Annie on My Mind

I'm going to start by saying this was a reread but I read it for the first time eight years ago so I couldn't remember a thing about the book. I knew I loved it but couldn't remember why. This book. This book killed me. It shattered me. I am not the same. Let me start by saying this story was published almost 40 years ago yet you can easily change the dates and it would still apply. This story is still relevant and these are things a lot of us queer people have gone through which is probably why it has become a queer classic. I must say I am not the biggest fan of the writing style. She added a lot of unnecessary details between commas and it confused me. I kept finding myself rereading the same paragraphs over and over again. This got annoying really quickly. The story was highly entertaining and it got me hooked. Lately, I've been having problems getting fully immersed in books. I get distracted every few minutes BUT with this story it was different. When I started this book a friend had invited me to go out with her and her friends but my phone didn't have enough charge so I decided to read while it charged. Long story short, an hour passed and I did not notice at all. Let's just say I told my friend "I'm sorry but I think I'll stay and read." That's just how much it hooked me. I'm not a fan of romance which is why it surprised me when this became one of my favorite books of all time. The thing is that since it was published so long ago it did not rely on the typical tropes that books nowadays do. Honestly, it was just so beautiful. I loved it. I love how this book deals with trying to come to terms with your sexuality and taking your time to accept a label. The story hit a little too close to home because I went through something similar. That's one of the reasons why I felt so touched by this book and why I loved it so much. Even if you didn't go through something similar queer people can relate to it and nonqueer people can learn from it. Overall, this book was amazing and 10/10 would recommend. I wish I could Make everyone read it because of how good it is. PLEASE read it. Those are the best dollars I've ever spent. Rating: 5/5

What to say? I've loved this story ever since first reading it nearly ten years ago. I had pulled it off the shelf at my university's library at random -well, not completely. I was walking down an aisle and just had this funny feeling to pull out this book. Call it crazy, but it felt like the book that I've never seen before wanted me to read it. At first I was confused by the writing but read on. I'm glad I did and was soon rapt by every page. At the time, it had been a while after things didn't work out with a girl I really liked. I needed a way to understand her more, plus my heart was still sore. This book helped, plus this girl looked exactly like Liza which is what floored me when I first saw the front cover. I read it in secret. This was for me, you see. I soon bought my own copy. As time passed, I healed and my love for this book has changed as well. I often wondered what a sequel would be like. Then, recently, I found the audio read by Rebecca Lowman who really feels the characters and acts out each one wonderfully. Her voice is captivating and so closely matches how Liza and Annie sounded in my mind. Whether to heal, to inspire or all in between, this is a great and timeless story that I still enjoy and recommend to all.

In an age where less than 1% of young adult books have gay, lesbian, transgender, or bisexual characters, it is important to promote the ones that are out there. In a time when it was considered extremely taboo, teenaged Liza finds herself falling in love with another girl, her vivacious new friend Annie. Told from Liza’s point of view, Annie On My Mind illustrates the development of their relationship, the confusion that Liza feels over her newly discovered sexuality, and the turmoil that comes as a result of being caught in the act of making love at a teacher’s house. Though this book was written over 20 years ago, I think that young adults would still find it relatable, and the material didn’t feel overly dated when I was reading it. Above all, the emotions ring true and give the book real authenticity. It is an unfortunate truth that the vast majority of books with romantic plots deal with a guy and a girl, and it’s really a shame that aren’t more that embrace other kinds of people too. Homosexuality is a very touchy and controversial subject for a lot of people, for whatever reason, and young people may not always feel comfortable asking others about different sexualities and lifestyles. That is one of the many reasons that it is important to have books that show other kinds of people and other ways to love. We’re not all cookie cutter people, so why should the characters in books be? Annie On My Mind tells a very lovely and realistic story with good characters and a satisfying ending. Maybe the story of Liza and Annie will help others who may find themselves confused or struggling and assure them that they, too, are normal and loved and things can work out positively no matter what your sexual orientation might be. Or, you know, maybe the story will just be an entertaining read for anyone. As a reader, I appreciate a well-told story with good characters, period. In Annie On My Mind, the two girls are fully realized characters who never fall into stereotypes. Their love is so charming and sweet that it was a delight to read. Highly recommended.

