My Dear Mr. M: Letters to GB MacMillan

Lori A. Dunn is an ESL teacher and editor of the Toronto women’s
magazine Feminie.

I hesitate to call this book delightful, because while Lucy Maud
Montgomery gave her much-loved characters her own sense of wonder, she
herself had a very secret life of sadness and despair that she never
allowed to be seen until she neared the end of her life.

Montgomery wrote yearly letters to her literary friend in Scotland
until shortly before her death, meticulously composing them with her
diary at her side to ensure that she recounted every important event and
thought. The effect is a dizzying, kaleidoscopic autobiography, a
surprisingly complete review of her life. While fascinating reading, it
is somewhat disturbing to find a life summed up in such a whirlwind tour
of 212 pages.

What makes this collection of letters valuable is their vivid
descriptions of Prince Edward Island, of Toronto in the early 1900s, and
of Montgomery’s personal reactions to both World Wars. Evident
throughout is her deep affection for the island of her birth. The
descriptions are reminiscent of Anne Shirley’s rhapsodizing, even
though that character’s creator denies any parallels in their
personalities. My Dear Mr. M. has a place in any collection of Canadian
literature.