December 07, 2021

Anne of Green Gables Hairstyle Tutorial by Loepsie

Anne Shirley - Anne of Green Gables Hairstyle Tutorial by Loepsie

I wanted to share a wonderful tutorial video showing how to replicate Anne Shirley's hairstyle and makeup in Anne of Green Gables by Loepsie. It's part of Loepsie's Beauty Beacons of Fiction series on YouTube. Along with providing great hairstyle tutorials, her website includes posts on historical fashion and beauty, sewing historical costumes, and more.

The inspiration behind her look is Anne as portrayed by the iconic Megan Follows in Sullivan Entertainment's Anne of of Green Gables: The Sequel aka Anne of Avonlea (1987). If you've ever wanted to replicate Anne's look, check this video out:



Created December 7, 2021.
© worldofanneshirley.com

November 30, 2021

Five Facts About L.M. Montgomery

L.M. Montgomery, ca. 1935

It’s L.M. Montgomery’s birthday today. She was born on 147 years ago on November 30, 1874. To celebrate the anniversary of Montgomery’s birth, here are five facts about her:

  1. Born Lucy Maud Montgomery, she preferred her middle name “Maud” over her first name.

  2. L.M. Montgomery contracted influenza during the 1918 flu pandemic and was seriously ill with the disease.

  3. During her childhood, L.M. Montgomery had two imaginary friends, Katie Maurice and Lucy Gray, who helped her cope with her loneliness and solitude.

  4. L.M. Montgomery experienced a deep emotional and spiritual connection in nature, which she described as “the flash.”

  5. In 1935, King George V appointed L.M. Montgomery as an officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE). This British order of chivalry honored her contributions to literature.

Image credit:
Photograph of L.M. Montgomery, ca. 1935. Library and Archives Canada, Public Domain.

Purchase and read L.M. Montgomery's journals to learn more about her life:

The Complete Journals of L.M. Montgomery: The PEI Years 1889-1900 The Complete Journals of L.M. Montgomery: The PEI Years 1901-1911


Created November 30, 2021.
© worldofanneshirley.com

September 12, 2021

The New York Times Book Review Harshly Reviewed Anne of Green Gables in 1908

Anne of Green Gables book cover

In 1908, after Anne of Green Gables was published, the novel was reviewed by The New York Times Book Review. The book was harshly reviewed by an anonymous reviewer who said the character Anne Shirley, “greatly marred a story that had in it quaint and charming possibilities.”

Personally, one of the first words I think of in describing Anne Shirley is "charming." It's a bit sad that the reviewer missed out on Anne's charms, don't you think?

In 1924, bylines were required for the The New York Times Book Review, and reviewers had less freedom to be callous because they were no longer anonymous. Read more about the unsympathetic reviews written anonymously for The New York Times Book Review prior to 1924 in "When the Book Review Went Really Harsh" by Tina Jordan published in The New York Times on August 27, 2021.


Purchase and read Anne of Green Gables:

Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery Anne of Green Gables Book Set by L.M. Montgomery


Created September 12, 2021.
© worldofanneshirley.com

September 01, 2021

Dress Like Anne Shirley

Modern Anne of Green Gables Clothing

Have you ever wanted to dress like Anne Shirley?

I have, and sometimes do. I love to search out clothes reminiscent of what Anne might wear today—clothing that is delicate, feminine, and pretty. Here are a few blouses that are currently available that reminded me of Anne.


Created September 1, 2021.
© worldofanneshirley.com

May 16, 2021

If it had not rained on a certain May morning...

Illustration of a woman in the 1920s with an umbrella and a quote from The Blue Castle by L.M. Montgomery

"If it had not rained on a certain May morning Valancy Stirling’s whole life would have been entirely different."

-L.M. Montgomery
The Blue Castle


Read more quotes by L.M. Montgomery.

Image credit:
Illustration of a woman with an umbrella adapted from a United States Rubber Company advertisement in The Ladies' Home Journal (January 1921). Public Domain.

Purchase and read The Blue Castle:


The Blue Castle by L.M. Montgomery The Blue Castle by L.M. Montgomery


Created May 16, 2021.
© worldofanneshirley.com

April 30, 2021

The Road to Yesterday

The Road to Yesterday by L.M. Montgomery


The Road to Yesterday
by L.M. Montgomery was published in 1974. L.M. Montgomery had originally penned this book under the title The Blythes are Quoted, but the book was not published during her lifetime. After L.M. Montgomery's death, her manuscript was discovered by her son, Dr. Stuart MacDonald. The original manuscript for The Blythes are Quoted was divided into two parts taking place before and after World War I. Each part was composed of short stories interspersed with narratives of evenings in Anne and Gilbert Blythe's household with the Blythe family listening to Anne's poems.

