Kindred Spirits Book Club

The Story Girl Recap

The Story Girl is one of L.M. Montgomery’s most charming books, full of witty dialogue, playful antics, and wistful nostalgia. We are kicking off our discussion of The Story Girl with a recap of all the characters, hijinks, and stories that make this book shine. We also discuss the LA fires, which had a huge impact on the podcast, and recommend some ways to support the girls who inspire us.      
Inspired by:  
Ragon is inspired by Girl Scouts!  Buy cookies whenever you see a Girl Scout selling them or you can donate to Girl Scouts as an organization.
Kelly is inspired by Altadena Girls, a girl-led program to support girls affected by the Eaton Fire. 
If you want to get a free logo sticker from us, either leave us a review on Apple Podcasts or share your love for the pod on social media!  Send us a photo of your share or review at either our email: kindredspirits.bookclub@gmail.com or on our KindredSpirits.BookClub Instagram. 

What was L.M. Montgomery reading?

Kelly and Ragon welcome L.M. Montgomery scholar and curator Emily Woster, PhD to the pod!  Emily tells us all about L.M. Montgomery’s reading life–what books she loved growing up, what influenced her books, her active reading style and her unique writing process.  And in true kindred spirit fashion we nerd out about our influential reads and Emily’s family legacy of Anne fandom!  
The Anne Manuscript for high quality scans of LMM’s original handwritten manuscript and notes.
The L.M. Montgomery Bookshelf  where you can find scans of books from LMM’s library including some of her own notations in the books and Emily’s information and notes about history and context of these books!  An amazing resource!  
And you can follow Emily on bluesky for updates about her work.
Inspired by:
Kelly is inspired by: Graphic bookends from the Container Store.
Ragon is inspired by: Dragon Bookplates and Personalized Library Stamps .
Emily is inspired by: Wonderworks: Literary Invention and the Science of Stories by Angus Fletcher and  Story or Die: How to Use Brain Science to Engage, Persuade, and Change Minds in Business and in Life by Lisa Cron.  And a bonus of the Library Kit from Knock Knock. 
If you want to get a free logo sticker from us, either leave us a review on Apple Podcasts or share your love for the pod on social media!  Send us a photo of your share or review at either our email: kindredspirits.bookclub@gmail.com or on our KindredSpirits.BookClub Instagram. 

Rainbow Valley: A Romantic Quadrangle

What’s this? A messy love quadrangle?  You know Kelly and Ragon are all over that!  We channel our best Normal Gossip podcast inspiration and dive into our discussion of the self-sabotaging lovers of Rainbow Valley!  We ask such questions as “What’s Ellen’s deal anyway?”  And “Wait, do we agree with Norman Douglas?” And most importantly “Who should we cast in our movie version of this story?”  
On a more serious note, if you’d like to help Kelly rebuild after losing her home in the terrible Eaton fire, we have a fundraiser to support her as she begins the overwhelming task of recovering. 
And if you would like to help Los Angeles recover from the horrific wildfires, here are some places that are doing good work:
World Central Kitchen is feeding people on the ground in Los Angeles.
LA County Fire Department is doing heroic work and we aren’t done with the fires.
Pasadena Humane Society is caring for the wild animals and pets lost or injured in the fire.
Baby2Baby provides disaster relief to families and children in poverty impacted by the fires.
Give Directly is fundraising to provide direct cash support to those in most need after the fire for shelter, food, clothing.
Inspired by:
This whole episode was inspired by one of our favorite podcasts Normal Gossip.
Kelly was inspired by the 1995 Persuasion adaptation and the miniseries based on Elizabeth Gaskell’s  North and South.
Ragon was inspired by the classic rom-com While You Were Sleeping and the time travel romance in About Time . 
If you want to get a free logo sticker from us, either leave us a review on Apple Podcasts or share your love for the pod on social media!  Send us a photo of your share or review at either our email: kindredspirits.bookclub@gmail.com or on our KindredSpirits.BookClub Instagram. 

Rainbow Valley: Patriarchy and Parentification

We are continuing our Rainbow Valley discussion and focusing on the Meredith children’s impulsive hijinks and the way the adults around them react, or don’t react, to their shenanigans.  We take John Meredith to task, break down how the patriarchy has helped enable this situation and learn a little about what parentification is and why the Meredith kids are poster children for it!
Inspired by:
Kelly is inspired by Normal Women by Philippa Gregory.
Ragon is inspired by All The Rage by Darcy Lockman and Fair Play by Eve Rodsky.
If you want to get a free logo sticker from us, either leave us a review on Apple Podcasts or share your love for the pod on social media!  Send us a photo of your share or review at either our email: kindredspirits.bookclub@gmail.com or on our KindredSpirits.BookClub Instagram. 

