After Anne | Litsy

After Anne: A Novel of Lucy Maud Montgomery's Life | Logan Steiner

pan

A very belated review, assembled from my notes & comments for our #KindredSpiritsBuddyRead discussionā€¦last month!š¬

ā€There are questions and emotional realities of Maud‘s life that remain a mystery. That is the space where fiction can enter.ā€¯ (from the Author‘s Note)

To a certain extent, I agree. But I‘m also torn about this specific flavor of historical fiction. It seems presumptuousā€”and intrusive? sensationalist?ā€”to speculate on ā¬‡ļø¸

BarbaraJean (Cont‘d) someone‘s emotional life in the way this book does.

Part of my discomfort here is that I disagreed with many of Steiner‘s fictional speculations, especially regarding Maud‘s courtship with Ewan and the circumstances around Maud‘s death. This is part of my problem with this type of historical fiction: presenting an interpretation of someone‘s life as fact. That said, parts of this felt entirely plausible, especially Maud‘s relationshipā¬‡ļø¸ 2mo

BarbaraJean (Contā€d) with her cousin Frede and the glimpses we get of her interactions with her sons. Also, Steiner's emphasis on how conscious Maud was about the version of her life that would be left behind in her journalsā€”this rang very true, given what I've read about Maud elsewhere. I really enjoyed seeing these aspects of Maudā€s life fleshed out and explored here.

Steiner also uses a number of narrative devices that were hit or miss for me.ā¬‡ļø¸ (edited) 2mo

BarbaraJean (Cont'd) I liked the way she wove in Maud‘s ever-present consciousness of ā€the Readerā€¯ā€”an observer looking over her shoulder, evaluating and judging the writing that would be left behind. But Steiner also uses Anne as a character/voice in Maud‘s thoughts, which felt very contrived. Then Steiner chooses two framing narratives that I found distracting, which set up a non-linear construction that felt confusing early on. ā¬‡ 2mo

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BarbaraJean (Cont'd) My other issue with the book is how it seemed determined to relive the most difficult parts of LMM‘s life after her publishing career began. Granted, Maud‘s later life is so very sad, but there was so much more to her than the parts this book chose to focus on. The sense I‘ve gotten of Maud‘s personality through reading her lettersā€”her humor!ā€”was mostly absent here. It seems the author wanted to focus on what Maud might have ā¬‡ 2mo

BarbaraJean (Cont'd) left out of her journalsā€”the parts of her life that were too difficult to leave a record ofā€”which is certainly a valid approach to LMM's life. But because that leaves out SO much of Maud‘s story and personality, this felt like a very narrow, stilted picture of her life and career. 2mo

dabbe #fanofthepan! š¤©š¤©š¤© What an in-depth critique, too! 2mo

BarbaraJean @dabbe š‚ I debated between So-So and Panā€¦ it‘s really halfway betweenā€¦ but I decided not to round up š† 2mo

dabbe @BarbaraJean Good choice! š¤©š‚š 2mo

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lauraisntwilder

After Anne: A Novel of Lucy Maud Montgomery's Life | Logan Steiner

so-so

I understand how great Anne is, I do. I actually met Megan Follows once (I rang up her purchases at the bookstore where I was working) & was so starstruck that I couldn't tell her I was a fan. I get it. But, Anne of GG is about a whole town, not just Anne. I don't believe she would have had any more sway over LMM than any of her other characters. To make Anne a voice in LMM's head didn't work for me. I feel like this focused on the wrong things.

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BarbaraJean

After Anne: A Novel of Lucy Maud Montgomery's Life | Logan Steiner

#KindredSpiritsBuddyRead - After Anne discussion part 3

ā€There are questions and emotional realities of Maud‘s life that remain a mystery. That is the space where fiction can enter.ā€¯ (from the Author‘s Note)

What is the value for you of historical fiction like this, that speculates on the ā€questions and emotional realitiesā€¯ of a person‘s life?
Did you enjoy this story as historical fiction?

