Discussion Post: Anne's House of Dreams

[myr_soleil]

Hi everyone! Welcome to our discussion post for one of my favorite books, Anne's House of Dreams. I hope you liked it as much as I did, and I can't wait to hear what you think!

Comments

[empressearwig]

1. Did you like the book? Do you like the setting of Anne married, or did you miss having her in school?

I really love this new setting, I think this is the best one in all the books, or at least the one that's most fully explored, which makes a certain amount of sense since Anne is actually in Four Winds for longer than she's in any other place. I do miss her and school, because I liked her students, by and large, but she was ready to move on and so I'm ready to read about her moving on, if that makes any sense at all.

2. How about those new characters? Leslie, Captain Jim, Cornelia, Susan, Jem, Owen - did you like their addition?

LOVE. Captain Jim may be my favorite new character in any of the books, and I love Leslie and Susan and Miss Cornelia and Owen, and just, this is the best set of new characters. I love a lot of the rest of them, too, but this is the best set.

3. What do you think of Gilbert in this book? Is there finally enough Gilbert for you? Do you like seeing what happens after the main couple gets married?I love

[empressearwig]

6. "Some people might think that a Redmond B.A., whom editors were beginning to honor, was 'wasted' as the wife of a struggling country doctor in the rural community of Four Winds." Do you think Anne is wasted as a housewife?

No, because it's clear that she's happy. But at the same time, on some level, it's weird for me to read about this character who's been out in the world and living her own life, suddenly just being settled and not having any of that anymore. It's what she wants, though, and that's all I want for fictional characters that I love.

7. Imagine you don't know how "Dick's" operation turns out. Do you think Gilbert should have told Leslie about the operation?

Yes. Her situation was just SO MISERABLE, that even if he was fully restored to Dick Moore, it would have had to have been better than the alternative. And well, I know how it turned out, so.

8. "But there was something in the smile that had never been in Anne's smile before and would never be absent from it again." How terrible is that? How much did you cry at

[katayla]

I love that we get to see what happens after the main couple gets married! That the story doesn't end with they lived happily ever after is one of my favorite parts of the series.

RIGHT? (Except for now I'm greedy and want to see what happens next after certain later characters get married.)

But I love that it's not forgotten, never forgotten. I feel like a lot of books don't deal well with the realities of losing a child, but this does, I think. Well, as well as I can imagine having never gone through that myself.

YES. I meant to get at that in my comment, but YES. I love the scenes when Anne talks about how she imagines what Joyce would be like now.

[empressearwig]

Except for now I'm greedy and want to see what happens next after certain later characters get married.

I know, me too. She created such an awesome second generation and it's basically a series I never wanted to end.

[beth_shulman]

1. Did you like the book? Do you like the setting of Anne married, or did you miss having her in school?

I love this book so, so much. LOVE IT. Including the setting.

2. How about those new characters? Leslie, Captain Jim, Cornelia, Susan, Jem, Owen - did you like their addition?

I love everyone. Captain Jim ♥♥♥ Cornelia and Susan, who always make me laugh, Owen and Leslie ♥ and was it Marcus? who wouldn't shave and so Anne didn't recognize him when he did? And then Cornelia married him, after waiting until he didn't look like a "perambulating haystack". HAAAA.

3. What do you think of Gilbert in this book? Is there finally enough Gilbert for you? Do you like seeing what happens after the main couple gets married?

I LOVE HIM. I NEED A GILBERT IN MY LIFE. (Um, what was up with his family being there on their wedding night?)

4. Which love story did you prefer - Captain Jim and lost Margaret? Leslie and Owen? Cornelia and Marshall Elliott? Anne and Gilbert?

Anne and Gilbert, hands down, but next Leslie and Owen's. Poor Leslie.

5.

[empressearwig]

I always loved that quote from Anne of Ingleside, "she's writing living epistles now"

I really like that too. It kind of perfectly sums everything up.

Spoiler alert?

[beth_shulman]

Yeah. And I love that she says it "with the queenishness reminiscent of the Redmond days" (paraphrasing slightly). SUCH A GREAT MOMENT.

[kindness_says]

Hello, it is I, your silly first-time-reading friend, come to respond late to everyone's threads (and I made my own at the bottom, of course!)!

