L.M. Montgomery Research Group

I’ll be signing copies of The Blythes Are Quoted at the Lucy Maud Montgomery Museum located at Crawford’s Village Bakeshop in Norval, Ontario, on 12 December 2009 from 1:30 to 3:30 PM (more info), and also at the Kitchener Public Library in Kitchener, Ontario, on 16 December 2009 beginning at 6:30 PM (more info).

Vanessa Brown’s article “L.M. Montgomery: Writer of the World” discusses a recent talk by Elizabeth Waterston and Mary Rubio at the Wolf Performance Hall in London, Ontario:

On September 30, supporters and members of Friends of the Library met at the Wolf Performance Hall to hear a talk by Elizabeth Waterston and Mary Rubio, the world’s foremost experts on Canadian author Lucy Maud Montgomery.

Click here to read the rest of the article.

On Thursday, 12 November 2009 at 12:30, Jane Urquhart will be speaking at the Toronto Reference Library (789 Yonge Street, just about Bloor Street) about her new book, L.M. Montgomery, part of the Extraordinary Canadians series. For more information about the lecture, go to the website for The eh List Author Series.

Thanks to Elizabeth MacLeod for bringing this to our attention.

The following announcement has been made concerning the L.M. Montgomery Christmas in Norval, Ontario. A whole day of activities have been scheduled for Saturday, November 29, 2008:

10:00 am – 2:00 pm: Visit country church bazaars and lunches at the Norval Presbyterian Church, Norval United Church and St. Paul’s Anglican Church

1:00 pm – 3:00 pm: Meet Dr. Mary Rubio, author of Lucy Maud Montgomery: The Gift of Wings at the L.M. Montgomery Museum at Crawford’s Village Bakeshop

3:00 pm: Watch a re-creation of the 1919 Anne of Green Gables movie at St. Paul’s Parish Hall, cost: $2

7:00 pm: Enjoy an evening at the Norval Presbyterian Church featuring L.M. Montgomery scholars:

• Dr. Benjamin Lefebvre, University of Alberta
• Dr. Irene Gammel, Professor, Ryerson University
• Dr. Edith Smith, Professor Emerita, McMaster University

Music by Jack Hutton, ragtime pianist.

Tickets at the door or in advance, contact kgastle@norvalontario.com,
905-877-7059, cost: $10

The Toronto Public Library will host a Literary Lunch on “All about Anne and Lucy Maud Montgomery” on Thursday, 20 November 2008, between 12:30 and 2:00 PM:

Dr. Irene Gammel introduces her book Looking for Anne: How Lucy Maud Montgomery Dreamed Up a Literary Classic. Dr. Elizabeth Rollins Epperly discusses Imagining Anne: The Island Scrapbooks of L.M. Montgomery. Q&A. Bring your own lunch. Coffee and tea will be provided.

For more information, see the TPL announcement.

The Toronto Public Library will host two lectures and an exhibit in the coming weeks. On 25 September 2008, at 8:00 PM, Mary Rubio will deliver the Second Annual Sybille Pantazzi Memorial Lecture, titled “In Search of My Subject: Writing the Biography of L.M. Montgomery,” in anticipation of her forthcoming biography, Lucy Maud Montgomery: The Gift of Wings, published by Doubleday Canada in late October. The lecture will be given in the Community Room at the Lillian H. Smith branch.

On Thursday, 23 October, at 8 PM, Deirdre Baker will deliver the Twenty-First Helen E. Stubbs Memorial Lecture at the Osborne Collection of Early Children’s Books. Her lecture, titled “L.M. Montgomery at Her Finest and Funniest: How Montgomery Has Kept Us Laughing for a Hundred Years,” will examine Montgomery’s humour to “show how its influence lives on and enlivens contemporary Canadian children’s books.”

The exhibit, “Anne of Green Gables: Celebrating 100 Years in Print,” will be open between 13 September and 5 December 2008. Their description is as follows:

Canada’s best-known novel for children, Anne is a favourite at home and abroad. The retellings continue to proliferate, as succeeding generations of children find fresh appeal in the red-haired heroine. The exhibit will range from formative books enjoyed by Montgomery in her lonely childhood through her own writings, and will include contemporary books that show the enduring influence of Anne.

