This was a cute little collection of short stories by one of my favorite authors. Some of the stories were pretty cute, some were not as good. The last story, "A House Divided Against Itself", had some racism that I didn't really appreciate. Overall this was a decent collection of short stories, but not as good as some of her others.

These stories are primarily ones that never saw the light of day after being published in magazines in Montgomery's lifetime. There's a reason for that. I love reading more my L.M. Montgomery, but these are not my favorites. Maybe because they're grouped together by theme? The stories get very repetitive. And some of the stories showed up as scenes in her books. Fans of Montgomery should read these, but don't pick this up expecting to fall in love with it.

A Beautiful book of short stories filled with descriptions of the sea and coastal life in PEI.

It is so hard to say/think/write this, but I am a bit disappointed with this collection of stories. I am a hardcore fan of LMM and I know she was an exceptional writer, no doubt in that area. Her descriptions in these stories are wonderful as always; to me, every time I read her books is like visiting an old friend. It is like I've met these characters before, and like I've been in those places before.

Alas, not in this book. The characters at least. Except maybe for a couple of them, because they are "recycled" stories: stories that we find in other books, like "The Life-Book if Uncle Jesse" is the same as the Life-Book of Captain Jim of Anne's House of Dreams. "A Soul that Was Not at Home" is almost the same as Paul and his rock-people from Anne of Avonlea. And the last story of Little George and Big George is the same as the cousins of A Tangled Web.

The rest of them are not Kindred Spirit (sorry Mrs. Montgomery!). I hated did not like the ones from the story "A Strayed Allegiance", in fact, I hope Elliott and his lover have lived UNhappily ever after!

I finally had to give up on finishing this book. I wanted to like it, to become emotionally invested in the characters like I was with other novels by L.M. Montgomery. There just wasn't enough there. Some of the short stories were sweet and touching, but most were saccharine. The lighthouse story was probably the only one I would recommend.

With Rea Wilmshurst's compilation of sixteen of L.M. Montgomery sea, lake and ocean themed short stories (actually, more like fifteen short stories and one considerably longer novella), there are indeed some very much deliciously descriptive, esoteric inclusions in Along the Shore: Tales by the Sea which I do and happily always will consider very much as personal favourites, as stories and anecdotes that are evocative of the ocean, that demonstrate the obvious truth of the matter that the sea can be both enchanting and entrancing, even grasping, holding, to the point of some individuals actually being forever linked and bonded to the sea, to the ocean and that any and all domiciles not near the water's edge simply do not and will not work (as is described and depicted in Along the Shore: Tales by the Sea especially glowingly and passionately with The Magical Bond of the Sea and A Soul That Was Not at Home, where in both cases, the main protagonists end up having to return to their original oceanside homes, as they can simply not adequately and with health and happiness exist anywhere but near the ocean, near the water, even for education, even for the chance of societal advancement).

However, and the above having all been said, there unfortunately are also a rather goodly number of included tales in Along the Shore: Tales by the Sea that I have not all that much enjoyed on a personal reading pleasure level. And while I generally do not ever expect to equally like and appreciate an anthology of compiled short stories (actually of anything, even if the book features one of my favourite authors) the presented and featured stories in Along the Shore: Tales by the Sea that I have truly not liked, I have actually rather vehemently detested with enough anger, frustration and vigour to only consider Along the Shore: Tales by the Sea with a high three star rating at best (for especially The Waking of Helen and A Strayed Allegiance are incredibly sad and hopeless, with the latter in particular always totally rubbing me the wrong proverbial way with regard to how much blame is cast at Magdalen Crawford for breaking up Marian Lester's and Esterbrook Elliot's engagement, and how little actual condemnation is directed at the in my opinion true mover and shaker, the main villain of A Strayed Allegiance, namely Esterbrook himself, who actively seeks out and courts Magdalen , but I guess it was easier for L.M. Montgomery to blame Magdalen, to consider her and her oh so "dangerous" beauty as the true and main reason Esterbrook plays Marian false, something that I for one consider both annoying and incredibly vile, not to mention that it also gives males with a randy and roving eye the pretty disgustingly nice and pat excuse that oh well, this is not their fault but the fault of the women they have cast their nets, or rather their tentacles at).

