Lucy Maud Montgomery (November 30, 1874 - April 24, 1942), published as L. M. Montgomery, was a Canadian author best known for a series of novels beginning in 1908 with Anne of Green Gables. The book was an immediate success. The title character, orphan Anne Shirley, made Montgomery famous in her lifetime and gave her an international following. The Revolt of Mary Isabel: "For a woman of forty, Mary Isabel, you have the least sense of any person I have ever known," said Louisa Irving. Louisa had said something similar in spirit to Mary Isabel almost every day of her life.