After Annie

A Novel

By: Anna Quindlen

Narrated by: Gilli Messer

Length: 7 hrs and 49 mins

Publisher's summary

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • “Part of Quindlen’s gift is that you don’t just read about these characters, you inhabit them. . . . Luminous with life, hope and the power of love.”—People (A Book of the Week Pick)

“[A] quietly revelatory and gently gleaming gem of a book.”—The New York Times Book Review (Editors’ Choice)

Anna Quindlen’s trademark wisdom on family, friendship, and the ties that bind us are at the center of this novel about the power of love to transcend loss and triumph over adversity, by the author of Still Life with Bread Crumbs and One True Thing.

When Annie Brown dies suddenly, her husband, her children, and her closest friend are left to find a way forward without the woman who has been the lynchpin of all their lives. Bill is overwhelmed without his beloved wife, and Annemarie wrestles with the bad habits her best friend had helped her overcome. And Ali, the eldest of Annie’s children, has to grow up overnight, to care for her younger brothers and even her father and to puzzle out for herself many of the mysteries of adult life.

Over the course of the next year what saves them all is Annie, ever-present in their minds, loving but not sentimental, caring but nobody’s fool, a voice in their heads that is funny and sharp and remarkably clear. The power she has given to those who loved her is the power to go on without her. The lesson they learn is that no one beloved is ever truly gone.

Written in Quindlen’s emotionally resonant voice and with her deep and generous understanding of people, After Annie is about hope, and about the unexpected power of adversity to change us in profound and indelible ways.

©2024 Anna Quindlen (P)2024 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

“After Annie is Anna Quindlen’s new wise and heartfelt novel of connection, of loss and love and the power of both. It celebrates the friends and family we have, mourns our great and small losses, and helps us find the unexpected light in the dark places we all have.”—Amy Bloom, New York Times bestselling author of In Love: A Memoir of Love and Loss

“The characters in After Annie are flawed, just as each of us is flawed, and as they fumble through their grief, as they make mistakes, their lives feel so authentically lived in that I’d swear I’ve known them my whole life. And how I rooted for them! In Quindlen’s hands, a story about the greatest of losses becomes a story of abiding hope above all. I predict this will be one of the best novels of the year.”—Mary Beth Keane, New York Times bestselling author of Ask Again, Yes

“A new Anna Quindlen novel is always cause for celebration. After Annie might just be my favorite one yet. It’s a beautiful and deeply moving story about love, loss, friendship, marriage, family, and community from one of our wisest chroniclers of modern life. I treasured every page.”—J. Courtney Sullivan, New York Times bestselling author of Friends and Strangers

Another great AQ fiction

The narrator did a superb reading of this simple but deeply heartfelt book. I have been a fan of AnnaQuindlen since her Newsweek articles and always enjoyed the clear insight whether regarding the news or human nature.

Just lovely

Touching without being cloying. Anna does it again, quietly. This is a very satisfying read. Hoping for more from Anna.

A bit of a yawn…

I’m a Big, Quinlan fan, but this book is one of her weakest. I finished the book, but never really engaged with any of the characters. The premise of the book is good, but the follow through isn’t there.

Heartfelt

This was a great listen. Anyone who has experienced loss will relate to this tale. The characters were believable in that slightly flawed way that makes them seem real. Sad without being overly so. I like it very much.

pondering

I loved the character of Ali. I would love to.read another movel with her as the main character

The raw grief the characters were experiencing

I like the length of the book and the development of all of the characters 

my favorite author

i have spent the past week listening to After Annie. Annie may die in the beginning but she is very much alive throughout the book. What an interesting character. it was sad but fun getting to know her. Rewarding for the reader as well as her fictional children.
joan

An honest story of family

This is a story of the sudden death of a wife, mother, and best friend. How each person avoids, deals and grows from this great loss in their own way. The very talented Gilli Messer’s performance gives a wonderfully sensitive voice to each of the characters in the book.

After Annie

This is written so beautifully and makes you feel like Annie was someone you knew and cared about. It gave you ownership of the family and friends. Unfortunately, everyone goes through this sorrow , some sometime in their life, but it turns to joy and you realize life goes on.

Beautiful story of love and hope.

Annie’s presence despite her absence. Annie was alive in every character. The narrator did a wonderful read.