Still highly recommended is Along the Shore: Tales by the Sea, as indeed many of the featured tales are truly lovely, evocative, and yes, sometimes even rather deliciously humorous (and for that matter, one can always skip over the stories one does not really enjoy all that much, which is what I in fact do with both The Waking of Helen and A Strayed Allegiance whenever I decide to reread Along the Shore: Tales by the Sea), not to mention that editor Rea Wilmshurst's detailed, analytical introduction as well as her meticulous sources are appreciated and intellectually stimulating added bonuses (but with the caveat that I for one suggest perusing the introduction only AFTER having read the individual story inclusions so as to for one avoid possible spoilers and for two being influenced by Rea Wilmshurst interpretations).

Three stars because of my loyalty to L.M. Montgomery. However, this collection of short stories was, at times, treacly sweet, somewhat repetitious (several bad dogs saved people, and thus saved themselves), and even racist, as in the story A House Divided Against Itself. The settings were mostly Montgomery’s beloved Prince Edward Island, and the descriptions of the landscapes were bathed in excessively colourful descriptions; one paragraph included at least thirteen separate hues! Read Montgomery’s Anne series again, and skip this book.

3.25/5

Some great stories, some not so great... My favourites are The Life-Book of Uncle Jesse, Fair Exchange and No Robbery, Adventure on Island Rock, Light on the Big Dipper, and The Magical Bond of the Sea.

Superb as always. I particularly loved "Four Winds" and "A Sandshore Wooing." The latter was so different from most anything I have ever read. I really enjoyed it and wished it was much longer! Four Winds was simply glorious. Montgomery could have pulled another full Anne series with that stroke of genius. But perhaps it was best left in it's short glory.

Okay..."A House Divided Against Itself." That picked me up, ate me, spit me out, kicked me in the shins, and removed my liver without anesthesia. WHAT EVEN WAS THAT?!?!?! We'll pretend that story didn't exist. I genuinely think she may have been drunk when she wrote it. The rest were marvelous.

I usually like L.M. Montgomery's short stories, but a couple of these I really didn't like. They feature obnoxiously sexist attitudes and though true to their time period, I hate that the definition of "honor" was then so often antithetical to real human happiness. Unfortunately, some of the obnoxiousness persists to the modern day.

Some of the tales I do like, but I sort of wish they had been developed further.

All of the tales feature a link of some kind to living by the sea or at least on the Canadian shores of one or another of the Great Lakes. It is a not a strong theme except in two or three of the stories; the settings often could be exchanged for other settings.

2,5

Over the years, it has almost grown into a physical and palpaple thing; my longing for the sea. It overpowers me when I least expect it, making the pavement and the apartment buildings cave in around me to the point where I can hardly breathe.

I grew up by the sea. By the wild, roaring and fierce powers of Denmark's Western Coast. And when I close my eyes, I'm still there. Listening to the waves crashing in.

It's a hard thing to explain, this odd connection between the forces of nature and one's home. Yet Montgomery still manages it in the opening story of this collection, The Magical Bond of the Sea. Here a young woman tries to leave her homestead for better options and a brighter future – and throws it all away, just to be able to return.

In this short story collection, many of Montgomery's characters travels to the sea in order to spend a carefree holiday by the shores – some resulting in marriages or even tragedy. Many hearts get broken and mended, but the stories that truly touched me were the ones where Montgomery explores the fierce nature of the sea and the power it holds on its inhabitants.

Montgomery always excels in poetic descriptions of nature, possessing the ability of a photographer to magnify even the smallest details. As evidenced in quite a few of these short stories.