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Written by the author of the beloved Anne of Green Gables series, The Blue Castle is L. M. Montgomery's sophomore adult novel and a classic tale of romance. By society's standards, twenty-nine year old Valancy Stirling is an old maid. Ostracized by the community and infantilized by her family, Valancy feels complete powerless with her only means of escapism being the poetic nature books of her favorite author, John Foster, and her fantasies of a "Blue Castle." That is until the day that Valancy goes to see a doctor. While he isn't able to diagnose her at the time, she receives a letter just a few days later that rocks the foundation of her life: she has a heart ailment and it's terminal. Oddly comforted by the news, Valancy takes the opportunity to break away from her family and live what little life she has left on her own terms. Finally pursuing her own happiness, Valancy sets out on a journey of self-discovery and begins to build a new home, make new friends, and find a lover who pr

Written by the author of the beloved Anne of Green Gables series, The Blue Castle is L. M. Montgomery's sophomore adult novel and a classic tale of romance. By society's standards, twenty-nine year old Valancy Stirling is an old maid. Ostracized by the community and infantilized by her family, Valancy feels complete powerless with her only means of escapism being the poetic nature books of her favorite author, John Foster, and her fantasies of a "Blue Castle." That is until the day that Valancy goes to see a doctor. While he isn't able to diagnose her at the time, she receives a letter just a few days later that rocks the foundation of her life: she has a heart ailment and it's terminal. Oddly comforted by the news, Valancy takes the opportunity to break away from her family and live what little life she has left on her own terms. Finally pursuing her own happiness, Valancy sets out on a journey of self-discovery and begins to build a new home, make new friends, and find a lover who pr

The Private Papers of Henry Ryecroft (1903) is a semi-autobiographical work by George Gissing. Published in the last year of his life, The Private Papers of Henry Ryecroft is presented as a diary of a friend discovered after the man's premature death. Divided into four seasons, the diary details the life of a man overwhelmed with depression and regretful of a past mired in unsuccessful work. With a mournful, meditative preface, George Gissing introduces Henry Ryecroft to the world. Uncelebrated in death, unknown in life, Ryecroft was a writer of ambition and talent who struggled for years to overcome the indecency of poverty and the disdain of the critical establishment. At the height of his struggle, nearing fifty years of age, Ryecroft unexpectedly inherits a small fortune, allowing him to retire to a cottage and to live comfortably for the first time in his life. With this newfound sense of calm and financial security, Ryecroft dedicates himself to the leisure of nature walks and to