After Green Gables: L.M. Montgomery's Letters to Ephraim Weber, 1916-1941

After Green Gables: L.M. Montgomery's Letters to Ephraim Weber, 1916-1941 edited by Hildi Froese Tiessen and Paul Gerard Tiessen was published by the University of Toronto Press in June 2006. The book is a collection of letters from L.M. Montgomery to Ephraim Weber, a Mennonite farmer living in Alberta, Canada. The pair corresponded with one another for nearly forty years.

Montgomery took great pleasure in receiving Weber's thoughtful and intellectually stimulating letters. Both Montgomery and Weber had literary aspirations, and they wrote to one another about literature and writing, world events and politics, and their daily lives. In appreciation of their close and meaningful friendship, L.M. Montgomery dedicated her novel The Blue Castle to "Mr. Ephraim Weber, M.A. who understands the architecture of blue castles."

In 1960, early letters from L.M. Montgomery to Ephraim Weber were published as The Green Gables Letters: From L.M. Montgomery to Ephraim Weber, 1905-1909 in a book edited by Wilfrid Eggleston. After Green Gables is a collection of Montgomery's later letters to Weber from 1916-1941 over a period spanning 25 years.

Here is the description of the book from University of Toronto Press:

Ephraim Weber (1870-1956) was a struggling young writer when he began corresponding with L.M. Montgomery (1874-1942) in 1902, six years before she published her first novel. Weber's initial letter was that of an admirer. Montgomery responded warmly, and the two quickly began a correspondence that became an intellectual mainstay for both of them over the following forty years. After Green Gables is a fascinating collection of letters sent by Montgomery to Weber between 1916 and 1941. This was the period of Montgomery's greatest literary success, but privately she was deeply troubled by her unhappy marriage.

The letters, revealing an intense social and intellectual dynamic between Montgomery and Weber, cover, among other subjects, their strong differences of opinion on matters such as pacifism and war and their joint rejection of the effects of literary modernism. Drawing on Weber's voluminous correspondence with other Canadian figures —particularly journalist Wilfred Eggleston—editors Paul Tiessen and Hildi Froese Tiessen skilfully illuminate Weber's interaction with Montgomery, especially in matters concerning literature and culture, religion and politics, and education and entertainment. The editors provide various readings of Weber, based on his aspirations as a writer, his active participation in the Canadian culture of his day (including his friendships with hometown schoolmate William Lyon Mackenzie King and community leader Leslie Staebler), and his heritage as a Mennonite.

After Green Gables brings to life a distinctly Canadian literary and intellectual association of writers. Montgomery's letters to a man committed to writing and to the cultural development of Canada reveal her intellectual preoccupations and her personal hardships. This is an essential text for Montgomery fans and scholars as well as readers with an interest in the development of Canada's literary culture.

Reviews

"After Green Gables is an outstanding contribution to the field of Montgomery studies. Paul Tiessen and Hildi Froese Tiessen have undertaken the painstaking task of deciphering, transcribing, and annotating L.M. Montgomery’s letters to Ephraim Weber, which shed light into an intriguing range of topics of interest to both. This book is exciting, timely, and important." -Irene Gammel, Ryerson University

"As social history, this collection of Montgomery’s letters to Weber (his half of the correspondence has been lost) is invaluable...After Green Gables should be in every Canadian library, and in every personal or public collection of Montgomery resources."
-Virginia Gillham, Canadian Book Review Annual Online (full review)

Image credit:
Scan of my book cover of After Green Gables: L.M. Montgomery's Letters to Ephraim Weber, 1916-1941.

Purchase and read After Green Gables: L.M. Montgomery's Letters to Ephraim Weber, 1916-1941:


Created July 28, 2006. Last updated October 21, 2024.
© worldofanneshirley.com

My Dear Mr. M: Letters to G.B. MacMillan from L.M. Montgomery

My Dear Mr. M: Letters to G.B. MacMillan from L.M. Montgomery edited by Francis W.P. Bolger and Elizabeth R. Epperly was first published by McGraw-Hill Ryerson Press in 1980. The 212-page volume was later republished by Oxford University Press in 1992.

