Not only is Anne something of a pop-culture industry in Japan, but there's a minor scholarly industry trying to figure out why. It's required reading in elementary schools, and there's fan clubs and theme parks so on -- and incidentally, the standard anime adaptation was directed by Isao Takahata with storyboards by Miyazaki, back in their pre-Ghibli, television days.

A minor FAQ to get one started, an a CBC story on it all.

---L.