I just got done reading this book this morning! And it was amazing! It was written in 1996 and was the first lesbian romance with a happy ending. I often am discouraged about reading or watching LGBT genre because they often have un happy endings. An unhappy ending....is not reality. It... just isn't, so why would I want to fill my mind with that? The author of the story met her wife in her teenage years in the 50's. It was quit a confusing time for her (I can only imagine! I was confused enough in the 90's!). But they ended up sticking together and after 35 years of living together got married in MASS. During the 50's homosexuality was still seen as a mental illness at best at worse immoral sick and perverted. Even though they were in this time era they did not break up! WHich is true for a lot of LGBT folks, we don't always break up, we do live happy lives! We don't all kill our selves. The author wrote in her book about how LGBT literature, especially before the 90s couldn't have happy endings, else they wouldn't get published. Like we were censored from the idea that we can live happy lives and have successful marriages. A lot of the books from LGBT genre are still like that too! That is why this book was so impacting to me last night. I mean straight folk are filled from early on with positive images of successful straight marriages, with love stories with happy endings, Beautiful stories between a man and a woman. So when I find one i want to rave about it. So whether your straight or gay check out this book on amazon it is sold for only a penny on amazon and shipping is probably around $3. And straight people can read this romance with a happy ending, for I have read all your happy ending romances and none of them have made me straight.

Annie on My Mind by Nancy Garden has always been one of my favorite books. I'm not sure whether that has to do with the fact that it's the first LGBTQ book I ever read (and actually liked) or if it's because of Garden's captivating details & dynamics. Either way, this novel will make you feel all warm inside. Liza & Annie's story is real, intriguing, & beautiful. It will remind you of your first love, and it will bring back so many memories that you haven't thought of in a long time (especially if you're like me and are only 17). The only issue that I ever had with this book is that there was never a sequel written about Liza & Annie, and I've always wondered what happened with those two. Though I guess the ending does reveal a little, but my mind is a curious one & will never be satisfied. So no, you will not be dissapointed if you read this novel. Rather, the opposite.

I am not a member of the LGBT community, but this book was on the suggested read list at my old high-school. I like taking chances and reading books outside of my regular "comfort zone" (military and historical fiction). I must say, the literary quality of "Annie on My Mind" is superb. I understand it was written in 1982 and was one of the first books depicting and advocating for a same-sex romance, but it feels like it was written in the 19th century. The language is very elaborate, articulate and exalted. Kids just don't talk like this anymore. It made me pine for the "good old days" when people, regardless of age, actually spoke in complete sentences and maintained eye contact - God forbid. How did we go from such gorgeous prose to one-liner grunts "Like ... you know ... whatever." The two girls in the novel are very intelligent, articulate and creative without coming across as pretentious. I wish more modern teens read this book just to make them realize what they are missing: real language, real conversations, real feelings.

For the young adult GLBT genre, this book is considered a classic. It was originally published in 1982 back in an era where GLBT books didn't get happy endings or were regularly published; literally ANNIE ON MY MIND helped pave the way for positive GLBT fiction and gay rights. This book has been regularly banned and challenged (and even burned in Kansas City in 1993). Thanks to new cover art and a reprinting, I discovered this book by accident while I was lurking on Amazon during the summer. I'm glad that I gave it a chance because ANNIE ON MY MIND was one of the sweetest love stories I ever read. I wish it had an ebook version and a movie, since I now want to keep it with me forever in multiple copies. When I have kids, I would let them read it. One of my favorite aspects of this book was the fact Nancy Garden didn't preach about how wrong it is to be homophobic. Yes homophobia and quickly judging people are wrong, but instead of directly stating it showing it through the plot and character interaction was a better move to make the plot stronger (especially since the target audience might want to read for escapism purposes). Another thing I liked was how Nancy Garden showed the two girls Liza and Annie falling in love with each other. I rarely see that in many young adult straight novels, so I was pleasantly surprised to see the character interaction between them. They had chemistry together! I could believe that they were in love with each other; Liza and Annie weren't clichéd lesbian characters which was very refreshing, and why I could like them both together. Even though I'm not a lesbian and normally am not a hardcore fluffy romance reader, ANNIE ON MY MIND was very cute story that I would reread again. I almost had to wonder why it was such a controversial novel (other than for the fact the main characters were lesbians). I would recommend this book to anyone who wants to read a fluffy romance story with a happy ending.

This is a bittersweet story of young love, but more than that it is a story of self acceptance in the face of a world that is sometimes hostile. The portions of the story about Liza and Annie's developing relationship are beautifully told and the retrospective style of the writing prepares the reader well for the less pleasant aspects of the story. It is also rather nostalgic, as someone who grew up back then, in the days before cellphones and the internet, when you had to talk to your crush from a phone tethered to the kitchen wall and deal with whichever of your family members who happened to pop by during the conversion... Not to mention calling them from a payphone at your college dorm... Been there... Done that... It's rough! Lol! Highly recommended!

Grosse déception. Il est bien dans le sens qu'il dépeint des relations à peu près saines entre deux jeunes femmes, et présente l'homosexualité sous un jour assez honnête et positif. De par cet aspect, okay, c'est un bon livre lgbtqa+. Ceci dit, les personnages sont barbants et pas vraiment attachants, il y a énormément de drama et de nunucherie, et tout le côté "horrible environnement bigot et homophobe" est vraiment lourd à supporter. Donc pas mal si on n'a jamais rien lu sur le sujet, mais si on est déjà un vétéran de ce type de littérature, c'est vraiment dur à lire.

