My Sister Annie

MY SISTER ANNIE is Charlie's story. Like many preteens, he's starting to be interested in girls, he wants to fit in with the boys, and then there's his family, which embarrasses him, particularly his sister Annie, who although older, doesn't act it, because she has Down Syndrome. Charlie's interactions with Annie and his struggle over his conflicting feelings for her, are true to life. While I can't give this book five stars because of the too predictable, too easy plot devices at the end, if you want to understand what it's like to have a Down Syndrome sibling in the family, this is the book.

I think this book was very well written. I am a younger sister of a mentally retarded older brother. I think this book lets the reader see and feel what it is like to be a sibling of a disabled child. I know from my personal life I have felt sometimes the same way. And by me saying this it doesn't mean that I don't love my brother or even think that he is not an equal. I think this books helps siblings realize that it is okay to get angry, frustrated, etc. every once and a while. It doesn't mean you are a bad person or that you don't love your brother/sister.

I think this book is very well written. It is written from the eyes of a sibling with a down syndrome sister. It lets the read know and feel how a sibling feels with a disabled family member. I am a younger sister of a mentally retarded older brother and I have felt and wondered many of the same things the the young boy in this book feels and goes through. At times I have thought that maybe I was a bad person for feeling these things but this book lets me know that it was okay. It shows siblings that other people have the same issues and that it is okay. It doesn't mean that you are a bad person or that you don't love you sibling just because at times you feel angry, embarassed, etc. I think the author had a good feeling of what a sibling goes through and expressed it very well in the book. I would recommend this book to anyone that has a disabled sibling.