Audiobook Blog Tour | “Anne of Green Gables” by L.M. Montgomery (narrated by Colleen Winton) published by Post Hypnotic Press!

Posted Saturday, 5 August, 2017 by jorielov , , , 3 Comments

Audiobook Review Badge made by Jorie in Canva.

Acquired Digital Audiobook by: I am a new blog tour hostess with Audiobookworm Promotions wherein I have the opportunity to receive audiobooks for review or adoption (reviews outside of organised blog tours) and host guest features on behalf of authors and narrators alike. When I saw the blog tour for ‘Anne of Green Gables’ I was wicked excited – as I have been wanting to re-read the series for a bit over a year and a half when I first saw a collection of the paperbacks at a thrift store! Mum surprised me with them but for the life of me, I never felt it was the ‘right time’ to read Anne. Seeing the blog tour was featuring the narrations by Post Hypnotic Press – the same publisher of the Betty MacDonald memoirs, I knew I wanted to take part as I love their quality and dedication to how audiobooks are produced!

I received a complimentary audiobook copy of “Anne of Green Gables” via the publisher Post Hypnotic Press (of whom was working directly Audiobookworm Promotions) in exchange for an honest review. I did not receive compensation for my opinions or thoughts shared herein.

Why I wanted to read Anne in August:

I have many fond memories of Anne of Green Gables – except to say, it was not until after I requested to join this blog tour, had I realised I do not believe I actually read the stories in my youth! I was meant too – as my grandparents gave me a lovely boxed set of the series inasmuch as they gave me the boxed set of the original adaptation for the series starring Megan Follows. I also actively watched Road to Avonlea which was simulcast on the Disney Channel.

I have a fond spot in my heart for August being dedicated to reading Jane Austen (both the canon and the after canon stories) through my participation in #AustenInAugust (via Roof Beam Reader’s event) which has a new tag where we add RBR on to the main one we used to use all the time. I’ve grown so used to using the original tag whenever I am talking about it, I sometimes forget to use it on Twitter. Oy. I digress. What I wanted to say, is despite the fact August is Austen for me, I wanted to take-on another beloved author and a series which has meant so much to me for so very long. I have been wanting to read more of the titles on my Classics Club List as well and this felt like a good month to attempt to put more Classics on my readerly path.

I’ll never remember truly – did I read the first book of Green Gables before I opted to see the film adaptation and tv series? Or, did I read passages of the book and still watched the adaptations? It’s hard to know for sure as too much time has gone past between then and now. I do know I knew Anne so very well – but how I came to know her originally is lost to time. Sometimes I forget which books I read and which stories I knew better in their film adaptations – this is one which hinges between memory and time. Which is why of course, when I first started listening to the adaptation by Post Hypnotic Press, I was a bit confused to know – was this the Anne of my memories or was this the Anne I hadn’t properly been introduced all those years ago?

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Audiobook Blog Tour | “Anne of Green Gables” by L.M. Montgomery (narrated by Colleen Winton) published by Post Hypnotic Press!Anne of Green Gables
by L.M. Montgomery
Source: Direct from Publisher
Narrator: Colleen Winton

Anne, a young orphan from the fictional community of Bolingbroke, Nova Scotia (based upon the real community of New London), is sent to Prince Edward Island after a childhood spent in strangers' homes and orphanages.

Marilla and Matthew Cuthbert, siblings in their 50s and 60s, had decided to adopt a boy from the orphanage to help Matthew run their farm. They live at Green Gables, their Avonlea farmhouse on Prince Edward Island.

Through a misunderstanding, the orphanage sends Anne Shirley. Anne is described as bright and quick, eager to please, talkative, and extremely imaginative. She has a pale face with freckles and usually braids her red hair.

When asked her name, Anne tells Marilla to call her Cordelia, which Marilla refuses; Anne then insists that if she is to be called Anne, it must be spelled with an e, as that spelling is "so much more distinguished".

Marilla at first says the girl must return to the orphanage, but after a few days she decides to let her stay. Marilla feels that she could be a good influence on the girl and had also overheard that another disagreeable woman in town might take Anne in instead.

