیفات به چشمم اومد. واقعا فضاسازی کتاب خوبه و حس قشنگی رو منتقل می‌کنه.
همراهی با شخصیت‌ها حتی اونایی که یکم روی مخ آدم پیاده روی می‌کنند لذت‌بخشه و آدم دوست داره بیشتر ازشون بخونه. از همین‌جا سلام می‌کنم به دوتا از شخصیت‌های موردعلاقه‌م، ولنسی و بارنی عزیز.😄 آقا خیلی چاکریم.🖐🏻
از همه‌ی توصیفات و شخصیت‌پردازی و اینا بگذریم، کتاب داستان خیلی جذابی داره و آدم رو مشتاق می‌کنه تا به خوندن ادامه بده و ببینه چه اتفاق‌هایی در راهه.👀
کتاب رو هردو نشر قدیانی و افق منتشر کردند و من نمی‌دونم کدوم واقعا ترجمه‌ی بهتری داره. فقط اینجا یه مشکلی هست. خلاصه‌ی پشت کتاب افق به اندازه‌ای که باید آدم رو جذب نمی‌کنه از طرفی خلاصه‌ی پشت کتاب قدیانی زیادی از داستان ‌می‌گه.😐😂 نظر من اینه که چشم بسته کتاب رو بخرید و بخونید.😂
نمی‌خوام حرف‌های اضافه بزنم و وقتتون رو بگیرم. خلاصه و سر راست بهتون می‌گم داستان جذاب، شخصیت‌های بامزه و دوست‌داشتنی و فضازسازی زیبا خوندن این کتاب رو واجب می‌کنه و همچنین فکر می‌کنم اگر قصد دارید وارد دنیای کلاسیک بشید این کتاب می‌تونه انتخاب مناسبی باشه.
امیدوارم لذت ببرید.💚
.
.
پ.ن. قصر آبی خودتون رو پیدا کنید!✨💙😢

[Peiman · Rating 4 out of 5]

این کتاب رو باید توی ۱۸-۱۹ سالگی خوند، همون موقع که تازه یه نفر رو توی دانشگاه دیدی و ضربان قلبت ۴ تا دونه زیاد شده و بعد تا صد سال آینده رو باهاش برنامه ریزی کردی تو ذهنت. خیلی داستان قشنگ و خیلی ساده و همه چیز خوب و خوش و ایناست. به طور خلاصه کتاب در مورد ولنسی، دختر ۲۹ ساله‌ست که هنوز ازدواج نکرده و با خانواده‌ی سنتی و مذهبی و به شدت سختگیرش زندگی می‌کنه به دلیلی تصمیم میگیره تمام مرز‌ها رو بشکنه و هر طور دلش میخواد زندگی کنه.ه

[Katie Lumsden · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a glorious, wonderful novel. A new favourite.

[Katie Ziegler (Life Between Words) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Definitely, DEFINITELY a new favorite! Charming, witty, beautiful, delightful. Full of whimsy and heart and as is true of all Montgomery's books, stunning nature writing. And the sweetest romance there ever was (and a leading man with a most unfortunate name...). I laughed and cried - sometimes in the same chapter! This book rivals Anne for me,and that is something! Anne will always hold the top spot in my heart, but if not for nostalgia's sake, this one would sit right next to it.

Reread Nov 2023: Just as magical as the first time I read it. What a book. ❤️

[Quirkyreader · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book made me cry. And it is very rare when a story makes me cry.

This is one of Montgomery’s lesser know stories in The States. It got a reprint Stateside during the “Anne Mania” after PBS broadcasted the Canadian mini series.

And the premis of the story goes like this, Possible Spoilers.......

If you were told you only had a year to live, what would you do? And the main character crams in many things during that year. Which makes this book a fabulous adventure.

Even though it has its sad parts, this book can help inspire one to do great things.

[Samane Lou · Rating 5 out of 5]

همه یه قصر آبی دارن...توی خیالاتشون، توی دنیای خوشگل و خوشرنگ و بی خیالِ توی ذهنشون -البته ممکنه رنگش فرق داشته باشه، قصر خیال من به رنگ زرد آفتابگردونه :)
برای همین خوندن این کتاب، لذت بخش بود...نویسنده با اون قلم قشنگش و تصویر گری فوق العاده ش از طبیعت، دقیقا دست میذاره روی احساسات لطیفی که گاهی وقتا زیر فشار کار و درس و بدبختیِ زندگی، کمرنگ و مدفون میشه...از اینکه این حس های لطیفمو بعد از مدتها از اون ته ته های ذهنم کشیدم بیرون و دستی به سر و روشون کشیدم و رنگ زردشونو جلا دادم، بسی خوشحالم...
روحم تازه شد...
همین.

[marta (sezon literacki) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lucy Maud Montgomery nie zawodzi! Joanna to wspaniała bohaterka, a suchary stryja Beniamina… nie powiem, kilka razy parsknęłam pod nosem! 😅

[Sherwood Smith]

Warning: spoilery talk ahead for this book that is nearly a century old.

I've heard this book disparaged as second-rate Montgomery, even as outright trash. And I can see the problematical aspects--the "bucket list" plot was already pretty worn out by the time LMM hung this story on it (protag is told they have only X time to live, which turns out to be a mistake, of course), and I could definitely do without the thread of the hapless young woman who has to die of Didn't Remain A Virgin Until Marriage disease, whom Valancy takes pity on first. LMM found it difficult to let go of a lot of tried-and-true Victorian plot devices, and it shows.

But those things aside, this is wish-fulfillment at its finest. It's one of my insomnia books--if my eyelids open with a spang! at 1:30 a.m. and I know it will be hours before I get back to sleep, if at all, this is one of the books I take off the shelf.

Montgomery had two strengths in my readerly view: a wonderful sensitivity to nature, which makes her descriptions of gardens, forests, etc, utterly delightful, and she came from a small town on an island, born of very strong-minded people. Quirky strong-minded people, as one discovers in her published diaries. So her creation of characters, especially distinctive, oddball relatives, is sheer delight. We know a lot of those relatives, like the cousin everyone holds up as a paragon of virtue, but who is a meanie when the adults aren't looking. And the uncle whose threadbare jokes were never funny the first 182 times he told them, especially when you're the target.

Valancy, the heroine (with that name, you just know that she thinks she's homely but she'll turn out to be secretly beautiful--to those with the right eyes to see her. Like the hero), lives under the thumb of as obnoxious a set of relatives as LMM ever invented. Oh boy is she downtrodden. There is not the tiniest detail of her miserable life that some relative or other isn't minding for her own good, and lecturing her endlessly about from the pinnacle of Mt. Moral Superiority.

Once Valancy gets her misdiagnosis and decides to cut loose, the fun really gets going. When she doesn't give a hoot about What People Think, she does it big time. It's sheer bliss watching her at her first horrible family dinner as a free woman.

Of course she ends up married to the man of her dreams, and is wildly wealthy to boot (back of the hand to the Mean Cousin) but how she gets there is a ton of fun.