rubyslippersreads, lauraisntwilder, julieclair

BarbaraJean I'm torn about this type of historical fiction. I was super into ā€Biblical fictionā€ in high schoolā€”basically historical fiction based on Biblical characters like Esther, Miriam, Lydia, etc. I didn't feel conflicted about those, but I do about this (I felt the same way about the novel Maud). In some senses, it seems presumptuousā€”and intrusive? sensationalist? I can't pin down why exactlyā€”to speculate on someone's emotional life in this way. ā¬‡

Maud: A Novel Inspired by the Life of L.M. Montgomery

3mo

rubyslippersreads I‘m with you (and I felt the same way about the YA novel you tagged). I finished After Anne feeling quite depressed. (edited) 3mo

BarbaraJean Relatedly, it bothered me that the author assumed Maud‘s suicide as a fact (both in the narrative and in her author‘s note at the end). Based on the Rubio biography, Maud‘s death seemed far more complicated than that, especially the ā€page 176ā€¯ā€”likely part of her journal notesā€”that was assumed to be a suicide note. This is part of my problem with historical fictionā€”presenting what is an interpretation of someone's life as fact. 3mo

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BarbaraJean @rubyslippersreads I finished this one feeling pretty depressed as well. LMM's later life is so very sad, but it seemed like this novel focused on reliving the most difficult parts of LMM's life after her publishing career began. There was so much more to her life than the parts this book chose to focus on, and that was frustrating. (edited) 3mo

lauraisntwilder I normally enjoy historical fiction, but I'm not sure I've read a novel about someone I know so much about (except maybe Hemingway). @rubyslippersreads Yes, this definitely was depressing. The author's note was really illuminating for me. She talked about the major sorrows of Maud's life and they weren't the same ones I would've named. 3mo

rubyslippersreads @lauraisntwilder @BarbaraJean The one thing I will say for this book is that it‘s made me very interested in reading LMM‘s Journals. 3mo

BarbaraJean @rubyslippersreads Me too! I‘ve been thinking about taking a break from #KindredSpiritsBuddyRead after February, but maybe reconvening for a buddy read of the journals at some point. 3mo

rubyslippersreads @BarbaraJean I‘d definitely be interested in that. 3mo

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BarbaraJean

After Anne: A Novel of Lucy Maud Montgomery's Life | Logan Steiner

#KindredSpiritsBuddyRead - After Anne discussion part 2

What did you think of the narrative devices the author uses?
š“The characters in Maud‘s thoughts: the Fox and Hen, the Reader, Anne
š“The two framing stories: the bonfire and the birthday weekend
š“Non-linear structure

Did you find them effective? What did they add to the narrative?

rubyslippersreads, lauraisntwilder, julieclair

BarbaraJean My mileage varied with these. I thought the idea of ā€the Readerā€ always being present, looking over Maud's shoulder, was really effective. And the idea of the Fox & the Hen worked for me as well. Anne's voice not so muchā€”that felt really contrived! And I found the framing narratives distracting. Mostly, those sections didn't ring true to my picture of who Maud was, and especially early on, the non-linear construction felt confusing. 3mo

rubyslippersreads The Reader kind of worked for meā€”Maud was very conscious of what her Journals would reveal. I got tired of Anne‘s voice. I think this novel‘s author felt her readers would expect a lot of Anne, since that‘s the character most readers are familiar with. 3mo

lauraisntwilder The Reader worked, I agree. I thought the others were weird, especially Anne. I thought Steiner did a relatively good job piecing together the events of Maud's life, but there was entirely too much time spent in Maud's head. Maud edited her own thoughts meticulously, making this feel especially overwrought. 3mo

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BarbaraJean

After Anne: A Novel of Lucy Maud Montgomery's Life | Logan Steiner

#KindredSpiritsBuddyRead - After Anne discussion part 1

Going into this book, what other biographical material had you read about L.M. Montgomery (biographies, journals, letters, etc.)?
Does the character of Maud in this story feel plausible to you as L.M. Montgomery? Why or why not?

rubyslippersreads, lauraisntwilder, julieclair

BarbaraJean I'd read the Rubio biography, some of LMM's letters & The Alpine Path, and the Liz Rosenberg biography. Parts of this felt entirely plausible, especially Maud's relationship with Frede and the glimpses we get of her interactions with her sons. Also, the emphasis on how conscious Maud was about the version of her life that would be left behind in her journalsā€”this made a lot of sense to me in the context of what I‘ve read about Maud elsewhere. BUTā¬‡ (edited) 3mo

