The work draws heavily on Montgomery's own life in the Leaskdale Manse, where she wrote a large number of her books.

[2] The book is dedicated: "To the memory of Goldwin Lapp, Robert Brookes and Morley Shier who made the supreme sacrifice that the happy valleys of their home land might be kept sacred from the ravage of the invader."

This refers to World War I, which is the main theme of the next and final book in the series, Rilla of Ingleside.

John Meredith is a widower with four young children: Gerald (Jerry), Faith, Una, and Thomas Carlyle (Carl).

The children have not been properly brought up since the death of their mother, with only their father (who is easily absorbed by matters of theology) to parent them.

They rescue an orphaned girl, Mary Vance, from starvation, and Una finds a home for her with Mrs. Marshall Elliott (Miss Cornelia Bryant).

When the children get into trouble, Faith sometimes tries to explain their behaviour to the townsfolk, which generally causes an even bigger scandal.

The Merediths, Blythes, and Mary Vance often play in a hollow called Rainbow Valley, which becomes a gathering place for the children in the book.

Their self-imposed punishments lead to Carl becoming very ill with pneumonia after spending hours in a graveyard on a wet night, and to Una fainting in church after fasting all day.

Mr. Meredith realizes that he should marry again and give the children a mother, though he has always thought he will never love anyone again as he did his late wife.

He is surprised to find that he has fallen in love with Rosemary West, a woman in her late thirties who lives with her sister Ellen, who is ten years older.

The only one of Anne's children born in the House of Dreams, Jem has curly red hair, frank hazel eyes, his mother's nose and his father's mouth.

Towards the end of the book, Jem is studying for the entrance to Queen's and, being almost fifteen, does not have as much enthusiasm for playing in Rainbow Valley anymore.

Walter is thought of by the Glen St. Mary boys as girly and milky-soppish, because he never fights and rarely plays sports, preferring to read books alone.

At the close of the book he has a vision of 'The Piper' on the hill, piping away, making young men follow him from around the world.

She has many friends, but is thought to be stuck up and proud by the Glen St. Mary ladies because she imitates her mother's tricks, graces and poses.

She is very chummy and likes to have a named best friend, which causes several unfortunate events, but she is also quite loyal to her brothers and sisters.

Rilla seems the only of Mrs Doctor Blythe's flock that isn't ambitious, and her only intention is to have a good time.

At the end of the last book of the series, however, Rilla matures into a good, accomplished young woman and loses her childish immature way of acting and thinking.

Faith had a pet rooster named Adam, but he was killed by old aunt Martha and eaten at a special dinner with another minister that night.

The club eventually died out because the Manse children began to punish themselves in unreasonable ways for actions that weren't very unreasonable (e.g. Carl was afraid of a "ghost" and he had to sit out in the rainy graveyard until 12:00 p.m.) She is known for previously wearing no stockings to church after having given her good pair to a poor girl, and refusing to wear her hideous red-and-blue striped ones as a punishment from the club.

Her mouth sometimes falls open to reveal tiny square teeth and sometimes a shy smile creeps over her face.