After Anne: A Novel of Lucy Maud Montgomery's Life

An exquisite debut novel by Logan Steiner. It's beautifully written and meticulously researched. You don't need to by a fan of Anne of Green Gables to appreciate the novel, but it certainly enhances the experience. It walked away with a deeper appreciation for her novels and insight into the voice behind Anne. It's been years since I've read them and after finishing After Anne immediately wanted to revisit her fictional world through this new lens. Steiner paints a nuanced and relatable picture of a complicated and at times troubled woman who struggles with balancing career and motherhood. She also explores the complicated dynamics of her marriage to a man who deeply changed from the person she thought she married and who ultimately struggled deeply with her success: a topic that will unfortunately resonate with many modern readers. The book gives incredible insight into the creative process and the at times dichotomous nature of what one presents creatively to the world and the reality of one's personal life. While Maud's story is ultimately heartbreaking, there is incredible reverence and respect for Maud and Anne that emanates from the work. It is clear the author is a fan and she does justice to the author and her fictional work. Just as Maud draws us into the world of Anne, so does Steiner into the world of Maud. I couldn't put the novel down and have sent copies to many of my close friends.

This brilliantly written first novel by Ms. Steiner is a rewarding read for both Anne of Green Gables aficionados and newbies like myself who had never read any of Lucy Maud Montgomery's fiction before. Relentlessly researched, this novel witnesses the real struggles of a professional rising to prominence at a time when the adult lives of women were largely and singularly defined by marriage and motherhood and through the genre of historical fiction offers fascinatingly plausible insights into Montgomery's inner life as she attempts to "have it all". The story's plot, while necessarily told in intervals from the first conjuring of the character Anne in the early 1900s through Montgomery's death in 1942, illuminates themes that will resonate with any modern reader who has ever yearned to create, who must balance their own desires against the expectations of and obligations to friends, family and loved ones or who has lived through any stretch of life, short or long, that contains the maddening duality of unbridled joy and crushing disappointment. I highly recommend reading this one.

I had always enjoyed the Anne of Green Gables books but never considered the author behind the stories. Even though I haven't read the "Anne" books in years, the heart of the story came alive for me in reading this novel based on the author, Lucy Maud Montgomery's life. I loved how author Logan Steiner wove the spirit and the words of the character Anne throughout Maud's thinking and patterns, both in how the character inspired her in her daily life and her grief when that connection seemed elusive. I found myself drawn to Maud's energy, creativity and spirit. Steiner describes her beautifully and captures the essence of the male-female dynamics of that day. The novel threads a birthday party scene at the height of Maud's life, when she is in love, enjoying a best friend and her first career success, throughout the chronological story. Maud's has a tragic ending; unfortunately the last several years of her life leave her lonely, depressed and in conflict with family members. I appreciate how Steiner uses the birthday party scene to emphasize the essence of who Maud was despite her desperate choices at the end. I read this novel within a week because it was so engaging!

Lucy Maud Montgomery's work, diaries, and letters have been read and studied by scholars and readers worldwide. This first truly deep journey into her character is nothing short of breathtaking. Catapulted by her genius as a best-selling author to international fame as a single woman at age 35, and she continued to astonish the world with her voluminous writing for decades. As is truly only possible through historical novels such as this, Author Logan Steiner capaciously and brilliantly explores “Maud’s” depth of persona, her fame, her contrasting personal despair, her art and craft, her incredible imagination, all with exquisite insight from a most compassionate, beautiful and moving perspective. We hope and pray, and hunger! to see more from the author of this debut novel, as we imagine the celebrative parallels in the capacities between her and her beloved subject.

I love historical fiction and this one did not disappoint! Beautifully, well written book. I hope to see more from this author! Touching story of the struggles of a talented woman during a time and in a place where women had few rights and opportunities, other than to be a wife and mother. Not that those are unpleasant or undesirable roles, just that life now has a lot to offer in addition to those wonderful roles that were not available not too long ago. I really want to read Anne of Green Gables now! I never read those books when I was young, but I really want to read them now! Afterwards, I want to read this book again!