Anne of Green Gables was October’s Classic of the Month title, which meant I finally had the perfect excuse to read it properly. I went in knowing almost nothing about Anne Shirley, and came out wondering how I’d missed her for so long.
Confession: I’d never read Anne of Green Gables until now. I literally knew nothing about it. Who Anne Shirley was, whether Green Gables was a town, perhaps a house; or maybe a farm. The title suggested a rustic yarn before I knew better. Turns out that Anne is one of the great literary creations. A strong willed, imaginative orphan who didn’t just read books, she built her whole world through them. Reciting Tennyson while drifting in a boat, renaming ponds and fields with lyrical grandeur, and reframing everyday living as if she were the heroine of a novel. Furthermore she reminded me of someone. Me.
Anne is often held up as one of the first truly bookish heroines, and her influence still ripples through the culture of reading today. For many readers, books don’t just sit on a shelf, they shape how we see the world. Anne shows us that reading isn’t passive, it’s a lens for imagination, for survival, and for finding meaning. She also gave new life to language that readers still hold dear, using phrases like “kindred spirits” with a warmth and conviction that made them feel newly alive. Her deep friendship with Diana Barry, and her fierce rivalry turned romance with Gilbert Blythe, are all filtered through her love of books and words.
If you’ve ever bonded with someone over a book, a shared story, or felt the thrill of arguing passionately about a character; you’ve experienced a little of Anne’s Avonlea. It feels startlingly modern, like an early blueprint for book clubs, fandoms, or even the kind of conversations happening on BookTok.
Today, Anne’s reach goes far beyond the page. Prince Edward Island still thrives on Anne of Green Gables tourism: you can walk through Green Gables, see Anne’s bedroom, even buy the famous raspberry cordial. In Japan, Anne is a phenomenon. She’s inspired anime adaptations, school textbooks, and a whole community of fans who treat her as a cultural icon. That global reach says something powerful about the wider role of literature in our lives. More than a century after her debut, Anne Shirley feels familiar not because we’ve all dyed our hair the wrong colour or accidentally intoxicated a friend, but because she shows us how books and imagination can be transformative.
Anne insists that beauty and creativity matter, even in the humdrum of daily existence. That belief has shaped generations of readers and, in many ways, laid the groundwork for the bookish culture many of us now live in. One where reading is more than a pastime, it’s part of who we are.
You can still grab our Anne of Green Gables Classic of the Month parcel in our past boxes here.
