"New" short stories from L.M. Montgomery! It's long been known that Montgomery had published many more short stories than had been found. Because these were largely published in periodicals and circulars, they were difficult to find, even with Montgomery's extensive records. This book contains 21 stories which have not been republished since their original publication. Some, but not all, of these stories are available in the Ryrie-Cambell online collection[1].

In some ways, there is little new about these stories. Montgomery tended to reuse elements over an over again, whether that be general elements like orphan children or more specific plot lines. But despite some reuse, these stories are delightfully fresh. Like most of Montgomery's writings, they highlight the beauty and joy of life while hinting at some of its darker themes, e.g., family estrangement that leads to some parts of a family living in poverty while others enjoy luxury.

Any fan of L.M. Montgomery who has wished that there were more stories to read will be delighted by this collection (only available through the University of PEI website).

[1] http://www.kindredspaces.ca/ ( )

Book received from NetGalley.

This is another book that caused me to squeal like a fangirl when NetGalley approved me, and I admit I'm a huge fan of this author's works. I have loved L.M. Montgomery's books ever since my Grandmother bought me my first copy of Anne of Green Gables when I was 8. I'm always thrilled when they find more of her "lost" stories most of which were published in the various magazines of the era. The reasons the book got a 4-star rating was due to many of the stories being a bit extreme in the soppy morality tales of the era and the fact that many were fairly familiar to anyone who has read the majority of Montgomery's novels since she changed various things slightly and reused them. Other than that the stories were cute and quick to read and the explanations at the end of how and where they found them as well as where and when they were originally published just added to the enjoyment of the book for me. This is definitely a must for any L.M. Montgomery fan. ( )