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Jana at That Artsy Reader Girl invited us to share “Books for People Who Liked Author X” this week. That threw me for a loop for a minute. I read pretty widely at this point and I’m not terribly faithful to any one genre. Could I do this? Maybe I needed to go rogue. Then I realized the angle I needed to take. Here’s a list of books I recommend if you like L. M. Montgomery, of Anne of Green Gables fame.
The Penderwicks by Jeanne Birdsall, read by Susan Denaker–Even though the first book in this series was published in 2005, it has a timeless feel of childhood scrapes and small heartaches.
Ramona Quimby series by Beverly Cleary–Ramona, who first appears in Beezus and Ramona, is a rule breaker. She simply can’t help getting into misadventures. But I think her curiosity and sense of fun would make her appeal to fans of L. M. Montgomery’s books.
The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate by Jacqueline Kelly–Calpurnia is more scientifically-minded than Montgomery’s heroines, who tend to be dreamers, but I think the characters find common ground in their love of nature and the outdoors. Calpurnia struggles to be the daughter her mother wants her to be, just as Anne struggles to live up to Marilla’s standards when she first arrives at Green Gables. They both find solace in grandfatherly figures.
The Melendy Family by Elizabeth Enright, read by Pamela Dillman–This classic children’s series begins with The Saturdays. First published in 1941, these books chronicle the innocent adventures of four siblings
Five on a Treasure Island by Enid Blyton–I’ve only read the first book in this classic British children’s series but the children’s wild imaginations reminded me a lot of Montgomery’s characters.
Little Men by Louisa May Alcott–I know that most of you would list Little Women here but I have never cared for that book. Sacrilege, I know! I tried and tried as an older child and then a teenager but I never could get past that one death scene. I finally actually finished it for the first time sometime in the past couple of years. But Little Men is a book I can get behind. No unnecessary tears in this one. Little boys being little boys and adults gently guiding them in the ways they should go definitely falls into Montgomery’s territory.
Saving CeeCee Honeycutt by Beth Hoffman–CeeCee, like many of Montgomery’s characters, has to assume too much responsibility too young and then finds herself relying on the kindness of strangers.
I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith–This recommendation is for fans of Montgomery’s slightly older characters. The main character, Cassandra, wants to be a writer. She has an eccentric family and there’s a will-they-won’t-they relationship, which I think are reminiscent of Montgomery’s books.
A Northern Light by Jennifer Donnelly–Here’s another one with slightly older characters. Maddie desperately wants to go to college and be a writer but she also has to care for her younger siblings. Montgomery seemed to write about these sorts of dreams vs responsibilities situations fairly often.
The Country of the Pointed Firs by Sarah Orne Jewett–I’m changing course a bit here. All my other choices were based on characters and maybe a bit on plot. This one is mostly based on the sense of place. The coast of Maine and Prince Edward Island don’t have that much in common (I’ve been fortunate to visit both places) but the authors describe each location beautifully and lovingly. I could picture the areas so clearly in my mind that I was dying to visit them both. The gentle story and quirky characters do actually make this a good comparison on that front too.
That’s my list! Have you read any of these? Which books did/would you choose? Link up every Tuesday at That Artsy Reader Girl!
34 Comments
I love this list!! I really enjoyed Beverly Cleary’s books and we love the Penderwicks!
Ooh, nice idea for a list. I keep meaning to read Jennifer Donnelly but I never have. Now I have another incentive.
L.M. Montgomery is one of my favorite authors, so adding some of the books from your list to my TBR 🙂
I hope you like them!
Love this list.. Have read about half the books (Enid Blyton was among my favorite authors growing up.. and I think I have read all of her mystery series…) I loved Calpurnia, and yes I love Little Men too..Here is my TTT
I regret that I never heard of Enid Blyton as a child. I wonder if she wasn’t as popular in the States or if it was just my library system that didn’t have her books?
I’ve never read any of these (or any LM Montgomery either) but I did love Enid Blyton as a kid, my favourites were the Faraway Tree books!
My TTT: https://jjbookblog.wordpress.com/2023/03/28/top-ten-tuesday-413/
I highly recommend Anne of Green Gables for any reader. I think it’s impossible not to love Anne!
🙂
I think I read Beezus and Ramona as a kid. Did you ever read The Cricket Times Square?
I remember my third grade teacher’s assistant reading the Cricket in Times Square to our class after lunch but I don’t remember much about the book itself. She read a lot of similar books to us–Stuart Little, maybe Charlotte’s Web and the Henry and Ribsy books. It’s amazing how many books she got through in a school year, just reading a few minutes after lunch every day.
Great list. The Ramona books were one of the first series I fell in love with. https://nicolesnook.com/top-ten-tuesday-3-28-23-kristin-hannah-read-alikes/
I think she was one of my first series books too, though I think my younger sister discovered them first, strangely enough.
I’ve read a few of these as a kid and loved them, though for me, no one can beat Anne of Green Gables
I agree. Anne will always have my heart.
Great list! I read the Ramona books before I ever read Anne of Green Gables, but they do have definite similarities.
My TTT: https://bookwyrmknits.com/2023/03/28/top-ten-tuesday-books-for-people-who-like-t-kingfisher/
Ramona might be a bit more willfully mischievous than Anne but they both certainly get into more than their share of “scrapes.”
I love the topic you picked for this week!
Here is my post-https://paigesofnovels.com/2023/03/28/top-ten-tuesday-book-recs-for-those-that-enjoy-becky-albertalli/.
Thanks!
I have read and loved so many of the books you have recommended! Great list.
Thanks!
I loved the Ramona books as a kid! I still need to read Anne of Green Gables.
Oh, you really should. I would recommend Anne to any reader!
Love your list! I teach reading to elementary students and am fond of many of these 🙂
I’m happy to know that these are being taught in elementary schools!
Aww, what a lovely list!
My post: https://lydiaschoch.com/top-ten-tuesday-books-for-people-who-liked-shel-silverstein/
Thanks!
Such a great list! I enjoyed reading CeeCee a few years ago, and can now see the similarities to Montgomery’s characters.
Pam @ Read! Bake! Create!
https://readbakecreate.com/love-agatha-christie-check-out-these-ideas/
Right? I didn’t think of that one on my own but it popped out at me as I scrolled my GoodReads shelves.
Oh I loved The Famous Five as a kid. Clearly I also need to look into The Penderwicks. I wonder if they were translated seeing as I have a 6 year old I need to read books to 😉
I hope so. The Penderwicks are the most Montgomery-ish books as far as I’m concerned.
Excellent list. I wish I could read some of these authors again for the first time! In fact, I think I will try more LM Montgomery as a starter.
These are all books I wish I could read again for the first time, but they would also stand up to a re-read, I think. I know Montgomery does. I can’t even guess how many times I’ve re-read her books.