Mistress Pat [Paperback]

<p><strong>Home is where the heart is</strong></p><p>At twenty years old, Pat Gardiner has never regretted staying at her beloved home of Silver Bush. She has the wild stories of housekeeper Judy Plum to amuse her, a countess to entertain, a cat named Bold-and-Bad to keep out of trouble, and her younger sister Rae to care for.</p><p>But she does miss her friend "Jingle" Gordon, who's away at college. He's the only boy who ever truly understood her, and their little spot called "Happiness" is much lonelier without him. Eventually, though, Pat will have to choose: the house she's loved her entire life...or falling in love and starting a home of her own. </p><p><strong>What Readers are Saying:</strong></p><p>"I loved this...better than the <em>Anne of Green Gables</em>books."</p><p>"Pat is my favorite L.M. heroine and these are my new favorite L.M. books."</p><p>"This book is a must-read for any L.M. Montgomery lover—if you liked <em>Anne of Green Gables</em>, you'd love Pat of <em>Silver Bush</em>and <em>Mistress Pat</em>."</p><p>"The romance, the laughter, and the tears make it a story that just captivates you."</p><p><b>Chapter 1</b></p><p>There were hundreds of trees, big and little, on the Silver Bush farm and every tree was a personal friend of Pat's. It was anguish to her when one of them, even some gnarled old spruce in the woods at the back, was cut down. Nobody had ever been able to convince Pat that it was not murder to cut a tree down...justifiable homicide perhaps, since there had to be fires and lumber, but homicide nevertheless.</p><p>And no tree was ever cut in the grove of white birches behind the house. That would have been sacrilege. Occasionally one blew down in an autumn storm and was mourned by Pat until time turned it into a beautiful ml³|