Anne's House of Dreams (Anne of Green Gables #5)

Synopsis

Anne's own true love, Gilbert Blythe, is finally a doctor, and in the sunshine of the old orchard, among their dearest friends, they are about to speak their vows. Soon the happy couple will be bound fora new life together and their own dream house, on the misty purple shores of Four Winds Harbor.

A new life means fresh problems to solve, fresh surprises. Anne and Gilbert will make new friends and meet their neighbors: Captain Jim, the lighthouse attendant, with his sad stories of the sea; Miss Cornelia Bryant, the lady who speaks from the heart- and speaks her mind; and the tragically beautiful Leslie Moore, into whose dark life Anne shines a brilliant light.

Loved

• Anne's growth. Growing up, I would always read the the first few chapters of this book until the wedding, and then I'd skim the rest. I never liked it because Anne leaves Avonlea, and we don't hear much of Diana or Marilla, or any of our favorite places and people. But reading House of Dreams this time I absolutely adored it because it's the same stage of life I'm in now, and most adults can relate to moving away from home to start a new life, meeting new people, creating new memories-all while learning you can fall in love with any place if you love the people around you and have your heart open. I also appreciated that Anne has her first experience with real sorrow in this story. She had a horrible childhood, but as an adult her life has been so blissful and things just seem to always work out for her. But when she loses her baby, she becomes acquainted with sorrow, and has to choose to find beauty and laughter in her life again. I feel like she grows in this story and becomes a little less carefree, but becomes more empathetic and relatable because of this grief.

• Gilbert. It's funny that it takes Anne and Gilbert getting married for us to finally spend time with Gil! I loved how much Gilbert is a part of this story, whereas in the other books he's only in certain scenes. But in this story he is there for almost everything, and we really get to see more of his personality since Anne spends all her time with him. I love his determination to always do the right thing (although it causes Anne grief in this story) and his "twinkling sense of humor." Their relationship has always been my favorite and I love that we get to see their newlywed life together :)

• Captain Jim. I remember when I was younger reading this I would get so bored of Captain Jim and his long-winded stories. But as an adult, I just love him. I think we all have people in our lives who are just as endearing as this man- people who tell us all the same stories, but we never tire of them. People who love us unconditionally and absolutely light up when we go to visit them and melt under our affection. Captain Jim is the best of the best and I love his pure-hearted goodness.

• Leslie Moore. Again, as a kid I never appreciated Leslie's story. That poor girl has had the most tragic life, and you can't blame her for feeling envy and resentment toward Anne, who seems to have the perfect life. I've loved all of Anne's friends over the years, but Leslie provides a different perspective and a depth which Anne hasn't had with her other friends. I loved watching how Anne and Leslie finally overcame their "barriers" when Anne lost her baby. As Leslie says, she would never wish such a heartbreak upon Anne, but since it happened, Anne was able to understand Leslie's heartbreak and tragedy with more empathy and understanding, rather than pity and sympathy. I feel like this is a more realistic and meaningful friendship that all of us can relate to- bonding with each other through heartache, and carrying each other through pain. (I also love how Leslie's story ends- you can trust L.M. Montgomery to usually give us happy endings, and this did not disappoint :)

• The wedding. Of course, the first few chapters are just heaven as Anne lives at Green Gables for a couple months and we get to see the wedding preparations. I still savor those first few chapters that contain the last of Anne's childhood.

Didn't Love

• I just loved this story. I do miss Diana, Marilla, Rachel Lynde, and the twins, and I wish we got a little more of them in this story. But I did feel it was realistic in that much of our adult lives we don't always get to live by the people we love most and have to stay in touch other ways- which often makes the relationship even sweeter and stronger.

Content

• Language: 
• No swearing in this story.

• Sexual content: 
• A few referenced affairs.

• Violence:
• A character's history is told, involving watching her brother be killed by a moving vehicle and finding her father who had hanged himself in the living room. His face is described as "blackened."
• References to a character fighting in a brawl while drunk and bashing his head, which results in memory loss.

Overall Thoughts

As I mentioned before, I never used to like Anne's House of Dreams after the wedding chapters were over, but as an adult I just loved this story and found it so relatable. Although it's nostalgic to watch Anne leave Avonlea, it's gratifying to watch her learn to love Four Winds and the House of Dreams just as much as she loves Avonlea and Green Gables- because she loves and gives to the people there, which makes it truly home for her. I loved seeing Anne and Gil's relationship and having him be a central part of the story as he hasn't been in other books. I also love the new cast of quirky, but such lovable characters who all benefit from Anne's goodness and determination to love them in spite of their flaws. Anne's character develops beautifully in this book as she gains more strength and wisdom to complement her whimsical love affair with life that allows her to find loveliness and goodness in everything around her.