Mary Henley Rubio's biography Lucy Maud Montgomery: The Gift of Wings is yet another depressing book that needs to be taken in small doses and balanced with very different material. It is similar in that respect to the biographies of novelists Stella Benson, Jean Rhys, Antonia White and Mary Webb.
Detecting themes and patterns and investigating common elements of various kinds in these writers', on the whole, miserable and tormented lives is an interesting exercise. There is often a web of connections in these and similar cases.
Some of this material is covered in an article about Jean Rhys and Antonia White and in another about Stella Benson and L. M. Montgomery. The next permutation is of L. M. Montgomery and Mary Webb. This article covers a few common elements and connections I noticed in their lives in addition to the two suspicious deaths.
Some basic attributes
Both novelists were of Celtic origin.
Both novelists were small and dark.
L. M. Montgomery didn't have much physical stamina and she was always very susceptible to colds, flu and other infections. Mary Webb's health was very bad too.
Both had husbands who became increasingly distant and often escaped to other households where they were welcome and there was a better atmosphere.
L. M. Montgomery was very strongly attached to her beloved Prince Edward Island and Mary Webb to her idyllic Shropshire countryside. Neither was much of a town person.
