10. Anne of Green Gables
Is it a little strange that orphans appear so often on this list? After all, becoming an orphan is a hugely traumatic event, especially for a young child. Yet, some creators can hardly wait to get those troublesome fictional parents out of the way. Are loving, stable families somehow not conducive to adventure and personal growth? How are replacement parental figures intending any better than the original version?
At least Anne Shirley, for all of the terrible forces in her early childhood, eventually lucked out in the parental figure department.
Anne is the central figure in Anne of Green Gables and its follow up novels, all written by L.M. Montgomery. However, the first novel didn’t immediately begin with her. Rather, the first few pages focus on brother and sister Matthew and Marilla Cuthbert. These unmarried siblings live together on a small farm in Avonlea, a small town on Canada’s Prince Edward Island. Marilla is a bit of a stereotypically harsh spinster, while Matthew is so shy that he can hardly take the buggy into town to get supplies. Both are getting on in years, so they agree to adopt a boy to help them with work on the farm.
That’s okay enough, even if child care and adoption standards are pretty lax in 1900s Canada. Except, there’s a hitch. The adoption agency sends a girl, the talkative, red-haired Anne. After working through their initial surprise, the siblings agree to keep Anne. Neither can bring themselves to be so cruel as to send her back to the uncaring world of the orphanage.
The book then follows Anne as she grows up in Avonlea. She frustrates nearly everyone with her pure energy and chattiness, then wins them over with her intelligence and heart. That energy is both burden and boon. It leads her to act quickly when others are in need. It also leads her to be forgetful and impulsive, leading to one particularly memorable hair dye incident.
Whatever happens, however, the people of Avonlea and Anne herself are so thoroughly good that you can’t help but feel warmer yourself. The 1985 CBC miniseries is well worth a watch, too.