The Orphan Train is the story of a troubled 17 year old named Molly living in foster care with her two foster parents, Ralph, and Dina, after her dad is killed and her mother was too mentally unstable to take care of her. It’s also a story about a widowed 91 year old named Vivian, who rode the orphan train. Molly, after stealing a book, is forced to do 50 hours of community service, and ends up helping Vivian clean out her attic. Vivian is told Molly is doing community service for a school project. Vivian and Molly spend more time together as they go through boxes in Vivian's attic. Molly and her foster mom Dina get into a huge fight and Molly is kicked out, she goes to Vivian for help and tells her the truth about the community service. Vivian, though surprised at first, welcomes Molly to stay at her house. Later, Molly is doing a school project and asks Vivian to share her life story. We learn that Vivian in 1929 was living in New York after emigrating from Ireland.  She tells the story of how she herself became an orphan, and about The Children's Aid society that helped her. After a few weeks her and some other children were selected to take a train to Minnesota to find a new family. She talks about her journey on the orphan train, and about the horrible experiences she endured with the first few families she was placed with. She is then given to the Nielson family who name her Vivian. They eventually adopted her and she lived a good life with them. There are more ups and downs that Vivian endures, and share, including giving up her own daughter for adoption. After telling Molly her life story, Vivian feels ready to seek out and meet her daughter. The author throughout the story does a fantastic job of connecting and mirroring the lives of the goth teen and old immigrant.  It is beautiful to see Molly and Vivian both longing for the sense of family, and acceptance,  find each other and help each other. This story makes you so emotional, describing the hardships, and heartbreaks Vivian went through at such a young age, and all she was able to overcome. Orphan train is the kind of book that also gives you a sense of hope, faith that you will be accepted and even come to terms with and face your past. 

The timeless classic, Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery will truly forever hold a place in the hearts of all of its readers. This story follows eleven year old Anne Shirley’s life after moving to Avonlea and being adopted by Matthew and Marilla Cuthbert. Her time in Avonlea is full of love, loss and growth, but it doesn't start as beautifully as it ends. Within her first few days, she angered many long-time residents due to her short temper, and yet made lifelong friends with others. Her story is full of small feats and challenges that may not seem significant, but they truly altered the course of many characters' lives. While her wild imagination may sometimes get the best of her, it is truly the most charming thing about her. It does tend to get her into trouble sometimes. Anne learns a lot throughout the book, and many life lessons are taught to both her and the reader. As she learns these lessons, and settles into her new life, she truly becomes Avonlea’s missing piece.

I love this book so much. I find Anne to be an incredibly relatable character, especially since she tends to be stubborn and overly passionate. I really like how there's never a dull moment in the book, as Anne is always getting into new trouble. I also find that the way the author characterizes Anne gets you hooked on her story from page one. I was rooting for her as soon as she was introduced, she’s just that infectious of a character. The best part about this book is it is the first book in an eight part series. I like this because you can continue rooting for Anne as she grows up. 

I would recommend this book to anyone who’s looking for a continuing series and anyone who likes the classics.