Genres: Children's Literature, Classical Literature



Places to find the book:

ISBN: 978-1-927817-06-3

Also by this author: Anne of Avonlea, Anne of of the Island

Also in this series: Anne of Avonlea, Anne of of the Island


Published by Post Hypnotic Press

on 2014

Format: Audiobook | Digital

Length: 10 hours, 7 minutes (Unabridged)

Published By: Post Hypnotic Press (@Post_Hypnotic)

The Anne of Green Gables series by Post Hypnotic Press:

Anne of Green Gables by LM Montgomery, narrated by Colleen Winton produced by Post Hypnotic Press.Anne of Avonlea by LM Montgomery, narrated by Colleen Winton produced by Post Hypnotic Press.Anne of the Island by LM Montgomery, narrated by Colleen Winton produced by Post Hypnotic Press.

The publisher is considering adapting the rest of the series and is looking for feedback on behalf of these adaptations by both the bloggers who are listening to them for the blog tour and the readers who are finding them along the tour route itself – to gauge if the rest of the series would have a readership who would appreciate hearing them. I, for one, am hoping they do produce the rest of the series as these adaptions are great addition for all of us who grew up knowing Anne.

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my review of Anne of green gables:

As we settle into Green Gables and Avonlea – there is dependable Mrs Rachel Lynde – the observant neighbour of Avonlea knitting cotton work quilts whilst keeping post at her kitchen window observing the outside world. Everyone who enters Avonlea has to pass by her house and thereby, nothing gets past her nor of the attention of anyone else in towne as she took it as her duty to maintain interest in the goings-on of everyone in Avonlea. It was on an unassuming Summery day, Mrs Lynde observed Mathew Cuthbert her neighbour of Green Gables leaving towne; she was not in the loop of knowing he  wanted to adopt a young boy to help on the farm. Although, mind you, she wouldn’t let time sit as she was soon walking over to speak with his sister, Marilla to find out the ins/outs of his errand! You could gather Mrs Lynde was the kind of woman who felt it was not only her duty to step into her neightbours’ lives but to take up residence in Avonlea as the one who is meant to lend her impression and perspective on everything even if others are not as keen to hear her opinions.

One of the first things you love about listening to this story (or reading it) is how alive and in bloom the natural environment is settled around Green Gables. I love how Ms Montgomery spend a considerable amount of time painting such a living portrait of the natural landscape – from noting the flowers in bloom, to the freshness of the water to the loveliness of the sky as you walk along the lanes. She definitely had a knack for rooting you in place and of bringing the landscape to life right alongside Anne and the community of Avonlea.

Marilla Curthbert was a formidable woman who did not do well with those who would question her choices nor her intentions. Marilla felt (the sun) is too fanciful to be serious and you gather the sense she takes life quite seriously – she doesn’t like to give into the spontaneous joys or levity others might engage in themselves. She’s not one who falls prey to laughter or the silliness of the moment; she’s determined to keep herself organised and controlled. Mrs Rachel Lynde talks openly about how adopting children is such high risk it was not a comforting thought to think Marilla would be bringing in a child to her home without information about their background. Marilla defends the fact just to live is a risk and in regards to parenting, whether your adopting or raising natural bourne children – there is an equal risk of how they will turn out once they’re raised.

Whilst Matthew was expecting to collect a young boy from the train, he was not fully prepared for finding Anne awaiting his arrival. So aghast was he finding a girl to take back to Green Gables, he didn’t voice his concern nor his disappointment. You could gather he was a man who was not quick to confrontation – he’d rather take the high road, avoid the situation completely and pass on the responsibility to someone else. In this case, he decided to let his sister, Marilla handle the upset of not having a boy but a young girl. He couldn’t quite resolve how to disappoint the girl nor find a reasonable way to explain why her presence wasn’t entirely welcome.

My first reaction to Anne was the incredible way in which Ms Winton was able to encapsulate her monologue of joyfulness bursting out of her young mind as she bubbled on like a rushing waterfall about everything she was experiencing in the ‘moment’ where Matthew’s path crossed hers. You could see Anne was not used to having someone who wanted to listen to what she had to say and in a way, Matthew was finding his heart expanding simply by listening to her rattle on about whatever she wanted to impart to him on their journey home. Anne in this moment has a lot of ideas she wants to share – from reflecting on her potential new home at Green Gables, to her likeness and homely nature and how insatiable she finds the world round her – as you can sense she’s a girl with deep thoughts and a sensitive heart.

