Annie’s Baby is a book whose official author is Dr. Beatrice Sparks, an adolescent psychologist who also edited Go Ask Alice. But the book’s real author is “Annie”, an anonymous client of Dr. Sparks, who narrates her story to her diary.
As the book begins, Annie is a fairly typical fourteen-year-old—she plays on a soccer team and enjoys rollerblading. She says she’s too much of a tomboy to be one of the “popular girls”, but she has several good friends with whom she likes to go to the movies or the mall. Annie lives with her mom, a teacher.
The book chronicles Annie’s meeting with “Danny”, a sixteen-year-old school heartthrob. She can’t believe her likes her. Annie’s diary shows many warning signs, such as Danny not calling when he says he will, telling her to stop hanging around her old friends, and playing on her sympathy by telling her he’s behind in school because he was in a car crash two years ago. Danny eventually putting the moves on Annie and calls her names when she rejects his advances, accusing her of leading him on.
In addition to talking about teen pregnancy, the book is also very good for talking about date rape and about physical, sexual and emotional abuse.
Annie eventually accedes to Danny’s wishes, and for a while thinks she’s living a fantasy—which she is. Danny and his father deny that Danny is the father of Annie’s child and threaten to ruin her reputation if she seeks child support.
The book chronicles Annie’s discovery of her pregnancy. From the beginning she feels she has an innocent life inside her and is relieved when her mom supports her having the baby. To escape Danny and the disdain of old friends, Annie attends an unwed mothers’ program. She meets several girls like herself there, although she also is shocked to meet several girls who are expecting to be on welfare just like their mothers and grandmothers, and one who wants to get ahead but cannot read.
After the birth, Annie is overwhelmed and alone with the baby much of the time when her single mother takes a second job to pay the expenses that insurance wouldn’t cover. She finds some relief in a support group, in which she (and the readers) learn some statistics about the risk factors facing single teen parents. But she eventually slides into a very bad depression. She admits she’s doing the bare minimum for the baby and not eating right herself—and not sleeping or studying either. Her mother finally notices and arranges for her to talk with “Dr. B.”, the official author/editor of the book. We are provided with a few transcripts of their therapeutic talks, and an excellent “questionnaire” to analyze whether a certain person is really treating you like they care about you or not.
Feeling better, Annie nonetheless becomes aware that she doesn’t know a lot about the world yet. She is alienated from her own father and wants her child to have the father she didn’t have. A visiting clergyman tells her about his family, which also causes her to realize that her own parents’ marriage was not respectful. The clergyman talks about adoption, without specifically suggesting Annie give up her child. Realizing how little she knows about healthy communication, she wonders if she should give her child a chance to be adopted into a more functional family.
After meeting a couple, Annie does place her baby for adoption with them. She is heartbroken and has a hard time for the next few months. The book ends on a hopeful note with Annie still grieving but at peace, and with she and her mother moving to enjoy a new career and educational opportunities that they might not have had if they were still caring for Lil’ Annie.
This book could be a good discussion starter for parents and teens, about pregnancy but also about relationships.
Sparks is the author of several other books which present her anonymous clients’ personal stories of dealing with drug abuse, homelessness, HIV and other topics.
Please see these related blogs:
Groups at Risk for Post Partum Depression
Sleep Deprivation and Infant Abuse?
Teen Dating Violence: A Serious Problem