Pat of Silver Bush (by Lucy Maud Montgomery)

(Amazon UK link)

I first read LM Montgomery’s book ‘Pat of Silver Bush’ twenty years ago. I liked it sufficiently that I tried to find the sequel, but it was out of print and hard to source. So I forgot about it. However, I managed to download the books for my Kindle, so have just finished re-reading ‘Pat of Silver Bush’. I had entirely forgotten what it was about, and had no recollection of any of the characters other than Pat herself.

The book is set on Prince Edward Island in Canada. Pat Gardiner is seven when we first meet her, a dreamy, questioning child who is passionate about her home (Silver Bush) and family. And she loathes change. She doesn’t even like the furniture to be moved, and is distressed when a tree has to be cut down. She spends a lot of time with Judy, the beloved family housekeeper, who has Irish roots and speaks with quite a strong accent. 

And Judy has to let Pat know that there’s a new baby expected. Pat has been the youngest of the family, and has no idea that her mother is expecting. The book was written in the early 1930s as a contemporary novel for older children and teens; it appears that, just 90 years ago, children were not supposed to know anything about how babies were born. Pat is a bit dubious about Judy’s insistence that she has found all the family babies in the parsley bed. And she doesn’t really want a new baby anyway.

But when she learns of the birth, she quickly learns to love her new sister, known to all as ‘Cuddles’. And it’s perhaps the start of Pat’s realisation that some changes can be for the better. 

The book covers eleven years in Pat’s life, ending when she is eighteen. I found the style rather irritating at first: several sections are written in half-sentences separated by ellipses. In addition, Judy’s conversation is all in dialect which is quite hard to read, much of it long-winded, full of stories, legends and anecdotes (possibly embellished). But I gradually got used to it, though I skimmed quite a few of Judy’s monologues.

Despite her garrulousness, Judy is a kind and likeable person. She adores every one of the family and would willingly die for them. She’s the repository for the children’s secrets and heartbreak, particularly Pat's. Their mother is quite frail, and their father often works away from home. So Judy gives some stability.

Yet on the whole it’s a very happy family, even if they sometimes struggle financially. Pat has two older brothers, Joe and Sid, and an older sister Winnie. Pat wants them all to live at Silver Bush forever; but Joe hankers after the sea, and Winnie hopes to get married one day. Pat finds it hard enough when her aunt gets married, changes her name and moves, and she’s certain she will never want to move out.

Pat makes two close friends: the unfortunate Jingle, who is looked after by relatives after his mother left him, and Bets, a very pretty girl who is kind and generous. Bets reminded me so much of Louisa May Alcott’s Beth that I didn’t expect her to live long. And Jingle, a very intelligent boy with as dreamy a nature as Pat’s, is obviously destined for great things - and, I hoped, a romantic relationship with Pat.

But Pat doesn’t realise that her deep, close friendship with Jingle is potentially the start of something deeper. Instead she ‘falls in love’ with a handful of other attractive young men. Inevitably these relationships are doomed, but she learns more about herself and the pitfalls of imagining herself in love due to exchanges of meaningful glances, or fine clothes and a handsome face. 

I don’t think the book would appeal much to today’s older children or younger teens. Some of the events could be considered quite disturbing: we don't expect people to die so easily, for one thing. Then there’s not much action; it's a family saga rather than having much story. Pat isn’t particularly brave, or even gifted, other than in her imagination. The names and feelings she gives to nearby locations feels very much like those of the author’s better-known ‘Anne of Green Gables’. It’s a bit twee in places - I skimmed some of those discussions too - but part of her personality. 

And Pat, as a person, did grow on me. We see Silver Bush and the people she meets through her eyes, and towards the end of the book I began to feel more empathy with her.  I suspect the book will appeal more to nostalgic adults than to children or even teens, unless they are already familiar with (and fond of) the author’s other books. Even then, Pat is not as memorable (in my opinion) as Anne.  

However, I hope to read the sequel, ‘Mistress Pat’, in a few weeks’ time.  Note that these books are still quite hard to find (and pricey) in print form, but are readily available now on Kindle, free or inexpensively. 

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