Your heart breaks when Anne realises the Cuthbert’s are contemplating not keeping her as she was the opposite gender of which they hoped to adopt into their home. During her first interactions with Marilla, you start to observe how the woman is a natural bourne caregiver – as she gently tries to inspire Anne to see things the right way round from the way Anne thinks about them. Anne is the first person you can tell has given Marilla a reason to remember how to smile and see the lighter side of life rather than focusing on the controlled manner of living she’s been accustomed too. Anne has a winning personality because she’s outspoken in a way which eludes to how she’s been without a guiding presence in her life and how living on one’s wits can have a few short-comings.

I loved seeing how her mind thought through things – how she liked to name the places in her new community which gave her the most happiness to have in her life. It reminded me of why I like to name the birds and animals of my teenage years who were my ready companions on my own farm. You get so dearly attached to the presence of wildlife and even, of the trees and flowers, as Anne expresses herself, as they bring to light the harmonic balance of the natural world. As we live our lives, nature lives through it’s own life cycles and when you observe this balance it pulls you closer somehow to see the fullness of how life can play out in front of us.

I had forgotten a few of the particulars of Anne’s personality – such as her wandering mind and how her imagination carts her off to such fascinating in-between places to make her forgetful about certain things, such as household chores or other such requests which flitted out of her memory as soon as her mind had attached itself to thinking of something more radiant than an ordinary concern. You can feel for her – as who hasn’t spent a considerable amount of their childhood daydreaming and thinking about the curiosities of life? The way in which she can make her daydreams tangible and alive to those around her is one of her charms; Anne can share portions of her spirit simply by her frank honesty about how life has impressed her to feel everything on a deeper level than most her age. I hadn’t thought about it – as Anne of Green Gables and the series Avonlea were such strong components of my girlhood years, but Anne reminds me so much of Pippi! I can see now why I was smitten by Pippi Longstocking, Little Women, the Mandie series, The Secret Garden, Anne of Green Gables and of course, Annie! They all have something quite wickedly in common – all the stories feature incredibly strong young girls who have quite extraordinary lives!

I positively loved how Marilla had a change of heart – partially on the road towards meeting Mrs Spencer and partially whilst listening about how Anne’s life would be duly altered if she were to pass-on Anne to another woman who would only seek to use the girl as her own personal servant. There was a simple grace in this realisation – where Marilla had to make her mind about how she wanted to live her life – to acknowledge things do not always go according to how you plan them or if you can keep yourself adaptive to life’s changing tides. Shortly after they returnt home, Marilla realised how Anne was under-educated in matters of spirituality although not without the ability to re-state things she had overheard. It is simply Anne hadn’t personally identified with how she saw herself and her spiritual path. In this, Marilla felt compelled to inspire the girl to find her path and to keep spirituality a firm presence in her life.

I hadn’t forgotten Anne’s temper and emotional reactions but to re-hear what set her off so emotionally was humbling because I had forgotten what affected her self-esteem. Her flowery hat made by flowers on the way to church simply left me in a fit of smiles as of all the other little things Anne did to set herself apart from the other children, this one act felt to be the most sincere and humbling of them all. The row between Anne and Marilla which led to a dear misunderstanding between them is what led me to remember how Marilla loved Anne as much as she did. It took a bit longer for them to draw close together – but this was the first time where Marilla realised she was projecting her distrust of Anne into a situation where it was unfounded. To see Marilla feel remorseful of how her misconstrued assessment of the incident had injured Anne in both spirit and mind, was a turning point for how the story started to show them as a united front rather than as two strangers living amongst each other. Marilla and Anne’s relationship was complicated (either way you looked at it) – yet, despite the rows they would endure there was a strong layer of mutual respect flowing between their two hearts.