In preparing The Road to Yesterday for publication, the narrative sections were removed along with all but one of the poems. The sequence of the short stories was reorganized. All of the stories included in The Road to Yesterday mention members of the Blythe family.

The Road to Yesterday includes the poem "Canadian Twilight" and 14 short stories, which are listed below:

"Canadian Twilight" (poem)
"An Afternoon with Mr. Jenkins"
"Retribution"
"The Twins Pretend"
"Fancy's Fool"
"A Dream Come True"
"Penelope Struts her Theories"
"The Reconciliation"
"The Cheated Child"
"Fool's Errand"
"The Pot and the Kettle"
"Here Comes the Bride"
"Brothers Beware"
"The Road to Yesterday"
"A Commonplace Woman"


Purchase and read The Road to Yesterday:

The Road to Yesterday by L.M. Montgomery


Created July 25, 2002. Re-posted online April 30, 2021. Last updated April 30, 2021.
© worldofanneshirley.com

April 22, 2021

Christmas with Anne and Other Holiday Stories

Christmas with Anne : And Other Holiday Stories by L.M. Montgomery, Drawing of Anne Shirley holding dress with puffed sleeves.uffed


Christmas with Anne and Other Holiday Stories is a collection of 16 stories by L.M. Montgomery that were gathered and rediscovered by Rea Wilmshurst and published in 1995. Two stories are Christmas chapters from the Anne of Green Gables series, and the other 14 stories are Christmas and New Year stories written by L.M.Montgomery for magazines. The titles of the stories contained in this volume and their original publication dates are listed below:

Matthew Insists on Puffed Sleeves (from Anne of Green Gables, 1908)
Christmas at Red Butte (1909)
The End of the Young Family Feud (1907)
Aunt Cyrilla's Christmas Basket (1903?)
The Osborne's Christmas (1903)
The Unforgotten One (1906)
Clorinda's Gifts (1906)
Katherine Brooke Comes to Green Gables (from Anne of Windy Poplars, 1934)
A Christmas Mistake (1899)
A Christmas Surprise at Enderly Road (1905)
The Falsoms' Christmas Dinner (1906)
A Christmas Inspiration (1901?)
The Josephs' Christmas (1902)
Uncle Richard's New Year Dinner (1910)
Ida's New Year Cake (1905)
Bertie's New Year (1905)


Purchase and read Christmas with Anne and Other Holiday Stories:

Christmas with Anne and Other Holiday Stories by L.M. Montgomery


Created December 27, 2002. Re-posted online April 22, 2021. Last updated April 22, 2021.
© worldofanneshirley.com

April 21, 2021

Further Chronicles of Avonlea

Further Chronicles of Avonlea by L.M. Montgomery,1954 Cover Art,  George G. Harrap and Co.


Further Chronicles of Avonlea is a collection of short stories by L.M. Montgomery that was published in 1920. The title page of the first impression explains that the stories "have to do with many personalities and events in and about Avonlea, the Home of the Heroine of Green Gables."

In his introduction to the 1920 volume, Nathan Haskell Dole writes,

"There is something in these continued Chronicles of Avonlea, like the delicate art which has made 'Cranford' a classic: the characters are so homely and homelike and yet tinged with beautiful romance! You feel that you are made familiar with a real town and its real inhabitants; you learn to love them and sympathize with them. Further Chronicles of Avonlea is a book to read; and to know."

Further Chronicles of Avonlea contains the following 15 stories:

"Aunt Cynthia's Persian Cat"
"The Materializing of Cecil"
"Her Father's Daughter"
"Jane's Baby"
"The Dream-Child"
"The Brother Who Failed"
"The Return of Hester"
"The Little Brown Book of Miss Emily"
"Sara's Way"
"The Son of His Mother"
"The Education of Betty"
"In Her Selfless Mood"
"The Conscience Case of David Bell"
"Only a Common Fellow"
"Tannis of the Flats"

Purchase and read Further Chronicles of Avonlea:


Further Chronicles of Avonlea by L.M. Montgomery


Created December 22, 2003. Re-posted online April 21, 2021. Last updated April 21, 2021.
© worldofanneshirley.com