Annie John

ANNIE JOHN

by Jamaica Kincaid

 

Nomination: LA Times Finalist 1985

 

Date Read: January 8, 2023

 

Annie John is a beautiful, quiet and slow-paced novella about a girl coming of age and the conflicts she is forced to navigate as she comes into her own. If I told someone that not much happens in this book, it wouldn’t be a lie, however, so much of it is relatable to the teenage experience. Whether male or female, Antiguan or not, the process of becoming an adult resonates beyond any boundaries.

 

Annie John is the apple of her parents’ eye. Her father is a carpenter who makes all her furniture and adores his daughter. Her relationship with her mother is more complicated and she often finds herself in conflict with her mother’s methods of doing things, beliefs about clothing and nuances of behavior. Not all of her mother’s reprimands are unfounded as Annie tests the boundaries of her mother’s affection and plays marbles, lies and steals as all kids are bound to do at some point.

 

Annie is gradually compelled to leave behind her childish ways and begin to embody the mannerisms and attitude of a woman. She laments this transition, as did I, not believing herself ready and wanting to bask in the paradise of childhood. The process of becoming is both thrilling and lamentable simultaneously.

 

Annie becomes mysteriously ill and is home for several months, with her parents lavishing remedies and affection to see her through her illness. As she recovers, she is determined to leave behind her small life and embark on a new future in England, attending nursing school. She has a moment as she says goodbye where she realizes she will never be home again. She will never be a child again, in her parents arms again. As excited as she has been to leave her mother, the realization of this passage makes her cling to her mother for just a moment longer. 

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