Two young ladies find love and companionship with each other in a time where same sex relationships were not just frowned upon but could ruin one’s life.
General Information:
- Age Range: 12 – 18 years
- Price: $9.89
- Grade Level: 7 – 9
- Lexile Measure: 1000L
- Paperback: 272 pages
- Publisher: Square Fish; 1st edition (February 20, 2007)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 0374400113
- ISBN-13: 978-0374400118
Plot:
The summary of Annie on My Mind follows the story of Liza Winthrop who is a terrific student and the student council president of her high school as a senior. She is interested in going to MIT (she gets accepted to the school within the story) for architecture. As a very intelligent woman she goes to an art museum one day and that is where she meets Annie Kenyon. They almost instantaneously became friends and soon that friendship blossomed into love. Unfortunately they lived in a time where society strongly discriminated against same sex relationships to the point where many had to keep them hidden. At one point while house/cat sitting for two female teachers (who we learn later on to also be in a same sex relationship) the girls get caught together and there is a massive fall out. This book describes that fall out and the difficulties that could be faced by the girls but also on how they overcome this in order to continue their relationship in the face of this discrimination.
Reading and Interest Level:
This book is marketed for grades 7-9 and ages 12-14 according to Baker and Taylor. I however am of the opinion that this book can be read by those age groups as it is not a difficult read but it may be more appreciated by high school students due to the underlying themes and messages.
Evaluation:
Annie on My Mind by Nancy Garden is a wonderfully written book that gets its message out very effectively. This book is sure to be a hit for teens who may be in relationships that may not be viewed favorably by society. I personally do not read many romance books and this book captivated me from beginning to end in one sitting. The books message is specifically regarding same sex relationships and the fact that they are perfectly acceptable no matter what society may indicate. This book is an older book and besides a few odd facts and tidbits that showed its age the theme and overall message of this book can be timeless in my opinion and it really showed when I had to look up when it was written which was in 1982. The fact that this is true is a credit to the terrific writing style that Nancy Garden had within this book. So overall this book is a super effective read especially for those in the LGBTQ community as teens or young adults and has a very effective message.
Bibliotherapeutic Value:
The bibliotherapeutic value of this book issues that this book works through revolve around same sex relationships but also overcoming societal pressures. At least one of these issues is likely to be experienced by teens at some point in their high school lives and having a book like this really is valuable in the sense that they have something to relate to. Liza does not start the story as a lesbian looking for a girl to love, in fact it isn’t on her radar for over half the story. Even when she accepts that she has feelings for Annie she doesn’t know what it is or how to label herself. Many teens can understand these feelings as they occur in many relationships besides those that would be considered LGBTQ in nature. Other than that the value in showing that society is not always right and you can overcome prejudice and not have to conform in order to succeed in this world and still be who you want to be. This is nicely shown at the end of the book where Liza is at MIT and in the end still is dating Annie.
Issues Present:
The “issues” present in the book that may get it challenged involve the concept of same sex relationships as well as “pornographic material”. These are the most common reasons for the book to be challenged.
Defending the Title:
As stated above the “issues” are relatively clear cut and not numerous in nature. One would think that this book would not need to be defended however it is consistently challenged. Fortunately the defense of this book is relatively straightforward as most of the people complaining about the lesbian relationship are doing so from a religious point of view. The “pornographic material” is generally thrown in with the original complaint. There is no pornographic material as everything is implied but nothing is graphically stated besides mild kissing and cuddling. As for the religious viewpoints it is not the libraries job to check what a teen is reading and there is no need to remove material based off of personal reasons for objecting to a common occurrence within the world.
Book Talk Idea:
The book talk idea that I would use in relationship to the book Annie on My Mind would revolve around the reactions by adults to Liza and Annie’s relationship throughout the books. There is an interesting mix of those that are supportive, to those that are vehemently against it, to those are not in support of it but clearly are not opposing it either. Pages for support of this kind of book talk could be found on these pages and more: PAGES 70, 119, 166, 168, 211, 199, etc.
Genre:
The genre and subject matter of Annie on My Mind is teen fiction, more specifically realistic fiction. The subject matter is on Teen relationships (specifically lesbian relationships). It also discusses issues of societal pressure and the idea of being an outsider do to one’s actions or beliefs.
Similar Reads:
Authors Website:
N/A
Awards:
The book was represented on multiple top book lists in ALA sponsored lists. Nancy Garden won some awards in regards to discussing and defending the topics within the books as well though they were not literary in nature.
Professional Reviews:
https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/nancy-garden-9/annie-on-my-mind/
http://lesbrary.com/2013/09/18/erica-gillingham-reviews-annie-on-my-mind-by-nancy-garden/
https://www.hbook.com/2013/03/choosing-books/horn-book-magazine/a-second-look-annie-on-my-mind/
Why I chose to read this book?
This book is definitely not something that would normally be picked up by me and the reason I picked it up was one of my older coworkers at the library recommended it as a Nancy Garden book. I am glad I followed her advice as this book hooked me early with the writing style and kept me invested in Liza and Annie. I had to know where there relationship was going to go and how it would ultimately affect them. It was a terrific read that really kept me engaged.
Librarianship 