Ana of California
Andi Teran
2015, 353 pages
Fiction
Ana of California, which is “inspired” by Anne of Green Gables, is both familiar and fresh. Ana Cortez is an orphan from Boyle Heights in East L.A. She’s almost 16, the age when she can “emancipate” out of the foster care system. In the meantime, she’s in trouble for telling off her latest foster mother. Her social worker suggests Garber Farm in northern California, owned by brother and sister Emmett and Abbie. Ana knows nothing about plants, and has never been out of Los Angeles, but she’s willing to go to avoid a group home.
What Ana learns on the farm goes beyond how to tell parsley from weeds, make compost and pick beans. In the small rural town of Hadley, she finds it hard to explain the violence that has defined her life. But she connects with new friends and co-workers, and with Emmett and Abbie, over music and books, food and art, and humor. There are enough nods to Anne to please fans of L.M. Montgomery’s heroine, but Ana is her own unique character. Ana of California isn’t just about surviving a terrible childhood, it’s about the ways people misunderstand each other, and how little it takes to overcome those deficits. Much to think about and to enjoy, in a book that takes readers back to pre-texting adolescence.
Deb Baker
Concord Public Library
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