My first real exposure to lesbian literature was "The Well of Loneliness" by Radclyffe Hall. By that point, I had incredibly strong, almost-definite, not-quite-willing-to-accept feelings about my own homosexuality, and "The Well of Loneliness" captured exactly what I felt. After trawling through a lot of other books, most of them much more focused on the physical side to lesbian relationships, many poorly written, I discovered "Annie On My Mind", and I can't name a single book that has brought me to tears more than this. First of all, there's the content. The plot is pretty simple; Annie and Liza fall in love, get outed by a homophobic member of staff at Liza's school, and everything (almost!) falls apart. It's pretty much the classic love story, but where the two main protagonists are both girls. This, I think, is part of what makes the book so brilliant. It doesn't pretend to be anything but a love story between two girls. It isn't particularly focused on the evils of society or religious homophobia, but it does touch on everything relevant to young LGBT people. Despite it being a relatively dated book (they listen to cassettes!), which can be a little off-putting to a young, modern audience, it still tackles incredibly relevant issues, and makes you question how much has changed since the 1980's. The characters are fantastic. Liza is an incredibly likeable, realistic character with realistic concerns and emotions, and Annie is so sweet and adorable you can't help but think they're perfect for each other from the second they meet. Mrs. Poindexter and Ms. Baxter are excellent villains in that they alone pretty much portray all the antagonism young gay people fear facing upon coming out. Liza's family is the right combination of loving but sadly misunderstanding, with the exception of Chad, who deserves his own mention for being supportive of his sister despite her persecution. All the characters are believable, and they all play their roles in the story perfectly. Liza and Annie's romance is completely believable. They fall in love very fast, which is an accurate portrayal of a teenage relationship - things move fast. The tension between the two certainly exists, and all the 'near miss' moments when Liza could have said something or done something leave you reeling just as much as her. Although there is no explicit content at all, Garden tastefully cuts to the burning logs, which is very appropriate for the novel. Although no pretence is made about the relationship, both emotional and sexual, leaving the sex scenes to the imagination helps maintain that the relationship isn't pure lust. The girls' fear and urge to touch each other makes it very clear that they do desire each other, but that isn't what the book is about. If you're looking for mindless smut, look elsewhere. The issues Garden addresses are still relevant: coming out to your friends, family and school are some of the hardest things a gay teenager can go through, especially if they're forced to come out and are not received well. Annie's fear in coming out to her family because of their cultural background is another common concern, and Garden does it justice. Liza's parent's reactions are almost heart-breaking; her mother is convinced it's just experimentation, and Liza lies to her mother for the first time. Her father is willing to support her no matter what, but fears that she'll lead a pitiable life if she's gay. Although a lot of her problems would be solved by coming out properly, the fear she feels towards her parents reactions captures perfectly the fear to come out to unpredictable parents. Religious objection to homosexuality isn't ignored - Ms. Baxter plays the role of religious persecutor while ironically idolising Mrs. Poindexter to almost romantic amounts. Her words echo more strongly for some people, but are still hard to hear. I guarantee you will cry if you have ever been touched by these issues. Gay, straight, bisexual, transgender, read this book. It will help you understand so much about yourself and other people while not being preachy. No review can do it justice.

この本に出会えてよかった！ 心の底から感じました。 建築家をめざすLizaとすばらしい歌声の持ち主Annieの愛のお話です。 この世界に、二人なら完璧だって思える愛が一つでも多くなるのなら これほど素敵なことはない、と思います。 物語のなかの二人がとても微笑ましくて、心がふわーっとあったかくなりました。 一目で好きになる。周りがどう思うかなんて気にしない。世界の美しさにはじめて気づく。 恋っていいな！

Una auténtica maravilla de la literatura que no entiendo cómo no ha sido nunca publicada en español. Una historia supertierna y estilísticamente muy cuidada que consigue mantener tu atención hasta la última página sin recurrir a las tan manidas escenas dramáticas de acoso, rechazo y agresiones a que nos tienen acostumbrados tantos escritores.

I love reading Queer YA, but had put off reading Annie on My Mind for some time. I find older books in the genre tend to paint a pretty bleak picture of queerness that I find frustrating. While it's true that the characters face homophobia and hostility, it was refreshing to read an older book with such a hopeful overall message. While some aspects have definitely dated (eighties slang ftw), it's impressive to see how this book has mosty stood the test of time. This is testament to Nancy Garden's skill as a writer. I would just implore younger readers to keep in mind while reading that the world is a much friendlier place for LGBTQIA+ people these days. We've come a long, long way since 1982.