BarbaraJean Other parts felt VERY off, especially the characterization of Maud's courtship with Ewan. The whole spending the night together scene really bothered meā€”that seemed completely out of character particularly for Ewan, but also for Maud. The Edwin Smith sections as well, but I wasn't as bothered by those as by Rubio's speculation! Also the sense I got of Maud's personality through reading her letters to G.B. MacMillan (her humor!) was missing here. (edited) 3mo

rubyslippersreads I‘ve read most of the non-fiction you‘ve read (I have to get back to the Rubio bio), plus Volume I of the Selected Journals. The Maud in this novel doesn‘t really resonate with me. Emily of New Moon is LMM‘s most autobiographical novel, and there wasn‘t a bit of Emily in this book (except an allusion to ā€the flashā€¯). 3mo

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BarbaraJean @rubyslippersreads Yes!! There was such a huge emphasis on Anne (I guess the title was a giveaway there). Yes, Anne was formative as LMM's first published novel, but If there was going to be any character speaking in Maud's thoughts, I felt it was far more likely to be Emily. Emily and The Story Girl were both more beloved to LMM, I felt, and they were really skimmed over/absent from this story. 3mo

rubyslippersreads @BarbaraJean There was also very little about the joy of writing, only about Ewan‘s disapproval of it, and the dreariness of writing sequels. I would have liked more of the feeling (again, from Emily), that LMM *had* to write. 3mo

julieclair Not sure if I will get to this one this month. š«¤ But sure would like to. 3mo

lauraisntwilder I've read the Rubio and Rosenberg biographies, The Alpine Path, Dear Mr M, and the biographical novel Maud. I agree with what you have both said, @BarbaraJean and @rubyslippersreads -- where was Emily? And where was Maud's humor? We start with Stuart finding the "suicide note," and that seemed to set the tone. Maud is worried even in the happier parts of the book. She definitely could have been worried a lot, but there was more to her than that. 3mo

BarbaraJean @julieclair If/when you do get to it, I‘d love to hear your thoughts! You can always come back to these posts later. š 3mo

BarbaraJean @lauraisntwilder Maud‘s humor was seriously lacking here!! I feel like the author wanted to focus on what Maud might have left out of her journalsā€”the parts of her life that were too difficult to leave a record of. But that leaves out SO much of Maud‘s story and personality. It felt like such a stilted picture of her life and career. 3mo

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BarbaraJean

After Anne: A Novel of Lucy Maud Montgomery's Life | Logan Steiner

Upcoming #KindredSpiritsBuddyRead picks:
January: After Anne by Logan Steiner (fiction focused on LMM‘s life after the publication of AoGG)
February: The Fragrance of Sweet-Grass by Elizabeth Rollins Epperly (analysis of LMM‘s fiction through the lens of romance)

I have @lauraisntwilder @rubyslippersreads and @julieclair for January and @TheAromaofBooks and @rubyslippersreads for February. All are welcomeā€”let me know if you‘d like to be tagged!

willaful I'd like to join in for The Fragrance of Sweet Grass 4mo

BarbaraJean @willaful Yay! I‘ve added you to the list. 4mo

TheAromaofBooks Sounds right!! I've given up on novelized accounts of real people for the most part š‚ 4mo

rubyslippersreads I just started this, but I‘m already put off by the use of ā€Ms.ā€¯ which I don‘t think was commonly used in the early 1900s. š¸ (edited) 3mo

BarbaraJean @rubyslippersreads I‘m 2/3 through now, and have been put off by a lot of things!! š¬ 3mo

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SilversReviews

After Anne: A Novel of Lucy Maud Montgomery's Life | Logan Steiner

ā€Explores the fascinating, bold, and often tragic hidden life of Lucy Maud Montgomery after the success of Anne of Green Gables.ā€¯

FULL SPOTLIGHT: https://tinyurl.com/mva626m5

@loganannsteiner
@kayepublicity

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