Anywhere But Here

Like many other adolescents, Ann August is torn between loving and hating her mother. For Adele August refuses to be ordinary...the thing that her young daughter longs for most. The two embark on a road trip to California, where Ann is to become famous. Really, she is just a pawn for her mother's fantasies. The story flashes back and forth between present-day and the past, interspersing Ann's perspective with that of her mother, grandmother and aunt. This is truly Simpson's finest work.

I found this to be one of the most enjoyable books I have ever read...Being a kid myself, I found it easy to relate to one of the main characters, Ann August. Throughout the book, the author allows us to see so many perspectives, including: Ann, her aunt Carol, her grandmother Lillian, and even her mother. They all have very different opinions about the nature of others' behaviors, but it is hard not to have an understanding for each and every one of them....whether they include true honesty, hard work, sacrifice, innocence, lying, or even cheating. These are very human characteristics and the Mona Simpson tries show us the hero in everyone. I was sad to finish this book because by the end of it, I felt I had become a part of Ann and Adele's very complicated lives, and even grown to respect everything they had done and gone through...

Anywhere but here was a book that makes you look at your problems with family as minor. She tells about the things books don't usualy tell. She goes over the memories of her life and just tells it like it is. She doesn't lie so that it makes the family sound more normal. It sounds as if the book is really written by these different people and they all have there different outlooks on life. If you liked the movie read the book because its much more explicite and it tells the whole story. The movie was good just not as good as the book. The book is worth your money and unless you read all day long it will take you awhile to read so if this is for a book report thats due tommorrow, don't pick this one.

Mona Simpson is America's best hidden literary gem. While she doesn't do herself any favors by allowing such a long time to lapse between her novels, the depth of her work is memorable. Anywhere But Here is a mirror of contemporary American life. Her characters are realistic, strong, and independent, yet are limited by their shortcomings and the strictures of familial obligation. Simpson's greatest skill is her mastery of dialogue. In this novel, her characters reveal so much about themselves through their words, and more through their acts and omissions. A fine read.

I have read every novel of Mona Simpson's with great enjoyment. This one is the best of them all. The Lost Father was an enjoyable read, but it did not grab me. Mona Simpson's descriptions of small town Wisconsin are poetic. I felt and understood the character's urges and feelings. A excellent plane book. I read this on the way to Japan and back. The time went very quickly, with such an absorbing story.