Publication Sequence of the Anne of Green Gables Series

It might surprise you that L.M. Montgomery did not write the eight novels of the Anne of Green Gables series in the order we generally read them today.

Introducing Anne Shirley

L.M. Montgomery introduced Anne Shirley to the world when she published Anne of Green Gables in 1908. Its sequel Anne of Avonlea followed shortly thereafter in 1909. After completing these first two novels about Anne Shirley, Montgomery focused on publishing other novels and short story collections before revisiting Anne.

Anne Shirley Grows Up

Between 1915 and 1921, L.M. Montgomery wrote another four books about Anne Shirley and Anne's children. Anne of the Island (1915) tells the story of Anne's college years, Anne’s House of Dreams (1917) begins with Anne's wedding and describes the early years of Anne's marriage to Gilbert Blythe, Rainbow Valley (1919) tells the stories of Anne Blythe's young children, and Rilla of Ingleside (1921) focuses on Anne Blythe's youngest daughter Rilla Blythe.

Revisiting Anne Shirley

Following a long gap of 15 years, L.M. Montgomery revisited a younger version of Anne Shirley and wrote about her years as a high school principal in Anne of Windy Poplars (1936). Today, this novel is considered Book 4 of the Anne of Green Gables series if we read the novels in the chronological order of Anne’s life. The storyline of Anne of Windy Poplars falls between Anne of the Island (1915) and Anne’s House of Dreams (1917).

Returning to Anne

Thirty-one years after publishing Anne of Green Gables, L.M. Montgomery wrote Anne of Ingleside in 1939. According to the timeline of Anne’s life, Anne of Ingleside is considered Book 6. Its storyline falls between Anne’s House of Dreams (1917) and Rainbow Valley (1919), both of which were written 20 years earlier.

What order were the Anne of Green Gables books published in?

In summary, here is the publication sequence of the Anne of Green Gables novels. The order we generally read the books in today is listed to the right.

Publication Sequence	Chronology of Anne's Life
1) Anne of Green Gables (1908)	Book 1
2) Anne of Avonlea (1909)	Book 2
3) Anne of the Island (1915)	Book 3
4) Anne's House of Dreams (1917)	Book 5
5) Rainbow Valley (1919)	Book 7
6) Rilla of Ingleside (1921)	Book 8
7) Anne of Windy Poplars (1936)	Book 4
8) Anne of Ingleside (1939)	Book 6

Have you ever read the books in order by their publication dates, or have you always read the novels in the chronological order of Anne Shirley’s life? What are your thoughts on reading the novels of the Anne of Green Gables series in different orders?

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Prince Edward Island

Prince Edward Island (PEI) is a province located in the Gulf of St Lawrence in Eastern Canada. The island's scenery is beautiful with a striking contrast between the red roads and cliffs, deep blue water, and rich green landscape. In 1874, L.M. Montgomery was born in Clifton, PEI, and she used the island as the geographical location for many of her stories. Today, PEI is recognized around the world as the setting of L.M. Montgomery's novel Anne of Green Gables (1908).

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Created March 13, 2021.
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Who is Anne Shirley?

Anne Shirley is a character first introduced to the world in the 1908 novel Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery. When we first meet Anne, she is an eleven-year-old girl with a vivid imagination, talkative disposition, and bewitching personality.

Matthew and Marilla Cuthbert are surprised by Anne's arrival in Avonlea, Prince Edward Island. The Cuthbert siblings had planned to adopt a young boy to help Matthew with the farm at Green Gables, but mistakenly they are sent a girl. Fortunately, Anne wins both Matthew and Marilla over, and the Cuthberts adopt Anne giving her a home at Green Gables.

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Created July 15, 1999. Last updated March 8, 2021.
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Anne of Green Gables Coloring Book

The Anne of Green Gables Coloring Book is a hardcover, premium edition volume featuring drawings from the anime Anne of Green Gables (Akage no An, 1979), which was produced as part of Nippon Animation's World Masterpiece Theater series.



