The Summer of the «Marco Polo»: Inspired by the Journals of Lucy Maud Montgomery.

Gregory Bryan is a member of the Faculty of Education at the University of Manitoba in Winnipeg.

In 1998, Lynn Manuel penned Lucy Maud and the Cavendish Cat. In The Summer of the Marco Polo, Manuel returns to Montgomery’s life for inspiration and tells of when the Marco Polo clipper ship ran aground off the shores where Montgomery lived in Cavendish, P.E.I., in 1883. Using Montgomery’s journals as the basis for her story, Manuel relates the influence that the shipwreck had on the townspeople of Cavendish. The rescued captain and crew of the Marco Polo added interest to eight-year-old Montgomery’s life.

The Summer of the Marco Polo contains lovely soft palette illustrations by Kasia Charko. Working with coloured pencils and watercolour paints, Charko has created idyllic reflections of an inviting, long-ago time. Together with the descriptive text, Charko’s illustrations invite the reader to step briefly into the past and to enjoy a quieter, slower way of life.

Readers with an interest in the Anne of Green Gables stories will doubtless also be interested in reading this story from L.M. Montgomery’s own childhood. The story is adapted from the famous author’s journal recollections of her childhood. Manuel here presents that story in an accessible manner that will please readers young and old. Recommended.