The Osborne Collection is open 10-6 weekdays, 9-5 Saturdays, closed Sundays and holidays.

Groups welcome; please call ahead: 416-393-7753

Admission to the exhibit and to lectures is free. For more information, see the Events & Exhibits page and the news release on the TPL website.

Irene Gammel will sign copies of her new book, Looking for Anne: How Lucy Maud Montgomery Dreamed Up a Literary Classic, this Saturday, July 19 (2-3 p.m.), at Crawford’s Village Bakeshop in Norval, Ontario. More information is available on the Norval website at http://www.lmmontgomerynorval.com/.

Anne of Green Gables contest winners varied

A young Muslim woman originally from Saudi Arabia and a farmer from Ontario are among the winners of a national letter-writing contest in celebration of the 100th Anniversary of Anne of Green Gables announced by Penguin Group Canada.
The letters by Sarah Khan of Mississauga, Ont. and Bill H. Wiebe of London, Ont., co-winners in the 18 and over category, were described by judges as “staggering,” “brave” “powerful” and “eloquent.”
Khan found a copy of the novel in a pile of trash left by American soldiers after the first Gulf War and instantly connected with L.M. Montgomerys heroine, while Wiebe identified with Anne even though she is female.

OTHER WINNERS INCLUDE:
- Age 8-10: Rebecca Brooks, Winnipeg, Man.
- Age 11-13: Traleena Rouleau, Ottawa.
- Age 15-17: Hannah Tufts, Winnipeg, Man.
Among the prizes each of the five winners will receive is a $2,500 travel voucher to visit Prince Edward Island.

The following information is provided to us by Yuka Kajihara, who invites interested persons to contact her directly.

Whether you are aware or not, there are numerous of Anne-related events happening in Japan! Recently I was asked to provide a resource on this matter by a journalist from Canwest News Service and I made a brief list of it:

• The exhibition entitled “Hanako Muraoka and Akage no An” is held at International Institute for Children’s Literature in Osaka, Japan between May and July. Because the first translators of Anne of Green Gables is Hanako Muraoka, there is no way to talk about Anne without her. See http://www.iiclo.or.jp/03_event/03_exhibition/akagenoan.html (<–The cover image of the magazine, “Girl’s Book” March 1957).

• The nationwide exhibition entitled “Anne of Green Gables: L.M. Montgomery’s beloved PEI” starts in June until next June 2009. The display includes Magog (from Robert Montgomery), a few pages of manuscript from AoGG, LMM’s crazy quilt and more: http://www.anne100th.com/

