Author: Nancy Garden
Where I Got This Book: Public Library!
Why I Read It: I actually saw a review for it on someone else's blog (Sorry, I don't remember who -- I will start paying more attention!) and was interested in reading it.
Rating: B
Annie On My Mind is about two 17 year old girls who meet up at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York purely by accident. Eliza (Liza for short) is touring the Museum and hears another young girl singing. Liza is enthralled by this beautiful voice she is hearing, so she follows the sound and comes across Annie. They start talking to each other, hanging out, exchange phone number and addresses, and become fast friends. However, as the time goes on, they become more than friends, they fall in love with each other. Liza has never felt so strongly for someone before Annie, and Liza is scared, confused, and doesn't really know what to think about it. Once Annie and Liza finally come to terms with the fact that they are definitely in love with each other, they still cannot be open about it. They don't want anyone else to find out for fear of being ridiculed, and because in the 80's (When the book was published) it was considered wrong, and immoral. Unfortunately, nowadays haven't changed that much.
It isn't until someone actually does find out that Annie and Liza are dating, and are a gay couple that Liza understands how much her relationship really affects, hurts, and threatens others, as well as their relationship. Liza begins to doubt her feelings for Annie and only months later after they both gone to College, on the opposite sides of the country, that she realizes how much Annie really means to her, and when she finally fights for their love.
This book was actually a very good book. It was written well, and it gave you an insight into what people go through when they're in relationships like that, or other circumstances that may be similar. I could sort of relate to this book because I was in an interracial relationship for 7 years and my Mothers side of the family did not approve of us at all. When my mom first found out, she freaked out. She kept telling me how I had broken her heart, and how wrong it is, and how God thinks it's wrong, etc. Even back then (which was actually only 8 years ago this November) I couldn't realize how or why it broke HER heart when it wasn't her that was in the relationship, it was me. And even now still, I can't bring myself to understand or realize how or why she was hurt by me falling in love with someone outside of our race. I found myself yelling at the people in this book for not accepting Liza and Annie, I felt anger towards them, I felt sadness for Annie and Liza and kept routing for them to stay together, and kept hoping they'd be reminded that you just can't help who you fall in love with.
The only reason I am giving this book a B, and not an A, is because I feel like the actually story of how they fell in love, was missing a lot of needed details. I felt like it was a bit scattered and choppy, but it is definitely a book that should be added to your TBR pile.
I hope others read this book and come out feeling the way I did. I also hope some day that discrimination is a lot less than it was, and is now. One can dream right?
My Rating:
2 comments:
Nice review...it sounds like an good story, but sort of unevenly executed?
Yeah, it was a great story. And definitely a book that I would recommend anyone to read. But yes, I suppose you could say it was unevenly executed. I just felt like it didn't give enough information about how their relationship developed over time, and maybe a few other important details that were lacking. But all in all, it's a good story.
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