Before Green Gables (Hardcover)

by Budge Wilson (Author) "Bertha Shirley stood at the door of their little yellow house and waved good-bye to Walter as he turned onto the road that would eventually..." (more)
Key Phrases: egg man, thirteen buckets, pink purse, Katie Maurice, Miss Henderson, Miss Haggerty (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly
Acclaimed author's Wilson's (The Leaving) disarming prequel to the beloved classic Anne of Green Gables gets off to a slow start but picks up momentum when the focus shifts from the heroine's parents to Anne herself. Orphaned in infancy, Anne is shuffled from one family to the next; despite poverty, hardship and heartbreak, she retains her indomitable spirit and an intense hunger for knowledge. Raudman's childlike voice has an innocent quality in keeping with Anne's sense of wonder and hope. She keeps a steady pace, allowing readers to enjoy the story as Wilson masterfully rounds out Anne's early life.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the Audio CD edition.

From Booklist
Timed to coincide with the 100th anniversary of Lucy Maud Montgomery’s Anne of Green Gables, the release of this prequel is sure to cause quite a stir among Anne Shirley fans. A heroine beloved by generations of girls and women, Anne Shirley continues to have a devoted following today. Though purists will object, those who have often imagined Anne’s life before Green Gables will devour this backstory. Everyone who ever read the original book remembers hints suggesting that Anne’s prior life was no bed of roses, and Canadian author Wilson paints an appropriately bleak portrait of the orphaned Anne’s early years. Still, she manages to remain true to the optimistic tone of the original book while relating the hardscrabble  details of Anne’s first 12 years. The ready-made audience of women with fond memories of the classic coming-of-age tale will guarantee readership for this imaginative prequel. --Margaret Flanagan

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 400 pages
• Publisher: Putnam Adult (February 21, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 039915468X
• ISBN-13: 978-0399154683
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.4 x 1.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars See all reviews (43 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #263,904 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

27 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A nice visit with Anne, February 23, 2008

By	Corey A. Doyle (North Canton, Ohio) - See all my reviews

When I first heard about the upcoming prequel to Anne of Green Gables I was nervous about it. It wasn't too far off the mark for me to worry that the new book would not compare to Anne of Green Gables - which is a very beloved novel of mine. However, I was mightily surprised when I read Before Green Gables as it was miraculously able to capture a lot (not all mind you) of Anne's essence that I was originally certain would be missing from this tale. For the die-hards this may still fall a little flat for them as it is missing a lot of LMM's descriptions and humor but it is still a lovely read. I think most fans of the series will enjoy having a new story to take them back to a simpler time with Anne - even if for Anne it was some of her hardest years. I really liked having some answers to where Anne came from, how she was brought up and what her parents were really like.

18 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Well-done but depressing, March 19, 2008

By	Bearette24 (New York, NY) - See all my reviews

I thought the author did a good job of imitating Anne's voice, tastes and character. It reminded me of Syrie James' book, The Lost Memoirs of Jane Austen, in that regard -- it didn't sound exactly like the original author, but close enough that you didn't mind.

The only thing that bothered me about the book was that it was DEPRESSING. Not consistently so, but by page 350 I was thinking, "Please, let something good happen. Please." One of my favorite things about the series was that it was so positive, and any setbacks that did occur were mild -- Marilla giving Anne plain dresses, etc. At first, Before Green Gables had that cozy, escapist feeling, too; but after a while, to borrow Anne's words, it was "mired in the depths of despair."

Fortunately, it had a happy ending. I don't think I'm giving anything away (but stop reading if you're worried) when I say that it ends with her heading toward Green Gables. I mean, the book is called Before Green Gables, and everyone knows what happens next. I thought the ending was really well-done, getting into Anne's head and showing how she was leaving all her past experiences, good and bad, "on the other side of the Northumberland Strait."

This would explain why the characters in this book aren't really referenced in Anne's subsequent life -- an omission that bothered some reviewers. It made sense to me, and helped explain how Anne got over her early tragedies.

In summary, I would say if you're worried about inconsistent tone or bad writing, there's no cause for concern. But if it would really bother you to see Anne undergoing some fairly extreme hardship (albeit with a happy ending), that might be an issue. I don't regret reading it, but I think some of the events could have been softened a little.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Not Montgomery, but not bad., March 4, 2008

By	A. Everett "Kvetch, Reader" (Nashville, TN USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I've read pretty much anything I can get my hands on by LM Montgomery, and so I was intrigued by the idea of this prequel. It's not as good as Anne of Green Gables and all that followed, but the idea is interesting, and it feels fairly well executed.

Most of Anne's early existence was bleak, save a few bright spots where she meets "kindred spirits". What rang a little untrue to me, though, is that these people must have had a profound influence, but you never hear of them again in any of Montgomery's works. Admittedly, that's a risk the author has to take, but it's the one thing that bothered me about the prequel.

A good read, and a nice treat for Anne devotees, but read the original works first, and save this for later.