Annie on My Mind

Summary:  Liza meets Annie at a Museum and they become more than friends over the course of the school year. Liza attends private school and Annie attends public school. They come from very different backgrounds. Liza is suspended because she doesn't "report" a friend who is piercing ears for profit in the basement of the school. During the suspension the girls become closer. The girls spend the holidays together. Two female teachers at Liza's school go out of town for spring break. Liza offers to house and pet sit for them. A school administrator discovers the girls at the house in a precarious situation and the teachers return in the midst of this discovery. Liza is suspended again and must go before the school board to plead her case. All the while, the school is struggling to stay open. The school administrators fear that if Liza isn't dealt with swiftly, it will effect the fundraising campaign. Liza is exonerated however both of her teachers are released of duty because of their relationship even though they had taught there for years. The girls go off to college on opposite coasts. Liza isn't sure what to do about their relationship and never responds to Annie's letters. In the end, they reunite and live happily ever after.

Garden, N. (1982). Annie on my mind. New York: Farrar, Straus, and Giroux.

Commentary:  The strengths of this book are that it allows teenagers who are questioning their sexuality to have a book that they can relate to.  The main character, Liza, always seems to have to bear the brunt of the consequences because she is in a position of authority at the school, president of the student body.  She seems to be held to a higher standard than everyone else. Both main characters are questioning who they are. Will they tell their families? Annie says she will but then doesn't.  Liza is "caught" and forced to because of the impending appearance before the school board.  I would say that this was a book before it's time back in the early 80s.  Nowadays, this would almost be a non-issue, almost.

Connections:  I would consider this book a Realistic Modern Contemporary Fiction novel being that it based in New York, Brooklyn and Manhattan with realistic characters visiting real landmarks. Although it mainly focused on the characters and their development, the events that take place could happen to any young teenagers, becoming friends, making poor decisions, going through rough times, falling in love. I found this book to be a sweet tale of young love, with a happy ending.  So far, this book is the only YA book on our list I have read that has had a happy ending.  

Link to the author's page Nancy Garden - May 15, 1938 – June 23, 2014.  Although the author is no longer living, her author page is still up and relevant.

Book Trailer

Interview with the author  Nancy Garden

Study Guide - if you want access to the entire thing, it requires payment

Another Study Guide - this one includes literary elements and analysis