Annabel
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Winter's first novel tells the story of an intersex child born in the late 1960s in a small, rural town in Canada and raised as a boy. His parents try to protect Wayne from harm, each in his or her own way; his father tries to interest him in the wilderness skills that men in their community use to make a living, but his mother refuses to discourage his interest in more feminine pursuits. Wayne doesn't learn of his intersexuality until a medical emergency reveals his condition to him. Though he tries to be a boy to fit in, he is preoccupied by the girl that he knows lives within him; he has to leave home and quit his hormone therapy to allow his body to be as ambiguous as he feels inside. Winter's lyrical language contrasts with the characters' discomfort about Wayne's secret. VERDICT Readers interested in literary explorations of gender, such as Jeffrey Eugenides's Middlesex, will appreciate this novel as well. [See Prepub Alert, LJ 9/1/10.]-Amy Ford, St. Mary's Cty. Lib., Lexington Park, MD (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals
The author has done the character development so well that the reader can see various points of view. Very much enjoyed her style of prose. Touching without melodrama.
Hermaphrodite child born to a couple in Labrador, birth to adult. Good
Here is a summary from Chapters web site. In 1968, into the beautiful, spare environment of remote coastal Labrador, a mysterious child is born: a baby who appears to be neither fully boy nor girl, but both at once. Only three people are privy to the secret - the baby's parents, Jacinta and Treadway, and a trusted neighbour, Thomasina. Together the adults make a difficult decision: to raise the child as a boy named Wayne. But as Wayne grows to adulthood within the hyper-masculine hunting culture of his father, his shadow-self - a girl he thinks of as "Annabel"- is never entirely extinguished, and indeed is secretly nurtured by the women in his life. Haunting and sweeping in scope, Annabel is a compelling tale about one person's struggle to discover the truth in a culture that shuns contradiction.
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Add a QuoteYou can't be synchronized if you're by yourself. Imagine synchronizing your watch to the right time if it is the only watch in the world.
The child knew that a grim, matter-of-fact attitude was required of him by his father, and he learned how to exhibit such an attitude, and he did not mind it because it was the way things were, but it was not his authentic self.
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Annabel
Interview with the Author
Annabel reading
Kathleen Winter reading a passage from the book
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Add a CommentSet in Labrador in 1968, this book tells the story of a child growing up. Only three people (parents and one friend) knowing that the child is a hermaphrodite. The child is raised as a boy in the masculine hunting culture of Labrador but the feminine side is not extinguished. Somehow, this unusual story is interesting and very well written.
I would read Winter again for her lovely style, but I did find the plot drag part way through.
Great book! The main character is very likeable, and the author has a way of inspiring a great deal of empathy in the reader for this poor boy's life. Very readable and entertaining. Highly recommended.
WARNING: THIS REVIEW MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS! Out of the five finalists for the 2010 Giller Prize, I would have picked this book to win. While Annabel was the most readable, most lyrical, most compelling and most cohesive of the Giller Prize shortlist, what it lacked most was commitment. The first half of the novel charged along, drawing us powerfully into its pages as it introduced the protagonist’s unique condition, the good guys and bad guys in the protagonist’s path and the bubbling cauldron small town setting that is ready to boil over. Unfortunately the second half backed away from the promise and promises of the beginning. The most interesting character, Thomasina, leaves on two extended vacations that take her away from the plot for years. The bad guys and hints of trouble brewing in the small town never erupt. The protagonist, a hermaphrodite raised as a male who spends his entire childhood buying women’s swimsuits and dresses and wearing makeup, finally faces his condition … by deciding to remain a hermaphrodite.
Very few books linger for me months after reading them. This book and the beautiful prose of Kathleen Winter come back to mind time and time again.
The author creates a world and you are suspended within... I was until the very end.
Really good read. Hard to put down. Very thoughtful. Makes you think...
Had to pull the plug on this book, just didn't hold my attention.
Canadian story of an hermaphrodite child, raised as a boy, but who wants to be a girl.
I was initially concerned the language would be too poetic, but the story caught me, and the writing held me. A very thoughtful book.