When Gilbert Blythe enraged Anne with his off-handed comment about her hair, Anne took it as a personal offence rather than for the merit of her inclusion in his inclination to tease all the girls. This one act of unfriendliness set Anne’s mind towards holding a grudge, even if she would spent the rest of the year attempting to ‘one-up Gilbert in their studies. The two formed such a competitiveness between each other, they quickly became the leading scholars of the country school. I had to smirk a few times where Gilbert tried to make amends and where Anne refused to even consider a truce! Then, there was the matter of Diana’s grievous affair of drinking wine instead of a non-alcoholic drink for tea. The after effect of mistaking the wine led to a distance in friendship which was so cordially felt between Diana and Anne, which rendered both girls’ properly remorse. It was only after Anne being the Florence Nightingale in an hour of need to save the life of a babe, did Diana’s mother relent in her insistence to keep the girls’ apart. Lateron it was how Anne found an unexpected friendship with Diana’s Aunt (Ms Barry) which surprised everyone.

As I listened to Anne’s trials and tribulations – it started to bring back the memories I had of wanting to visit Prince Edward Island as a young girl. I was so in love with the Island as a child, but I had a dual perspective about it – from what my grand-parents knew of the Island themselves and what I knew of the Island through Anne’s eyes or those of Avonlea in the tv series. I was so affected by the series, I longed to visit Prince Edward in the future as soon as I was able too until I learnt of how due to a certain commercial trade was not only destroying the Island’s water but it was wrecking havoc on the Island’s environment too. Thus, my own daydreams of spending time on the real-life Avonlea were shattered knowing how destructive man can be and how easily the sanctity of the environment and natural world can be forsaken. I wasn’t sure if I could recapture my affinity for the Island as I re-visited this childhood setting – until I started to listen to Green Gables through Ms Winton’s eyes and heart. In so doing, I ‘let go’ of what I know as an adult – of the calamity of today’s world grieving my heart for a place I cannot visit and re-stepping into the shoes of my younger self and seeing Avonlea restored. Quite a gift to be given – this narrator not only gave me back Avonlea and Anne, but she gave back the childhood wonder of a place you cannot visit in person but feel as if you’ve lived all the same through the characters who resided there.

One thing I observed as I moved through the story, is how as an adult, I lean more towards Marilla now rather than Anne; the shift in alignment I know also comes from being a Perspective Adoptive Mum rather than a young girl who was touched by the bold actions of a girl similar in age. I have a new appreciation for Marilla – for how she let Anne be herself and took an extra bit of patience towards sorting out how best to raise Anne, whilst realising her temperament was never going to quite be as calm as she would prefer but her affection for life and the thankfulness of being given a home at Green Gables would endure. I caught glimpses of what I loved about Anne through Ms Winton’s voicing of her thoughts and of her take on how the world affected her everyday – from small infractions by her new neighbours against her person to how words spoken in haste or spite had a longer anchour to them more than you might realise. More than anything, I started to re-alight into my childhood memories – starting to see Anne Shirley as I once did whilst firmly appreciative for Marilla as an adult.

on the writing style of l.m. Montgomery:

Ms Montgomery has such a curiously enveloping pacing to her writings – she not only gives you full presence of what you can see, hear and observe through her narratives but she allows you to alight into her stories as if you were Anne yourself. She notes the styling of the natural world and the keen awareness of we interact with nature; even if we are not noticing how nature cross-sects with our everyday hours. Her descriptive intuiting of what we would appreciate knowing about Anne’s living environment and of the farm at Green Gables itself, notes how much she loved creating this world. She allows you to linger and languish over her descriptions – to see everything as if you were walking through her scenes with your own feet and eyes.

Aside from listening to the Anne of Green Gables series this month (the first three titles), I fully intend on re-listening to them whilst knitting – to gain a different perspective whilst eventually moving into the Emily of New Moon series – a series I found by Montgomery first by my local library and then by a library within a local church. It was the kind of series I would have loved to have found as a young girl – as Emily sounds so very much like the kind of character I was seeking to find next. How lovely then, I have found her now even if I couldn’t find her beforehand. I find myself drawn into Montgomery’s worlds and her character’s lives, even as an adult and despite the fact time and tide have passed since I first found her stories – there is something to be said for how she wrote her stories.

I had also forgotten how this series would be considered INSPY by today’s standards – as there is a lot of faith-based reflections and guidance in the raising of Anne. Marilla wanted the girl to be grounded but also to know of her own spirituality to where Anne could capture a living relationship with her heavenly father as much as Marilla had found herself. There are beautiful undertones of how faith and the morals of a well-lived life are underscored throughout the novel – never broaching into anything too hard-hitting but a gentle guiding hand towards respectful and mindfulness in building one’s character whilst endeavouring to keep the spiritual life a strong presence in one’s growing years.

