Books and Letters

Algún día non moi lonxano, viaxarei a Prince Edward Island. Xa sei que é mellor na imaxinación, que Ana de las Tejas Verdes non estará alí, e que Avonlea Village é un parque temático, pero é unha desas cousas que unha se propón de nena e que quere facer antes de morrer, nesa bucket list que non deixa de medrar (e menos mal).

Ana - indómita, efervescente e valente - constituía, xunto Pippi Langstrump e Miss Marple,  a miña tríada de heroínas. Penso nesta tríada, e sobre todo en Anne estes días, cando leo que Netflix vai sacar unha nova adaptación (os clásicos son eternos, néganse a morrer) e vexo este artigo de The Guardian facendo recapitulación de todo o que nos ensinou esta mociña roiba. 

Fágome o propósito (a longo prazo) de planear esa viaxe a Canadá, e fágome outro (a curto prazo) de revisitar os libros de Lucy Maud Montgomery, para reconstruír e renovar a emoción da infancia.

Sorpréndome ao atopar unha páxina-tributo que contén unha carta que escribiu unha lectora a Ana e que recibiron en The Dead Letter Office. Gozade!

Ever wonder what you would say to your favourite book or character if you had the chance? Would you tell it exactly why you cherish the book or ask the character for advice? This is exactly the opportunity that the founders of The Dead Letter Office are giving their readers.

This tongue-n-cheek website “coaches” people on the long-forgotten art of writing letters – whether to friends, family, celebrities or authors (living and non-living). It seems most of the humorous posts are written by the founders themselves – a Miss Wagner and a Miss Beeton.

In fact one of Miss Wagner’s most recent letters was addressed to Anne Shirley herself. Apparently, Anne is a “lady very dear to her heart”.




She writes,

Source: http://anneofgreengables.com/articles/a-letter-to-anne-shirley/

Anne of Green Gables, 42 Lane Drive, Ingleside CA 7234


Dear Anne,

How much joy you gave me in my early years. Purely by virtue of our hair colour, we were both teased at school – yet both grew up to be alluring, accomplished women.

Unlike you, I was not an orphan – it always seemed rather glamorous but I can’t imagine it was easy. You had a wonderful life, but you did endure some hardships – losing one of your most precious sons in World War II.

Anne, do you have any advice as to how I might secure myself a doctor for a husband? I fear this seems overly forward. But economic considerations do play on my mind as I approach 40.

I admire you greatly and look forward to seeing what kind of momentous achievements your family brings to the world over the coming years.


Your fervent admirer
Miss Dolores Wagner