2. PERAMBULATING HAYSTACK. NOT THE BEST MAN IN THE WORLD. HIGH-LARITY.

3. What's this about Gilbert's family and their wedding night?

6. "living epistles"! I'm not there, but that sounds perfect. And you're right, she's not nearly as young as say when Laura Ingalls Wilder gets married, or even Amy and Meg (and maybe Jo, too? less though) in Little Women.

0. VISITING MARILLAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA. "It would be stranger if they weren't!" "They look just like hands!" I'm quoting poorly because I'm too excited to go back and check the pages!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[mardia]

1. Did you like the book? Do you like the setting of Anne married, or did you miss having her in school?

I LOVE this book. It's easily one of my favorites, if only because it's so great actually seeing Anne and Gilbert together as a couple. I don't particularly miss her in a school setting.

2. How about those new characters? Leslie, Captain Jim, Cornelia, Susan, Jem, Owen - did you like their addition?Love them. Leslie's my favorite, but I also really like Captain Jim, Miss Cornelia, Susan's pretty awesome, etc etc

[empressearwig]

That they're together and happy and just, live, is my favorite thing of all about this series, I think. Interesting stuff happens after people get together! I'm so glad that we get to see it, too.

[myr_soleil]

Although in a way after this book the interesting stuff doesn't really happen to them. I always felt like their relationship could have been explored even more. Sometimes I wonder if it isn't like that just because LMM was so unhappy in her marriage she wasn't really sure what kind of exciting married-life things there could be.

[empressearwig]

True, the focus does shift pretty heavily to the kids after this book. And I don't necessarily mind, because I love the kids, but yeah, I could have used more about them. (Also, fic about their second honeymoon in Europe? Why doesn't that exist?)

[katayla]

1. Did you like the book? Do you like the setting of Anne married, or did you miss having her in school?

I love it! I've been thinking about this book and it seems like there aren't a lot of books that cover the early marriage territory? Or, if they do, it's about JUST that and fraught with drama and angst and all. But, um, I would hope there are some good times in marriage, too!

2. How about those new characters? Leslie, Captain Jim, Cornelia, Susan, Jem, Owen - did you like their addition?

YES. I loved the feeling of Anne and Gilbert becoming a part of this community.

3. What do you think of Gilbert in this book? Is there finally enough Gilbert for you? Do you like seeing what happens after the main couple gets married?Haha, well, I don't know! Can there BE enough Gilbert? But YES. I guess I kind of started answering the second question above, but I LOVE getting to see what happens after the main couple gets married. I love the build up, but I want to see what happens next! When the couple knows they're in love and are solid and

[beth_shulman]

Well, I'm a robot

LOL, I never used to tear up but I do all the time now. I don't know what happened to me.

[katayla]

Haha, I do more than I used to! But it still seems somewhat rare.

(Actually, you know what really gets me? The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants books.)

[beth_shulman]

(Really? Why?)

[h_loquacious]

1. Did you like the book? Do you like the setting of Anne married, or did you miss having her in school

[h_loquacious]

8. "But there was something in the smile that had never been in Anne's smile before and would never be absent from it again." How terrible is that? How much did you cry at Joyce's story? Be honest

[empressearwig]

That Gilbert calls Anne Anne-Girl all the way through the entire series makes me SO HAPPY. It's just so sweet. I kind of hate pet names, but I love that one.

It's different than the others somehow; it's achy-er. I feel like there's a lot more suppressed emotion on the page somehow. Not just sadness either, but all sorts.

I hadn't thought about it in exactly these terms, but yeah, that is what it feels like. Anne suppressing her happiness for Leslie's sake, Owen and Leslie trying not to feel what they feel, etc. And just there's so much happiness that isn't said, like it's not okay to be that happy. Actually, isn't that in this book? Someone, maybe Marilla, says that it's not right to be so happy? I can't remember now.

[h_loquacious]

I'm very particular abou pet names, but Anne-Girl has always been one of my favourites. It's sweet without being too saccharine and ringing false in any way. It's just perfect.

Mrs. Lynde definitely does at the start. She feels the need to try and
temper Anne's happiness because she thinks the universe (or the gods) frown on mortals who are too happy. Marilla might do it to, but Mrs. Lynde definitely does.