L.M. Montgomery and George Boyd MacMillan of Alloa, Scotland began writing letters to one another in 1903, and they continued corresponding for nearly forty years until the end of L.M. Montgomery's life. Montgomery and MacMillan both had literary ambitions. When L.M. Montgomery began having success in the publishing world, she sent MacMillan copies of her books. L.M. Montgomery dedicated her novel Emily of New Moon to MacMillan "in recognition of a long and stimulating friendship."

In her letters, L.M. Montgomery displays thoughtfulness, warmth, openness, and humor. She and MacMillan have a deep friendship, and Montgomery confides in him about her life, literature, and thoughts on the world. The pair exchanged letters, as well as magazines, postcards, and books. Fortunately, MacMillan's family kept Montgomery's letters, but sadly, most of the letters MacMillan sent Montgomery have been lost. This collection of selected letters provides insight to L.M. Montgomery's life and her relationship with her valued and trusted friend.


Here is the description of the book from Oxford University Press:

MY DEAR MR. LETTERS TO G. B. MacMILLAN FROM L. M. MONTGOMERY is a volume of selected letters from L.M. Montgomery to her longtime Scottish correspondent George Boyd MacMillan (to whom she had dedicated Emily of New Moon), written between 1903 and 1941. It was edited and introduced by Francis W.P. Bolger and Elizabeth R. Epperly and first published in 1980 by McGraw-Hill Ryerson. A trade paperback edition, with a new preface by the editors, was published by Oxford University Press in 1992.

Lucy Maud Montgomery, author of the ever-popular Anne of Green Gables, was a keen letter-writer. Her letters to George Boyd MacMillan over their thirty-nine-year friendship show the full range of her interests, from domestic concerns, her cats and gardening, to her professional literary career as best-selling author. She shares with MacMillan the joys and burdens of her life. She is proud of her two sons and is excited by new inventions such as motor cars and the talkies. At the same time, she is saddened by the encroachment of “progress” on her idyllic, rural Prince Edward Island. She agonizes over the campaigns of the two World Wars and never recovers completely from the death of her closest friend. During her friendship with MacMillan, L.M. Montgomery changes from a confident and cheerful young woman to a disillusioned but courageous old woman. After her retirement to “Journey’s End” in Toronto, distraught by family problems and depressed by the Second World War, her health and spirits fail. These letters will delight all readers of Lucy Maud Montgomery’s books. They reveal the character of one [of] our best-known authors; charming, witty, sometimes gloomy and morbid, she was above all stimulating.

Reviews

"My Dear Mr. M. has a place in any collection of Canadian literature."
-Lori A. Dunn, Canadian Book Review Annual Online (full review)

Image credit:
Book cover of My Dear Mr. M: Letters to G.B. MacMillan from L.M. Montgomery.

Purchase and read My Dear Mr. M: Letters to G.B. MacMillan from L.M. Montgomery:


Created December 2, 1999. Last updated October 19, 2024.
© worldofanneshirley.com

The Green Gables Letters: From L.M. Montgomery to Ephraim Weber, 1905-1909

The Green Gables Letters: From L.M. Montgomery to Ephraim Weber, 1905-1909 edited by Wilfrid Eggleston was published by Ryerson Press in 1960. The 2nd edition of the 102-page book was published by Borealis Press in 1981.

L.M. Montgomery and Ephraim Weber began writing letters to one another in 1902, and they continued corresponding for nearly forty years until the end of L.M. Montgomery's life. Weber was a Mennonite farmer born in Ontario, Canada, who moved to Western Canada as an adult.

