Anne of Ingleside is the sixth novel in the Anne of Green Gables series by Lucy Maud Montgomery.
Finished on: 21.3.2026
[Here are my reviews of the other novels in the series.]

Plot:
Anne and Gilbert and their children Jem, Walter, Nan, Di and Shirley have built a good life in Ingleside, alongside their housekeeper Susan Baker. Unfortunately Gilbert’s rather disagreeable aunt Mary Maria has come to visit, and has extended her stay from two weeks to indefinitely, much to the chagrin of everybody. While Anne is preparing for another baby, the children have their own adventures.

I don’t know why I didn’t continue with the series sooner, but I vow to finish it rather quickly now, because it is a wonderful collection of character studies from a person who obviously loves people (and children in particular) – and that is right up my alley. Anne of Ingleside is no exception to that.

From what I gather, Anne of Ingleside is the last of the Green Gables novels that focus on Anne and not her children, and I’d say, it is only half-true that it focuses on Anne. Much of the book is told from the children’s perspective, often only marginally involving Anne. I guess, it is hard to sell children’s books with a 40-year-old mother as the protagonist. (Though I’d argue that these books are not as much for children as they are being sold as.)

While I do find that a little regrettable because I like Anne and I wouldn’t mind reading more of her in her maturity, it definitely shows how well Montgomery understood children and their souls. She is especially adept at capturing childhood sorrows, making me, too, shed a tear or two.

But this is by no means a sad book. It is often very funny, and it is always warm, continuing the tone that is the series biggest strength for me. Even Aunt Mary Maria, who is probably the most unsympathetic character with the least redemption that the series has featured so far, isn’t shown without a certain degree of care and respect for how she came to be who she is.

Nothing much happens, and then again, everything happens, and Montgomery has a wonderful way of capturing these apparent non-events in all of their quotidian importance that is simply admirable.

Summarizing: lovely.