Annie Brown's sudden death--"right before dinner," with the mashed potatoes "still in the pot on the stove"--is an unimaginable loss. In After Annie, Anna Quindlen (Nanaville; Alternate Sides; Miller's Valley) wields her trademark tender observations of the minutiae of life's joys and sorrows to reveal that what Annie leaves behind in the hearts and minds of her loved ones will be theirs forever.
The novel transpires over the course of a year, from the February day when Annie, in her 30s, dies of an aneurysm to the day her husband, Bill, their four children, and her best friend, Annemarie, visit Annie's grave on the anniversary of her death. Alternating chapters follow Bill, facing "a future that felt like a betrayal"; Annemarie, half of the duo of "the two Annes" since first grade; and Ali, the oldest child and only daughter, determined to maintain a sense of family for her three young brothers. When Ali speaks, her father notes "a grown woman coming out of her thirteen-year-old mouth." Their stories intermingle, emphasizing the ways Annie's encompassing affection touched their lives. Memories of Annie keep her alive on every page: she is the wise, loving, and funny heart of her family and community. Bill hears her "clear as water" or "as though she were sitting next to him on the couch."
Ali faces a disturbing realization about her best friend's family, and Annemarie is drawn back to the drug use that Annie's firm support helped her overcome. Both hear Annie's guidance: " 'You can do this,' said that familiar voice." Readers, too, feel Annie's comforting presence, balancing the heartbreak that this poignant novel evokes. --Cheryl McKeon, Book House of Stuyvesant Plaza, Albany, N.Y.