Christmas with Anne and Other Holiday Stories

E. Jane Philipps is head of the Biology Library at Queen’s University
in Kingston.

The prolific and much-loved Lucy Maud Montgomery published 19 novels,
more than 500 short stories, and 500 poems. This collection of holiday
tales, selected by Montgomery scholar Rea Wilmshurst, includes two old
favorites, one from Anne of Green Gables and one from Anne of Windy
Poplars. The rest of the stories originally appeared in magazines and
newspapers between 1899 and 1910 and, with one exception, have never
been published in book form. The stories, peopled with the familiar cast
of Montgomery characters, celebrate the values and virtues of kindness
and generosity, friendship and family, self-reliance and integrity
inherent in the best of us whether materially wealthy or poor.
Thematically centred around the traditions of Christmas and the New
Year, story lines recur in several pieces. All end happily, despite some
bleak beginnings. Even the diehard Montgomery fan may feel a sense of
surfeit upon reading this volume cover to cover. Nonetheless, the
stories provide a warm, nostalgic glimpse of a world that perhaps exists
no longer and even an individual sampling will reward readers of all
ages at any time of the year. Recommended.