The book is 96 pages long and was published in Korea. Full color drawings from the anime series are placed alongside black and white drawings that you can color yourself.

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Cover of Anne of Green Gables Coloring Book.

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Created December 15, 2019.
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Anne of Green Gables: The Original Manuscript

Anne of Green Gables: The Original Manuscript by L.M. Montgomery and edited by Carolyn Strom Collins was released by Nimbus Publishing in July 2019. L.M. Montgomery wrote Anne of Green Gables by hand over the course of eight months. From her handwritten text, Montgomery then typed the novel out. She sent her typed copy to publishers, and held onto her handwritten manuscript for her entire life. The handwritten manuscript is currently housed in the archives at the Confederation Centre of the Arts in Charlottetown. Prince Edward Island.

Carolyn Strom Collins worked with the archivists at the Confederation Centre of the Arts to examine, photograph, and transcribe L.M. Montgomery's original 844-page text. Her book Anne of Green Gables: The Original Manuscript includes her full transcription of L.M. Montgomery's handwritten text along with Montgomery's edits and notes. The book provides insight into Montgomery's writing and creative process. As one example, L.M. Montgomery initially called Diana Barry by the name Laura, and then changed the character's name to Gertrude, before she decided to call her Diana.

In an interview with CBC News, Strom Collins talked about how special the experience was to spend time with Montgomery's text, saying, "It gives you a little chill in a way, a little thrill because you know that was her pride and joy. She touched those pages, she wrote with pen and ink, she dipped the pen in ink every few lines." Anne of Green Gables: The Original Manuscript includes a wonderful introduction by Carolyn Strom Collins that provides a wealth of information about the original manuscript, the first published edition of Anne of Green Gables, and the transcribed text. Carolyn Strom Collins also presents quotes from Montgomery's journals and letters about writing Anne and about her inspiration for the novel.


Here is the description of the book from Nimbus Publishing:

This fascinating book presents the original text of Montgomery’s most famous manuscript, including where the author scribbled notes, made additions and deletions, and other editorial details. L. M. Montgomery scholar Carolyn Strom Collins offers a rare look into Montgomery’s creative process, providing a never-before-published version of the worldwide phenomenon.

This book differs from previous versions of Anne in that it provides a transcription of the text and notes from Montgomery’s original manuscript, and shows how they were integrated to form the full novel. The culmination of years of research, Anne of Green Gables: the Original Manuscript is a necessary addition to any Montgomery lover’s collection. This volume features scans of the first page of each chapter from the original archived document (showing editorial notes in Montgomery’s handwriting) and an appendix of rare foreign-language covers.

Review

“"Here's one for devoted Anne fans and anyone curious about the creative process."
―Halifax Magazine

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Book cover of Anne of Green Gables: The Original Manuscript.

Reference:
New book offers fans a look at handwritten manuscript of Anne of Green Gables. (2019, July 30). CBC News. Retrieved from: https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/prince-edward-island/pei-new-book-looks-at-original-manuscript-of-anne-green-gables-1.5230806

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Created August 25, 2019. Last updated September 3, 2024.
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L.M. Montgomery's Complete Journals: The Ontario Years, 1930-1933

L.M. Montgomery's Complete Journals: The Ontario Years, 1930–1933 edited by Jen Rubio was published by Rock's Mill Press in 2019. The unabridged editions of L.M. Montgomery's journals paint a fuller, darker picture of her inner thoughts and moods, her passions, and her literary ambitions. In this seventh volume of L.M. Montgomery's complete journals, Montgomery gives a compelling account of painful difficulties, mysterious secrets, and deep disappointments.