Rainbow Valley: A Childhood Idyll

L.M. Montgomery scholar Maryam Khorasani joins us for a discussion of Rainbow Valley itself as both a physical place and a state of mind, drawing on our own childhood experiences and analyzing the characters' interactions with the natural world. We also discuss themes of childhood, imagination, friendship, and the transition to adulthood and are inspired by books with strong senses of place and third spaces.  
Inspired by:
Ragon is inspired by A Kind Of Paradise by Amy Rebecca Tan and by The Whalebone Theater by Joanna Quinn.
Kelly is inspired by The Eyes And The Impossible by Dave Eggers.
Maryam is inspired by The Fall Of The House Of Usher by Edgar Allen Poe.
You can find our guest, Maryam Khorasani on instagram as Maryam9756 or through her email at ma.khorasani@ufl.edu 
If you want to get a free logo sticker from us, either leave us a review on Apple Podcasts or share your love for the pod on social media!  Send us a photo of your share or review at either our email: kindredspirits.bookclub@gmail.com or on our KindredSpirits.BookClub Instagram. 

Rainbow Valley Recap

In preparation for our Rainbow Valley mini-arc, we are recapping this lovely book on today’s episode. We’ll introduce you to the Blythe children’s new friends, the Meredith children and Mary Vance, and tell you all about their adventures and hijinks. We also touch on the historical context of the book, which is set in the years leading up to World War I, wonder where Shirley Blythe is in all this, and share some of our favorite easy recipes! 
Inspired by:
Ragon is inspired by Smitten Kitchen's Pizza Beans for a comforting hearty meal.
Kelly is inspired by Crispy Gnocchi with Burst Tomatoes for an easy Italian dinner.
If you want to get a free logo sticker from us, either leave us a review on Apple Podcasts or share your love for the pod on social media!  Send us a photo of your share or review at either our email: kindredspirits.bookclub@gmail.com or on our KindredSpirits.BookClub Instagram. 

Anne of Ingleside in Conversation

Today’s episode features an interview with an extraordinary L.M. Montgomery scholar, Dr. Laura Robinson. We discuss Robinson's background, her favorite Montgomery books and characters, and her work with the L.M. Montgomery Institute. Then we dive deep into the untold stories of Anne of Ingleside – why this book feels a little darker, and the storytelling risks L.M. Montgomery was able to take in writing this book.  You absolutely do not want to miss this fascinating conversation with a leading Montgomery expert!
We got a lot of wonderful resources from our conversation with Dr. Laura Robinson, if you’d like to check those out here!
L.M. Montgomery Institute is a wonderful hub for so many resources!
The Anne Manuscript lets you view a virtual copy of the original manuscript, and you can see all the edits, notes and annotations.  
The Journal of L.M. Montgomery Studies lets you read wonderful scholarship and other writings related to all of L.M. Montgomery’s books.
If you want to get a free logo sticker from us, either leave us a review on Apple Podcasts or share your love for the pod on social media!  Send us a photo of your share or review at either our email: kindredspirits.bookclub@gmail.com or on our KindredSpirits.BookClub Instagram. 

BONUS: Maud 150 Tribute

Surprise! In honor of L.M. Montgomery’s 150 birthday, we are releasing a special bonus mini-episode today to share our tribute to Maud. Be sure to check out the other tributes over at the Journal of L.M. Montgomery Studies!  
Links:
Find all the tributes to L.M. Montgomery here at the Journal of L.M. Montgomery Studies 150 Tributes  
And  Maud's Electronic Birthday Card
If you want to get a free logo sticker from us, either leave us a review on Apple Podcasts or share your love for the pod on social media!  Send us a photo of your share or review at either our email: kindredspirits.bookclub@gmail.com or on our KindredSpirits.BookClub Instagram. 

Anne of Ingleside in her Community

Our discussion of Anne of Ingleside continues, focusing on Anne and the Blythe family as they relate to the Glen St. Mary community. We also chat about Anne revisiting old hobbies like writing and matchmaking, and her marriage to Gilbert. This book opens the door to conversations about class, women’s labor, and finding your place in the world.    
Inspired by:
Kelly is inspired by the beautiful quilts of Gees Bend Quilts and matching prints from Souls Grown Deep.
Ragon is inspired by dancing the night away at the Broadway Rave with all the  theater kids!
If you want to get a free logo sticker from us, either leave us a review on Apple Podcasts or share your love for the pod on social media!  Send us a photo of your share or review at either our email: kindredspirits.bookclub@gmail.com or on our KindredSpirits.BookClub Instagram. 

Anne of Ingleside is Home

Home and family is the topic of this episode! Ingleside is a symbol of a happy and loving home and today we are discussing the ways that Anne is creating that for her own children. We speculate about whether Anne is the original TradWife, chat about unwanted houseguests, and share the ways that we've made our houses our homes. 
Inspired by:
Kelly is inspired by vintage shopping and estate sales to make your home unique!
Ragon is inspired by the Nolan Interior Magic Sofa Covers to keep her couch looking comfortable and inviting.
Kelly and Ragon recommend the Culture Study substack in the episode as well!
If you want to get a free logo sticker from us, either leave us a review on Apple Podcasts or share your love for the pod on social media!  Send us a photo of your share or review at either our email: kindredspirits.bookclub@gmail.com or on our KindredSpirits.BookClub Instagram.