Anne: An Adaptation of Anne of Green Gables by Kathleen Gros

 
Anne: An Adaptation of Anne of Green Gables by Kathleen Gros

My Rating: ★★★★

I received a copy from HarperCollins Children's Books through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Anne Shirley has grown up in the foster care system and has lived in more places than she wants to remember. However, things seem to be looking up when she’s placed with Matthew Cuthbert and his sister, Marilla. Despite the Cuthberts hoping for a little kid, they’re happy with the sweet, creative, thoughtful, and friendly pre-teen that has been placed with them. Now that Anne has made friends and started school, she hopes her placement with the Cuthberts will last a long time.

I grew up with Anne of Green Gables because my mom was a huge fan, so I was excited when I saw this modern retelling of the story. We follow Anne in a modern setting as she’s placed in the care of the Cuthberts due to a glitch in the system saying they don’t have a preference about who gets placed with them. Combine that with Anne’s lifelong experiences in the foster care system, she’s terrified that she’ll be moved any time she’s less than perfect. Thankfully, the Cuthberts don’t mind and instead work with her to make things right as well as learn important lessons.

I loved watching Anne grow and flourish in this new setting. There are characters and incidents kept from the original, but overall, this retelling does wonders while staying true to the original content. The artwork is fun and colorful and the characters are fun to follow. I found myself getting more and more absorbed into the story the longer I read it. I’m a huge fan of fairytale retellings, and while Anne’s story was never a fairytale, it was so much fun to see it retold in a new setting with the author’s take on it. We watch Anne make friends, settle into a reliable and solid life, and see her realize that she’s developed a crush on her best friend. I especially loved the Cuthberts because they’re such kind and caring people who are perfect guardians teaching lessons and open to learning themselves.

All in all, this was a wonderful read that also teaches important lessons to its target audience. It’s also a great way to introduce younger generations to Anne of Green Gables before diving into the original story as well as all the live action adaptations that have been made over the years.