Montgomery draws you into her narratives because of how she chooses to write them – she lengthens out the narrative with descriptive beauties of realism and of anchouring her characters to being as lively in scene and page as you would expect them to be in person. She intuits what your wanting to know about her world and her characters, giving you such a strong impression as there is no mistaking what she or they are thinking. To me, this was part of the legacy of a writer who gives so much joy back to readers who happily find themselves wanting to reside where the ink of her pen transported us.

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specifically in regards to the audiobook:

As I am relatively new to reviewing audiobooks and listening to them with a greater frequency than of the past, I am appreciative of Ms Jess providing a cursory outline of how best to articulate my listening hours on behalf of this audiobook and the others I shall be blogging about or reviewing in future. I’ve modified the suggestions to what I felt were pertinent to respond too on my own behalf as well as keeping to the questions I felt were relevant to share.

About Colleen Winton

Colleen Winton

Colleen is a Vancouver actor, singer, dancer, director and choreographer...and now a narrator. Her career has taken her all over the country and includes the Stratford, Shaw and Charlottetown Festivals, the original Canadian companies of CATS and Show Boat, extensive film/TV credits, and numerous directing/choreographing credits. Her stage work has been honoured with numerous nominations and a Jessie and Ovation award and she received a cultural award given by her local Chamber of Commerce. She was especially pleased to have recorded the works of L.M. Montgomery for Post Hypnotic Press just before she embarked on a production of the musical Anne of Green Gables at Theatre Calgary in which she plays Marilla Cuthbert.

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Listening Habit:

I coloured within the pages of the following colouring books whilst I listened to Anne of Green Gables: A Giving Heart: A Colouring Book celebrating Motherhood by Stephanie Corfee, Joyful Inspirations Colouring Book by Robin Mead and Heroine’s of the New Testament Colouring Book by Betsy Karounos. I started off by finding patterns of the natural world – of where flowers took centre stage of the designs and from there, I moved from one image to another which felt they had a bit of joy inside the designs which matched well with Anne’s personality for seeking the goodness in the world. I enjoyed moving between the books and happily finding out later how the colours came together – as I am never quite sure how the colouring pages will turn out as my mind and heart are focused on the story moreso than the page.

Number of Narrators:

There is only one narrator attached to this adaptation, and yet, as your listening to the story being read – your mind nearly is tricked into believing there are at least three separate people narrating this story! I felt Anne’s voice was so very distinctive in of itself, as to be a separate person entirely. How the narrator shaped her ‘narrative’ bits outside of the ‘character’ sections was quite moving, too. She gave you the impression the narrator was part of the back-story rather than the foreground and thereby, when Marilla came along next to Anne; these two characters felt as if they had their own voice to narrate them.

Number of Times I’ve heard the Narrator(s):

This is my first time listening to Ms Winton and I must say, I am presently surprised to have found such a winning voice who not only understands how to narrate Classical Literature – but can so wholly interpret multiple characters as to give us a listeners experience as if we had listened to a multiple-cast production. I look forward to continuing to listen to her narrations now that I have found how much I love her approach to audiobook narration!

Regards to the Narrator’s Individual Character performances:

Mrs Rachel Lynde: Mrs Lynde is such a strong character whose opinions feel as if they are her duty to share and to inform her neighbours. Her voice is lent so well to encompassing her personality – you could really see her as a the towne’s busy-buddy and gossip!

Matthew Cuthbert: Matthew’s voice is crest-fallen with a touch of insecurity which is part of his charm. He was a soft-spoken light for Anne as they shared so much in common with each other. He might speak less than her but they understood each other by the love they shared in heart.

Marilla Cuthbert: I love how Marilla comes across as such a forceful character – her voice is stern and strong, but not without compassion. I felt so very attached to Marilla in this adaptation – which took me a bit by surprise, as I don’t think I previously felt as connected to her and this is a credit to Ms Winton!

Diana Barry: I was so surprised by how Diana and Anne were voiced so uniquely from each other – to where I could not distinguish the same voice was voicing them both! They felt so equally independent of each other!

