I recently listened to Anne of the Island, of the Anne of Green Gables series. This series was one of my regularly repeated reads as a child, along with The Little House on the Prairie series and most of Jane Austen’s novels among others. I knew the books so well that at the time I would bring up characters into conversations as if they were my friends. This led to some confusion with living beings who had not read the books or otherwise come to know these wonderful companions of my somewhat lonely childhood.
I was amazed as I listened (I have left my tangent and returned to Anne of the Island) to find so many of my ideas vocalised in the book. What an influence L M Montgomery has had. I had forgotten I had read them at all and supposed I suppose that I had come to these ideas as a result of thought and my own small experience. And some people think novels are a waste of time! Even if all a novel does is demonstrate how to put a thought or feeling into words what an important office it has filled.
I will always be grateful to Jane Austen for her many sensible thoughts on relationships and life, to Dorothy Sayers for putting in words what I had felt but not been able to express and now I must add L M Montgomery for at least supporting me in some solid ideas.
I would have everybody go and read classic novels. Don’t waste time with fluff or filth. Find those intelligent insightful authors who write well. Increase your knowledge of your fellow man (and women, guys, this could change your life), open your mind and broaden your experience. Become a better person. Read a good book today.
Katherine Wansink Writes 