Rilla of Ingleside facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Rilla of Ingleside

First edition
Author	Lucy Maud Montgomery
Country	Canada
Language	English
Series	Anne of Green Gables
Genre	Canadian literature
Publisher	McClelland & Stewart
Publication date	1921
Media type	Print (hardback & paperback)
Preceded by	Rainbow Valley

Rilla of Ingleside is a book from 1921 by Lucy Maud Montgomery. It's the eighth book in her popular Anne of Green Gables series. This story is all about Rilla Blythe. She is the youngest daughter of Anne and Gilbert.

The book has a more serious feel because it happens during World War I. Many young men from the story, including Rilla's brothers Jem, Walter, and Shirley, go off to fight. Her friend Ken Ford and other friends also join the war. They fight in Europe with the Canadian Expeditionary Force.

Lucy Maud Montgomery wrote this book to remember her cousin, Frederica Campbell Macfarlane. Frederica was her best friend. She died in 1919 during the worldwide flu epidemic.

Rilla of Ingleside is special because it's one of the only Canadian novels written by a woman during that time about the First World War. It also mentions the Gallipoli campaign and the brave soldiers from Australia and New Zealand, called the ANZACs.

Years after Montgomery passed away, some parts of the book were removed. These parts had strong feelings against Germans, which were common during the war. A new, complete version of the book was published in 2010.

Rilla's Story During Wartime

This part of the story takes place almost ten years after the book Rainbow Valley. Europe is about to enter the First World War. Rilla is almost 15 years old and full of energy. She is excited about her first grown-up party. She doesn't know about the big war that is coming. Her parents worry because Rilla doesn't seem to have any big goals. She is not interested in going to college. She just wants to have fun.

War Begins and Changes Everything

When the war starts, Rilla's brother Jem and his friend Jerry Meredith quickly join the army. This makes Anne, Nan, and Faith Meredith very upset. Rilla thinks Faith might be engaged to Jem. Rilla's brother Walter is old enough to join, but he doesn't at first. He had been sick with typhoid. But the real reason is that he is scared of the war and dying. He tells Rilla that he feels like a coward. Rilla was a little happy because she felt closer to Walter than to Jem.

The boys who joined the army go to Kingsport for training. Jem's dog, Dog Monday, waits at the train station every day. He waits for Jem to come back home. Rilla's other siblings, Nan, Di, and Walter, go back to Redmond College. Shirley goes back to Queen's Academy. Rilla is left at home with her parents, their housekeeper Susan Baker, and Gertrude Oliver. Gertrude is a teacher staying with the Blythes. Her fiancé is fighting in the war.

Rilla's Growth and New Responsibilities

As the war continues, Rilla grows up a lot. She starts a Junior Red Cross group in her village. This group helps with the war effort. One day, while collecting donations, she finds a house where a young mother has just died. The mother's husband is away at war. There is no one to care for her two-week-old baby boy.

Rilla takes the sick baby back to Ingleside in a soup tureen. She names him "James Kitchener Anderson." This name is after his father and Herbert Kitchener. Kitchener was a British leader during the war. Rilla's father, Gilbert, challenges her to raise the baby. Rilla doesn't like babies at all. But she takes on the challenge. She eventually learns to love "Jims" like her own son.

Rilla also helps a soldier and his girlfriend get married. The girl's father is the only person in town who speaks out against the war. He is a pacifist. He tries to stop fundraising for the war. He also criticizes the war during prayers. This is a small part of the story that happens often.

Anxious Times and Sad News

Rilla and her family pay close attention to all the war news. The fighting spreads, and thousands of people die. Rilla becomes much closer to Walter. Some people in town and at college call Walter a slacker. This insult hurts him deeply. Rilla feels that Walter finally sees her as a friend, not just his little sister.

Walter eventually joins the army. Rilla's new love interest, Kenneth Ford, also enlists. Kenneth is the son of Owen and Leslie Ford from Anne's House of Dreams. He kisses Rilla before he leaves. He asks her to promise not to kiss anyone else until he returns. Rilla keeps this a secret for a long time. She isn't sure what it means about his feelings for her. Her mother later tells her that if Kenneth asked her to save her kisses for him, she can consider herself engaged.

As the war goes on, one night Dog Monday starts to howl sadly. The family fears something terrible has happened to Jem. Instead, they get news that Walter was killed in action. He died at Courcelette. In an earlier book, Anne of Ingleside, Anne had a vision of Walter's death. In Walter's last letter to Rilla, he says he is no longer afraid. He believes it might be better to die than to live with his war memories. Rilla gives the letter to Una Meredith. Rilla had always thought Una was in love with Walter. Una promises she will never let love into her life again.

The War's End and New Beginnings

Anne's youngest son, Shirley, becomes old enough to join the army. He immediately joins the flying corps. Susan, the housekeeper, is very touched when Shirley calls her "Mother Susan" before he leaves. Jerry Meredith is hurt at Vimy Ridge. In May 1918, Jem is reported wounded and missing after a trench raid. The Blythes don't know what happened to Jem for almost five months. But Dog Monday keeps waiting at the train station. Susan believes the dog would know if Jem was gone. Finally, they get a telegram. Jem was taken prisoner in Germany. But he escaped to Holland and is now going to England for medical care.

When the war finally ends, the other boys from Glen St. Mary come home. Mary Vance and Miller Douglas plan to get married. Miller decides to work in Mr. Flagg's store after losing a leg in the war. Jem returns on a train. Dog Monday is overjoyed to meet him. Jims' father comes back with a happy new English wife. He takes Jims to live with them nearby. Rilla is happy she can still be part of Jims' life.

Life slowly returns to normal after the war. Jem plans to go back to college. He and Faith cannot marry until he finishes studying medicine. Faith, Nan, and Diana plan to teach school. Jerry, Carl, and Shirley will return to Redmond College. Una also plans to take a Household Science course. Rilla notices that Kenneth Ford survived the war but hasn't contacted her. She thinks he might have lost interest. She considers joining the college group too.

Finally, Kenneth comes home. He asks Rilla to marry him with the question, "Is it Rilla-my-Rilla?" Rilla answers, "Yeth," which is a rare moment where she slips back into her childhood lisp.

The Anne of Green Gables Series

Lucy Maud Montgomery wrote many books about Anne Shirley. Here they are in the order of Anne's age in each story.

Here are some other books where Anne Shirley appears, but she is not the main character.

See also

In Spanish: Rilla, la de Ingleside para niños