A Tale of Two Anne's

In 2008, I had the pleasure of becoming an Anne Fanatic.

Having never read Anne of Green Gables as a child, I was charmed when I saw the display for the Centennial Celebration of Anne of Green Gables in my local bookstore. Anne of Green Gables turned 100 in 2008 and, to honour her, three new books were published.

They included the following: Imagining Anne - The Island Scrapbooks of L. M. Montgomery collected are explained by Elizabeth Rollins Epperly and a prequel to the series written by Budge Wilson titled Before Green Gables that has been authorized by the heirs to the Montgomery estate.

But the one that drew my attention first was a reprinting of the first edition of Anne of Green Gables. It is a replica of the original: it has the same pale green cover, the gold lettering and the picture of Anne on the front looking solemn. The inside of the book also has the same pictures and typographical errors as the original.

All this was quite thrilling for a book nut like me, so I decided to treat myself. I bought a copy of Anne of Green Gables and Before Green Gables. I figured if I was going to read Anne of Green Gables, I wanted to see what happened before. You have you support Canadian literature somehow.

Later that night, I opened Anne of Green Gables and was enchanted from the first page. Anne carried me away to Avonlea with her and I was charmed, delighted and overjoyed. I hadn´t read a book that sparkled so much in quite some time.

Thus, I was not prepared to like the prequel Before Green Gables when I approached it. Having just finished Anne of Green Gables, Maud´s Anne was too fresh in my mind and I wondered whether or not I would even like it; I didn´t know if it would even come close to being as enjoyable as the original book.

I was delighted to find out that it was. Very much so. While Before Green Gables is not told in Maud´s voice (who, after all, would be able to imitate her?) Before Green Gables has its own voice. That voice is strong.

While it stays trued to the original series of Anne of Green Gables books, Before Green Gables is a wonderful telling of what Anne´s life was like before she meets Marilla and Matthew Cuthbert. Wilson effectively solves the mystery of Anne´s life before Green Gables and with style and talent.

Though lacking in joy (Anne´s life before Green Gables was incredibly difficult) it is a wonderful, beautiful book that can stands on its own and adds it´s own story to the already rich written tapestry that is Anne Shirley´s life.

After reading Anne of Green Gables and Before Green Gables, I was a converted Anne Fan. I got the stamps that Canada Post put out to celebrates Anne´s 100th year. I read all of the remaining books in the series.

I picked up a lovely book called Looking For Anne by Irene Gammel that tries to solve the mystery of how L. M. Montgomery created Anne. I attended an Anne of Green Gables museum exhibit and even got the quarter made by the Royal Canadian Mint for Anne´s 100th birthdy, depicting her carrying yellow flowers.

In short, I was Anne Happy. Which is why I was incredibly excited when I heard about Anne of Green Gables: A New Beginning. It was a new movie being made by Kevin Sullivan, the talented director behind the Anne of Green Gables movies and Road to Avonlea.

Unfortunately, I missed it. I had dearly wanted to watch it but life gets in the way of things sometimes. I knew that it had nothing to do with Budge Wilson´s Before Green Gables, but a new Anne story thrilled me very much indeed.

Because I missed the television showing of Anne of Green Gables: A New Beginning, I was even more thrilled when I saw that Kevin Sullivan had written a novelization of the movie. Now I would be able to read about what happened. It was the best way to experience Anne, I thought. Inside your imagination. I hoped Anne would approve.

Within the first few chapters, I was unsure. I was on unfamiliar ground. I had of course watched Anne of Green Gables and Anne of Green Gables: The Sequel. But I have never seen Anne of Green Gables: The Continuing Story.

Anne of Green Gables: A New Beginning serves as a prequel AND a sequel to the trilogy, which veered far away from the original storyline of the books in the third movie. Having never seen The Continuing Story, I was quite lost indeed.

And then, tragedy struck. Kevin Sullivan veered so far away from the original storyline that I put the book down in disgust. I won´t reveal that crucial plot point for those of you who have seen the movie or read the book. Let´s just say that Sullivan has veered so far away from one of the points of Anne´s history and has left her unrecognizable.

I was going to return the book for a refund then and there. I was that unhappy. My husband, knowing how much I had looked forward to the book, urged me to read on. At first, I was hesitant. Anne of Green Gables: A New Beginning had veered into completely unknown territory and I was not impressed. But, having forked down my money for it, I was determined to give the book a chance.

And you know what? It´s actually pretty good. In fact, it´s very good. Not as good as the original book, or Budge Wilson´s Before Green Gables, but it has a story to tell and, gosh darnit, it´s going to tell it.

When we begin A New Beginning, we find Anne in her forties. She has returned to Green Gables to write a play and wait for her adopted son to return from war. But, while at Green Gables, she discovers a secret that changes her life and forces her to confront her past.

It´s a very sensational tale and the book speeds by at a fast pace. At just under three hundred pages, it won´t take you very long to read and it´s a very good pot-boiler of a story. Anne of Green Gables: A New Beginning reads as if it´s one of the romantic stories that Anne loved so much.

Sullivan has veered completely away from established plot points in the original series that it really has no relation to the books. He has created his own Anne Mythos, explaining Anne´s beginnings in cracking good tale of abandonment and loneliness and one girls search to belong.

For all of that, it is lacking. While Budge´s Before Green Gables was a fresh new story of Anne´s beginnings, A New Beginning lacked the charm and sparkle that make Anne so incredibly loveable.

Instead of a new beginning, you feel as if you are in fact reading one of Anne´s beloved novels. Rather than a retelling of Anne´s life, Anne of Green Gables: A New Beginning is a lovely story that will keep you entertained.

Of course, there is no substitute for the real thing. Both books, though wonderful, have made me want to read L. M. Montgomery´s original series once more and experience Anne all over again.