By Viola Ashford

The 'Anne' series is set in the late 19th century on the beautiful Canadian province of Prince Edward Island, off the coast of Nova Scotia. When the story begins Anne is an 11 year-old, red-haired orphan mistakenly adopted by stern Marilla and her kindly brother Matthew, who were expecting a boy to help out on their farm Green Gables.

Sunny-natured, feisty Anne soon charms her way into their hearts and the hearts of those in the little village of Avonlea, even though she annoys Marilla by constantly getting into 'scrapes'. These misadventures include being nasty to Marilla's best friend when her red hair is criticised, accidentally making herself and her best friend Diana drunk on Marilla's home-made wine, and mistakenly dying her red hair green.

Anne has to cope with experiences common to many girls of her age, for example, being taunted at her new school, worry about her marks, and malicious friends. She also, at 16, has to bear the sorrow of her beloved Matthew's death. Heroic Anne survives all this with flying colours.

Clever, independent and ambitious, Anne, the daughter of school teachers, unlike most girls of her time, wants a career. She obtains a B.A, the first person from Avonlea to do so, and fulfills her ambition to become a high-schoolteacher.

The girls who read about Anne cried for her when Matthew died, worried about how she would get out of her scrapes, and cheered for her when she went to university and obtained her B.A.

As a teenager Anne was one of my role-models. She confronts her problems optimistically, with charm and grace. She is determined to achieve her ambitions and does this under difficult circumstances at a time when women were not encouraged to pursue careers. Many women all over the world owe their desire for an education and career to her example.

More importantly than that, however, Anne, with her courageousness and optimism, showed how life should be lived.

About the Author

Viola Ashford has had feature articles published in Alive Magazine (a national family spiritual magazine), Writing Australia (on legal subjects) and Family Tree Connections Australia. She is also a regular film reviewer for Alive Magazine and has reviewed many films, including An Ideal Husband and The Winslow Boy.

More on Anne!

The story of the irrepressible, redheaded orphan who comes to live with brother and sister Matthew and Marilla Cuthbert at Green Gables , stars Megan Follows in the title role of Anne. Veteran actress Colleen Dewhurst stars opposite her as Marilla Cuthbert and Richard Farnsworth plays Matthew Cuthbert.

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