Lucy Maud Montgomery: The Gift Of Wings

Mary Henley Rubio has spent over two decades researching Montgomery's life, and has put together a comprehensive and penetrating picture of this Canadian literary icon, all set in rich social context. Extensive interviews with people who knew Montgomery - her son, maids, friends, relatives, all now deceased - are only part of the material gathered in a journey to understand Montgomery that took Rubio to Poland and the highlands of Scotland.

From Montgomery's apparently idyllic childhood in Prince Edward Island to her passion-filled adolescence and young adulthood, to her legal fights as world-famous author, to her shattering experiences with motherhood and as wife to a deeply troubled man, this fascinating, intimate narrative of her life will engage and delight.

"Rubio deftly paints the portrait of a multitasking modern woman with an amazing work ethic. The biography soars with the energy of its title, but delves even deeper into Montgomery's dark side."
- The Globe and Mail

"A poignant story about a real family…. The result of Rubio's research is pure Canadian Gothic: a story of sexual repression, class conflict and family secrets."
- The Gazette (Montreal)

"Absolutely gripping … nothing short of brilliant, an un-put-downable read, and a wonderful examination of this troubled woman's tragic life."
- Ottawa Citizen

"Magisterial."
- National Post

Mary Henley Rubio is University Professor Emeritus at the University of Guelph. She co-edited The Selected Journals of L.M. Montgomery (five volumes, 1985-2004), co-authored Writing a Life: L.M. Montgomery, and edited Harvesting Thistles: The Textual Garden of L.M. Montgomery. Her most recent book is the Norton Critical Edition of Anne of Green Gables.