Here is the description of the volume from the Rock's Mill Press:

L.M. Montgomery’s journals speak of simple pleasures and deep joy, dogged worries and profound disappointments. The story of her life from 1930 to 1933 is as gripping as the earlier volumes published by Rock’s Mills Press. This volume is different from earlier ones in a surprising way, however: “It has happened. It is too cruel and hideous and unexpected to write about. I have spent two days in hell. I cannot see how I am to go on living. . . . And I have had to keep up a face to the world when something in my soul was bleeding to death” (February 5, 1933). The truth of this “cruel and hideous” event is, for a time, too diffcult to commit to her journals; it casts a shadow of shame on Montgomery’s life for months. When she finally explains, it is page-turning material that gives a fascinating look into the hidden side of life in Ontario almost a century ago. Montgomery also recounts other difficult situations facing her in those years, including attempts to help a slippery young man facing embezzlement charges and a younger woman’s obsessive crush on her. Over 100 of Montgomery’s own photographs are included, many never before published. This edition also includes an introduction, extensive notes, and an index of photography, all original to this edition.

2019
Paperback, 386 pp. ISBN-13: 978-1-77244-175-8

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Book cover of L.M. Montgomery's Complete Journals: The Ontario Years, 1930–1933.

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Created June 1, 2018. Last updated August 23, 2024.
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L.M. Montgomery's Complete Journals: The Ontario Years, 1922-1925

L.M. Montgomery's Complete Journals: The Ontario Years, 1922–1925 edited by Jen Rubio was published by Rock's Mill Press in 2018. The unabridged editions of L.M. Montgomery's journals paint a fuller, darker picture of her inner thoughts and moods, her passions, and her literary ambitions. In this fifth volume of L.M. Montgomery's complete journals, Montgomery describes her last four years living in Leaskdale, Ontario.


Here is the description of the volume from the Rock's Mill Press:

L.M. Montgomery's last four years in Leaskdale were marked by a series of unpredictable, and often unmanageable, events. Her account of these events, as they often twisted in increasingly unexpected directions, makes for spellbinding reading. From 1919, Montgomery's life had been troubled by her husband's recurring bouts of mental illness. During the years recounted here, his mood disturbances became profound: "I dare not remain here alone with him if he continues like this," she writes at one particularly low point. Other events added more complications to an already entangled life. A spurious lawsuit brought by a local farmer (claiming an enlarged prostate gland had been caused by a car collision) divided the community; Montgomery's description of the trial, before and after, is riveting. Communities across Ontario were also deeply divided by Church Union, which came to a head in 1925. Her occasional eyebrow-raising comments about members of other denominations remind us that she shared many of the biases of her time. Published now for the first time is the complete record of her life from 1922 to 1925, including the hundreds of photographs that she inserted in the handwritten journals.

Paperback, 468 pp., ISBN-13: 978-1-77244-132-1

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Book cover of L.M. Montgomery's Complete Journals: The Ontario Years, 1922–1925.

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L.M. Montgomery and the Matter of Nature(s)

L.M. Montgomery and the Matter of Nature(s) was published by McGill-Queen’s University Press in April 2018. This book of scholarship examines L.M. Montgomery's appreciation for nature and her depictions of nature in her writings. It was edited by Rita Bode and Jean Mitchell. The volume contains contributions by Catriona Sandilands, Jennifer H. Litster, Nancy Holmes, Rita Bode, Elizabeth Rollins Epperly, Jean Mitchell, Kate Sutherland, Tara K. Parmiter, Paul Keen, Laura M. Robinson, Lesley D. Clement, and Idette Noomé.

Here is the description of the volume from McGill-Queen’s University Press:

A critical study of L.M. Montgomery’s relationship to the material world and the revealing interconnections between nature and culture.

L.M. Montgomery’s writings are replete with enchanting yet subtle and fluid depictions of nature that convey her intense appreciation for the natural world. At a time of ecological crises, intensifying environmental anxiety, and burgeoning eco-critical perspectives, L.M. Montgomery and the Matter of Nature(s) repositions the Canadian author’s relationship to nature in terms of current environmental criticism across several disciplines, introducing a fresh approach to her life and work.