L.M. Montgomery and Ephraim Weber both had literary ambitions. Weber was a poet and author, and Montgomery took great pleasure in receiving his intellectually stimulating letters. The pair wrote to one another about books and writers, their literary struggles and successes, and their personal lives. In appreciation of their long literary friendship, L.M. Montgomery dedicated her novel The Blue Castle to "Mr. Ephraim Weber, M.A. who understands the architecture of blue castles."

Wilfrid Eggleston, a journalist and writer, was also friends with Ephraim Weber. When Weber died in 1956, his letters were turned over to Eggleston and placed in the National Archives of Canada. Eggleston proceeded to publish this collection of letters from Montgomery to Weber in 1960 to enlighten readers about L.M. Montgomery's correspondence during the period she wrote Anne of Green Gables.

Here is the description of the book from Borealis Press:

An interesting sequence of letters, written by L.M. Montgomery early in the century, was found in 1956 among the papers of Ephraim Weber who was living in the West. Now lodged in the National Archives in Ottawa, the letters reproduced here exactly as they were written, form a fascinating footnote to the history of Canadian letters.

These letters are of interest and importance not only because they were written during the years of gestation and birth and outstanding success of the book ANNE OF GREEN GABLES, but also because they reveal a lively extrovert in an eminently healthy balance. This is an absorbing book, for adults who have nostalgic memories of "ANNE," and for writers who need encouragement in their struggle for literary recognition.

Image credit:
Book cover of The Green Gables Letters: From L.M. Montgomery to Ephraim Weber, 1905-1909.

Purchase and read The Green Gables Letters: From L.M. Montgomery to Ephraim Weber, 1905-1909:


Created December 1, 1999. Last updated October 20, 2024.
© worldofanneshirley.com

The Years Before Anne

The Years Before Anne is a biography by Francis W.P. Bolger about L.M. Montgomery's early career prior to the publication of Anne of Green Gables in 1908. The book was first published in 1974 by The Prince Edward Island Heritage Foundation, and it has since been reprinted by Nimbus Publishing. In his preface to the book, Bolger wrote, "The year 1974 marks the centenary of the birth of Lucy Maud Montgomery. This book is written as a humble tribute to the woman who receives and eminently deserves recognition as Prince Edward Island's most famous international personage."

Bolger's book contains a treasure trove of primary source research on L.M. Montgomery's early life and writing career. He includes letters written by L.M. Montgomery to her dear friend Penzie Macneill during the year Montgomery lived with her father in Prince Albert, Saskatchewan. Bolger also reprints stories and poems saved in L.M. Montgomery's early scrapbooks from the 1890s during her college years that illustrate her ascent up "The Alpine Path." In addition, Bolger draws from a series of letters written by Montgomery to her longtime penpal Ephraim Weber to provide a greater understanding of the author.

Here is the book's description from its back cover:

Lucy Maud Montgomery (1874-1942) is best known for Anne of Green Gables, first published in 1908, but her literary career was firmly established before this endearing novel brought her international acclaim. Her letters to her friends Penzie Macneill and Ephraim Weber add a rich dimension to her character, while her short stories, serials, and poems illustrate the gradual unfolding of a remarkable talent.

Her family and island life contributed immensely to this literary development. The Montgomerys, who were at the heart of the island's social and political life, provided the subject matter, while her talent for writing came from her mother's family, the Macneills, who produced writers, poets, and satirists. And of growing up surrounded by the pastoral beauty of the countryside and the sparkling waters of the sea, she wrote, "Were it not for those Cavendish years, I do not think Anne of Green Gables would ever have been written."

Francis W. P. Bolger, who teaches history at the University of Prince Edward Island, has compiled an informative and complete picture of the fascinating life and brilliant career of Lucy Maud Montgomery, drawing on her scrapbooks, letters, diaries, photos and conversations with family members.

Image credit:
Scanned book cover of my copy of The Years Before Anne.

Purchase and read The Years Before Anne:


Created October 5, 1999. Last updated September 18, 2024.
© worldofanneshirley.com