The Root Cellar by Janet Lunn

I read this book back in elementary school, and I enjoyed reading it at the time.

The story follows this orphan girl named Rose who is sent to live with relatives after the death of her grandmother. Rose is something of a tomboy and doesn't really have any friends, so doesn't feel like she fits in when she arrives and spends a lot of time by herself. One of the places she likes to spend time in is a root cellar near the house, and one day she goes into it only to find herself transported back in time to the 1800's. There she meets a boy and a girl with whom she becomes friends. At that time the Civil War was going on, so the boy goes off to fight in it, and the sister and Rose then go off in search of him.

It's a good story about a girl finding a place for herself to be accepted and needed, and be finding that she gains a little more self-confidence by focusing more on how to help others. It's fun and adventurous and even throws a bit of history in there as well.

Anne of Green Gables: The Collection

Anne of Green Gables is a great movie series. Every time I watch it in get caught up in the whimsy and romance and innocence present in both the story line and the characters themselves.

The story is about a young orphan girl, Anne, who is sent by mistake to an elderly couple in Prince Edward Island who wanted to adopt a boy to help out around the farm. The couple were unhappy with the mistake at first, but ultimately decide to keep her. Anne has a penchant for getting into trouble. She has a lot of pride and a hot temper when she thinks that someone is trying to belittle or make fun of her, and this temper gets her into quite a bit of trouble as the series progresses. She always manages to get out of them however, endearing herself to the other characters in the story, as well as to the viewer. She is constantly loosing herself in fantasy and whimsy, as a defense mechanism to deal with the rejection and pain she's had to deal with. The result is that her head is constantly in the clouds, more in the beginning of the series. She begins to live more in the real world as she receives love and acceptance from those around her. We follow her through school, friendships, family, and romance.

Anne is such a great character. Despite the seemingly head-in-the-clouds quality to her, she is a very strong character. She meets every challenge head on with everything she has. She's both romantic and passionate, romantic both in the relational and idealistic sense. She sees the world through dreamy eyes and is constantly in search of true, strong relationships, 'bosom friends'. She is also very optimistic, but not naively so, like in a Pollyanna-ish sense. She always allows for the best possible outcome, and strives for perfection, but is aware that bad things light happen, because they have already. She's ready to deal with what may come, and has already dealt with a lot in her young life, but still refuses to succumb to the drudgery and depression of the world. The romance between her and Gilbert Blythe is also very sweet... I think we'd all like to meet a Gilbert Blythe.

A Voice in the Wind by Francine Rivers

This was a great book. I read it a few years back but its still very memorable and it's still on my 'rainy day for when I'm not feeling so hot' rereading list. 

It's about a Jewish girl, Hadassah, and how she was sold into slavery in the time of the Roman empire. Basically the girl is fierce for her faith I guess you could say, and the story is her struggle against those who don't like her faith. She mostly charms people into liking her though, through her devotion to her faith. 

I'm more of a spiritual person rather than a religious one but the struggle Hadassah faces can transcend religion and can come to represent various troubles a person may face, and how being true to yourself will help you through.