Lucy Maud Montgomery: Scholars and fans gather to celebrate Anne of Green Gables' creator
Anne of Green Gables is never truly out of the spotlight on Prince Edward Island, however it’s been four years since scholars and fans gathered to study her creator.
More than 100 people, representing 18 counties, are attending the 15th Biennial Lucy Maud Montgomery Conference.
The attendees are united by their love of Anne Shirley, the Anne of Green Gables series, and author Lucy Maud Montgomery.
Some, like Irina Levchenko, have come from as far away as Vienna, Austria, a testament to the broad appeal of Anne.
“It was really like reading the book about me,” said Levchenko, who first read Anne of Green Gables when she was 20. “I think it’s like this for a lot of girls. They realize there’s something in them and that this book really explains the value of female experience, and gives girls a voice.”
It’s the first time the conference has been held since 2018. “Vision” was to be the theme for the 2020 conference, which was cancelled. So, this year’s theme became “re-vision.”
“It’s both the revision of writing the novels and the manuscripts and the letters,” said Emily Woster, a Lucy Maud Montgomery Scholar from Minnesota. “But it’s really, truly revision. Re-seeing her photography, her visual eye, her descriptions. Re-looking at how we see Montgomery.”
The tale of Anne Shirley has often been adapted, both an effect of and a reason for Montgomery’s broad appeal.
Anne of Green Gables has enjoyed an incredible popularity in Japan since the end of the Second World War. The Canadian classic has even been transformed into Japanese graphic novels.
“Adaptation is sort of a starting point to become a big fan of Anne of Green Gables,” said Yukari Yoshihara, and expert in adaptation. ”We are continuing this sort of tradition of adapting, in manga format.”
Translated into dozens of languages, Anne of Green Gables has been reimagined for stage and screen just as often.
“Montgomery keeps being reinvented over and over,” said Alan MacEachern, event co-chair. “Every time you think that it’s dying down a little bit, the Montgomery fascination blows up in a different way.”
Even after more than 100 years, Lucy Maud Montgomery remains the most influential Islander to ever put pen to paper.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
More than 115 cases of eye damage reported in Ontario after solar eclipse
More than 115 people who viewed the solar eclipse in Ontario earlier this month experienced eye damage after the event, according to eye doctors in the province.
Last letters of pioneering climber who died on Everest reveal dark side of mountaineering
George Mallory is renowned for being one of the first British mountaineers to attempt to scale the dizzying heights of Mount Everest during the 1920s. Nearly a century later, newly digitized letters shed light on Mallory’s hopes and fears about ascending Everest.
Toxic testing standoff: Family leaves house over air quality
A Sherwood Park family says their new house is uninhabitable. The McNaughton's say they were forced to leave the house after living there for only a week because contaminants inside made it difficult to breathe.
An emergency slide falls off a Delta Air Lines plane, forcing pilots to return to JFK in New York
An emergency slide fell off a Delta Air Lines jetliner shortly after takeoff Friday from New York, and pilots who felt a vibration in the plane circled back to land safely at JFK Airport.
B.C. seeks ban on public drug use, dialing back decriminalization
The B.C. NDP has asked the federal government to recriminalize public drug use, marking a major shift in the province's approach to addressing the deadly overdose crisis.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau on navigating post-political life, co-parenting and freedom
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
Decoy bear used to catch man who illegally killed a grizzly, B.C. conservation officers say
A man has been handed a lengthy hunting ban and fined thousands of dollars for illegally killing a grizzly bear, B.C. conservation officers say.
'I was scared': Ontario man's car repossessed after missing two repair loan payments
An Ontario man who took out a loan to pay for auto repairs said his car was repossessed after he missed two payments.
First court appearance for boy and girl charged in death of Halifax 16-year-old
A girl and a boy, both 14 years old, made their first appearance today in a Halifax courtroom, where they each face a second-degree murder charge in the stabbing death of a 16-year-old high school student.