How the Novel sounded to me as it was being Read: (theatrical or narrative)

I felt this was very theatrical – as each character had their own theatrical spin on how they were presented throughout the story – you could definitely denote who was stepping into one scene or another simply by how they were portrayed. It was such a joy to be caught up in the narration – as it felt like actors taking their cues and moving from stage right to stage left as if this were a production on stage rather than voiced for the audiobook. I love how alive the audiobook felt – how it took on it’s own presence and gave you hours of enjoyment simply to listen and see how Ms Winton would bring the book to life.

Regards to Articulation & Performance of different sections of the novel:

I wasn’t sure how the transitions would sound as we move away from when Anne first arrived at Green Gables to where we find her at the end of the story; however, my concerns were put to bed as soon as I started to notice subtle changes in Anne’s voice. She was quite high pitched in the beginning – a mixture of nerves and fears before she went to live with Marilla and Matthew and then, slowly as she becomes more familiar with Avonlea, she starts to find her foundation. She starts to feel rooted to Green Gables and in so doing, you start to see a subtle shift in how she’s voiced. She still has her girlhood anxieties and her emotional reactions – she is a young girl with her emotions surely felt and deeply affecting her moods but at the same time, she’s a girl who learns from what she experiences. In this way, I liked seeing the progression of Anne’s own journey towards learning more about life whilst finding her own confidence and self-esteem along the way.

Notes on the Quality of Sound & the Background Ambiance:

I did not pick up anything in the background – almost as if the audio was not only produced to perfection but it eluded to this being a personal narration as if the words were meant only for this experience to see how Green Gables and Avonlea would come to life for you to enjoy.

Preference after listening to re-Listen or pick up the book in Print?

I originally thought I might listen to this first and then, re-listen to this alongside the book- however, somewhere along the way, because the narration of Anne is so dearly strong, I opted only to listen to the duration without going back over it with the printed copy. I might re-listen to this whilst knitting – as I am finding this is a new joy of mine – I might pick up things I might have overlooked or missed – as I was listening this for the first time in such a long time since I last knew of Anne directly. It was hard at first to shift off my own memories of what I knew of Anne vs the Anne I met in the narration – once I put distance between memory and this audiobook, I found the most enjoyment was finding myself happily lost in the characters voiced by Ms Winton!

In closing, would I seek out another (narrator) audiobook?

Yes, I definitely would because she fully embraces the characters she’s narrating – it’s not just the fact she’s narrating the story, no, it feels as if she’s embodied the characters and the story itself throughout the production. She’s not just speaking the words – it feels as if she’s living the life of the characters whilst giving you a heightened listening experience.

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 This blog tour is courtesy of Audiobookworm Promotions:

Audiobookworm Promotions Event Host badge provided by Audiobookworm Promotions

Whilst participating on:

Anne of Green Gables audiobook tour via Audiobookworm PromotionsMy Reviews are forthcoming on:

5th August | Anne of Green Gables

10th August | Anne of Avonlea

17th August | Anne of the Island

18th August | Interview w/ Post Hypnotic Press

+ Two of my bookish friends are also taking part in this audio tour:

Maggie @ Macarons & Paperbacks | Read her Review

Anne of Green Gables @ The Lit Bitch <— this is being featured off-tour! #sohappy

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After a day of celebrating this Audiobook:

I received this lovely bit of news from the publisher

re: a coupon for their ENTIRE online catalogue!

Now I am hoping my readers will drop back to see this!

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{SOURCES: Cover art of “Anne of Green Gables”, “Anne of Avonlea” and “Anne of the Island”, book synopsis, author biography, author photo, Audiobookworm Promotions badge and the audiobook tour badge were all provided by Audiobookworm Promotions and used with permission. Post dividers by Fun Stuff for Your Blog via Pure Imagination. Tweets embedded by codes provided by Twitter. Blog graphics created by Jorie via Canva: Audiobook Review Banner and the Comment Box Banner.}

Copyright © Jorie Loves A Story, 2017.