• Embassy of Canada in Tokyo supports some of the events on “Anne”, such as Gekidan Shiki’s musical Anne of Green Gables: http://www.shiki.gr.jp/applause/anne/index.html
• Hanako Muraoka’s biography Anne’s Cradle written by her grand-daughter Eri Muraoka is published in June 2008. The cover image shows Anne & Green Gables: http://item.rakuten.co.jp/book/5683488/. Nowadays, the name of Hanako Muraoka (poet, translator, Children’s writer, radio personality) is popular only because of her translation of the Anne series.
• In celebrating 100th anniversary of Anne, newly revised edition of Akage no An (translated by Hanako Muraoka, revised by Mie Muraoka who is another grand-daughter of Hanako’s) is published by Shinchosha, Tokyo. In this edition, Mie added the portions that Hanako had omitted to translate in some unknown reasons. The publisher organizes an essay contest: http://www.shinchosha.co.jp/anne100/. The first prize winner(s) is given a PEI trip.
• Budge Wilson’s Before Green Gables is translated/published by Shinchosha in June. The Japanese title is Hello Anne. http://www.shinchosha.co.jp/book/211339/ (<– cover image is not available yet).
• Nippon Hoso Kyokai (NHK) broadcast a special program “Welcome to the Anne’s World” in January. This one show was rebroadcast 2 more times due to popular demand. It includes a letter by Luella and some photographs of Luella with the letter that Jason took. You can see the pictures, and as well as pictures of Luella’s. One is of lover’s lane given to her by LMM and the other is a picture of Luella as a baby being held by LMM. See http://www.flickr.com/photos/complicitytheory/sets/72157603293739689/. Some of you might find it funny that we actually took these photos in a sushi bar in Yorkville. Luella’s favourite place.
• NHK also broadcast a tree-month long (from April to June) English conversation program “The journey to Akage no An.” http://www.nhk.or.jp/gogaku/english/3month/index.html. I heard that the textbook of this program has sold more than 130,000 copies so far. That figure is incredible! Anne is not only a gateway to learn PEI but also to learn English to Japanese audience. The staff visited PEI last Summer. Here is an article about them in the Guardian: http://www.theguardian.pe.ca/index.cfm?sid=48277&sc=98 (“Japanese film crew tapes Anne program on P.E.I.”).
• There are many other Anne-related things happening in Japan: smaller production size of musicals, another exhibitions of Anne and many other publications. A scholarly book on Anne to which I contributed will be published soon. A short biography of L.M. Montgomery for Juvenile readers by Miki Okuda was published in March. And the Nippon Animation Co., LTD sells a boxed set of DVD entitled, “Akage no An: the DVD Memorial Box.” http://www.akageno-anne.jp/home.html.
• As you probably already know, the first translator of AOGG into Japanese is Hanako Muraoka (1893-1968). Muraoka once worked for a publisher Kyobunkan in Tokyo which was originally established by Methodist missionaries from the USA, in 1885. This is the place Muraoka first met Canadian missionary Miss Loretta L. Shaw. In 1939, before leaving Japan due to the WWII, Shaw gave a copy of Anne of Green Gables to Muraoka as a keepsake. Kyobunkan is now having special events in order to celebrate Hanako’s work & Anne’s 100th anniversary.
• June 21 – July 16. “Akage no An This exhibition is focusing on Muraoka’s work and displays books translated by her, including L.M. Montgomery, Louisa May Alcott, Eleanor Porter and more. Along with these books, photographs of PEI taken by well known photographer Kazutoshi Yoshimura are displayed. and the work of Hanako Muraoka” at Nalnia Hall, Kyobunkan, in Tokyo.
• June 29. 2-3 p.m. Eri Muraoka Gallery Talk at Narnia Hall, Kyobunkan. Eri is Hanako’s grand-daughter who recently published a biography of Hanako. Her talk is entitled (loosely translated) “The very first Akage no An: a promise to Miss Shaw, editor of Kyobunkan.”
• Related sites: http://www.kyobunkwan.co.jp/ (Kyobunkan); http://club.pep.ne.jp/~r.miki/index_e.htm (Anne Memorial Room, Hanako Muraoka Study Room; http://kaz-yoshimura.cocolog-nifty.com/blog/ (Kazutoshi Yoshimura’s blog)

Just found this upcoming event for anyone in the Guelph area…
Alumni & Friends – Get Involved | University of Guelph

Wednesday, May 21, 2008:  AIA Annual Spring Luncheon
Join the Alumni-In-Action at their Spring Luncheon in the Arboretum.  This annual event starts at 11:30 a.m. with a reception with lunch served at 12 noon.  At 12:45 pm, Professor Mary Rubio, editor of the LM Montgomery Collection at the University of Guelph will speak on the topic entitled “Anne in the Archives.”  2008 marks the 100th anniversary of the publications of Lucy Maud Montgomerys novel “Anne of Green Gables,” and we have great reason to celebrate at the University of Guelph.  The McLaughlin Library is home to the largest archival collection of LM Montgomery personal archival material in the world.  Tickets are $20 per person.  Registration can be done online, by email, by calling 519 824-4120 ext. 56934 or by mail:  Alumni House, University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario, N1G 2W1.  Please note that the entrance to the Arboretum is now off College Avenue.