Drawing on a wide range of Montgomery’s novels as well as her journals, this collection suggests that socio-ecological relationships encompass ideas of reciprocity, affiliation, autonomy, and the capacity for transformation in both the human and more-than-human worlds, and that these ideas are integral to Montgomery’s vision and her literary legacy. Framed by the twin themes of materiality and interrelationships, essays by scholars of literature, law, animal studies, anthropology, and ecology examine place, embodiment, and difference in Montgomery’s works and embrace the multiplicities embedded in the concept of nature.

Through innovative critical approaches, L.M. Montgomery and the Matter of Nature(s) opens up conversations about humans’ interactions with nature and the material environment.

Reviews

“An emphasis on humanity’s interrelatedness with nature extends the significance of L.M. Montgomery and the Matter of Nature(s) past Montgomery studies and Canadian literary and cultural studies to engage with the larger issues of how humans’ interactions with nature shape our daily lives and the future of the planet.” Mary Jeanette Moran, Illinois State University

“This collection is significant for its ability to offer unexpected, highly convincing engagements with L. M. Montgomery’s work and disciplines far beyond the scope of traditional literary studies. It provides new perspectives on Montgomery’s oeuvre, while also extending the definition of environmental study and eco-critical analysis in this field.” Sarah Galletly, James Cook University

"The linked themes of understanding and empathy toward the natural world supply a bridge between the literary and the ecological, between the writer and the places she knew. Matter of Nature(s) is a wonderful opportunity to place one of Canada’s most prolific and well-known authors in a wider environmental history." American Review of Canadian Studies

“[L.M. Montgomery and the Matter of Nature(s)] successfully offers a broad spectrum of insights on the ways in which Montgomery’s fiction and nonfiction address the conceptof interconnectedness between the human and the nonhuman. Each chapter provides a concise and clear analysis that points readers to new perspectives, and the breadth of the collection overall highlights many new avenues of research that remain to be explored.” International Research for Children’s Literature

The book includes the following content and essays:

Introduction: L.M. Montgomery and the Matter of Nature(s) by Rita Bode and Jean Mitchell

Part One: Nature’s Places

1. Fire, Fantasy, and Futurity: Queer Ecology Visits Silver Bush by Catriona Sandilands
2. The Scotsman, the Scribe, and the Spyglass: Going Back with L.M. Montgomery to Prince Edward Island by Jennifer H. Litster
3. Romantic Novelist as Naturalist: John Foster and the Bird Woman by Nancy Holmes
4. L.M. Montgomery’s “Indoors and Out”: Imagining an Organic Architecture by Rita Bode

Part Two: Nature’s Embodiments

5. Natural Bridge: L.M. Montgomery and the Architecture of Imaginative Landscapes by Elizabeth Rollins Epperly
6. L.M. Montgomery’s Neurasthenia: Embodied Nature and the Matter of Nerves by Jean Mitchell
7. The Education of Emily: Tempering a Force of Nature through Lessons in Law by Kate Sutherland
8. The Spirit of Inquiry: Nature Study and the Sense of Wonder in L.M. Montgomery’s Anne Books by Tara K. Parmiter

Part Three: Nature’s Otherness

9. “No London street Arabs for me”: The Unnatural Orphan in Anne of Green Gables by Paul Keen
10. Kindred Spirits: Kinship and the Nature of Nature in Anne’s House of Dreams and The Blue Castle by Laura M. Robinson
11. The Empathic Poetic Sensibility: Discerning and Embodying Nature’s Secrets by Lesley D. Clement
12. The Nature of the Beast: Pets and People in L.M. Montgomery’s Fiction by Idette Noomé


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Book cover of L.M. Montgomery and the Matter of Nature(s) from McGill-Queen’s University Press.

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Created May 15, 2018. Last updated June 10, 2024.
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