I’m a social reader | I tweet my reading life

 

Reading this book contributed to these challenges:

  • 2017 Historical Fiction Reading Challenge

About jorielov

I am self-educated through local libraries and alternative education opportunities. I am a writer by trade and I cured a ten-year writer’s block by the discovery of Nanowrimo in November 2008. The event changed my life by re-establishing my muse and solidifying my path. Five years later whilst exploring the bookish blogosphere I decided to become a book blogger. I am a champion of wordsmiths who evoke a visceral experience in narrative. I write comprehensive book showcases electing to get into the heart of my reading observations. I dance through genres seeking literary enlightenment and enchantment. Starting in Autumn 2013 I became a blog book tour hostess featuring books and authors. I joined The Classics Club in January 2014 to seek out appreciators of the timeless works of literature whose breadth of scope and voice resonate with us all.

"I write my heart out and own my writing after it has spilt out of the pen." - self quote (Jorie of Jorie Loves A Story)

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Posted Saturday, 5 August, 2017 by jorielov in Audiobook, Audiobookworm Promotions, Blog Tour Host, Canada, Canadian Literature, Childhood Friendship, Children's Classics, Children's Literature, Classical Literature, Indie Author, Juvenile Fiction, School Life & Situations, Teacher & Student Relationships




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3 responses to “Audiobook Blog Tour | “Anne of Green Gables” by L.M. Montgomery (narrated by Colleen Winton) published by Post Hypnotic Press!

  1. Thanks for your comprehensive review of Anne of Green Gables. The outpouring of love for Colleen Winton’s narration so far in this Audiobook Tour has been fantastic, and we’re only 5 days in, which is very gratifying! Not surprising, given how talented Colleen is and how perfect she was for Anne. So far, we’ve only recorded 3, but I’ll have to get Colleen in to record the rest of the series.

    I, too, love classics and I associate summer with reading or re-reading them – and Austen is probably my favourite. Although I’ve become a convert to listening, it wasn’t until last summer that I found a narrator for Austen that I could stand – Juliette Stevenson. If you ever want to try Austen out on audio, I’d recommend you listen to Stevenson’s narration – brilliant.

    And as you obviously love classics, if you ever want to review some other classics with us, just let me know. We’ve recorded: “Riders of the Purple Sage,” by Zane Grey, and we’ll be releasing “Pollyanna” and “Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm” this summer. Also, we have some classic memoirs: Betty MacDonald’s “The Egg and I” and her other memoirs. “The Curve of Time” by M. Wylie Blanchet (which is a beautiful book and perfect summer listening). Etc. :)

    • Hallo, Hallo Ms Craig!

      I was truly hoping this would be the outcome of the blog tour – to learn the rest of the series will be recorded by Ms Winton! How incredible it will be to one day listen to her bringing the rest of Anne’s journey to life! I was truly mesmerised by her approach and how she endeared us to each of the characters in turn, not just to recaptialise on our fond affection for Anne herself. These adaptations are truly a beautiful gift for listeners who either remember Anne from childhood or are coming to know Anne as an adult for the first time. I was truly marvelling at how theatrical this piece was and the depth of it’s performance for being a single narrator adaptation! The breadth is truly incredible!

      Bless you for recommending a narrator for Austen! I have not yet attempted to sort out which narrator would be best, as whenever you love an author, you become dearly particular about the voice you can attach yourself to listening tell their stories. I shall happily look up Ms Stevenson! Thank you!

      The two titles you’ve offered which immediately drew my eye of interest are “Pollyanna” and “Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm” – the others I need to pull up on your site to seek what they involve as I have not yet heard of them. In regards to the MacDonald memoirs, I happily resided inside them this past Winter and early Spring concluding with the lovely Paula Becker. Thank you for giving me such a happy surprise in knowing I can continue to listen to the Classics Post Hypnotic Press is producing! I look forward to looking over your catalogue and contacting you.

      • That’s right – you did participate in the McDonald virtual tour. I love those books!

        An aside – not long after we published “The Egg and I,” we were contacted by a listener in the UK who LOVED our recording and Heather Henderson’s narration (she co-produced those books with us) and wanted to know if we would be offering McDonald’s other memoirs. When I looked-up his review of “The Egg and I” on audible, he had written: “As Juliet Stevenson is to Jane Austen on audio so Heather Henderson is to Betty MacDonald – and there is no higher praise!” I had only just discovered Stevenson’s recordings – I had tried a couple of other recordings which I quickly discarded as they were just wrong (at least, to my ear). So that was a happy coincidence. I do try to find the perfect narrator for every book we produce. You can’t please everyone all the time, of course, but we do our best. :)

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