7/14/15: I've listened to this several times over the past few months on audio, superbly performed by Harriet Walter. As many times as I've read the book, I'm still "hearing" new sentences, it seems (I've listened to several other Vines as well during this time, and the same is true of them). Ironically, I was in the process of listening to this when Ruth Rendell was felled by a stroke in January, and another Vine when she died in May.7/24/13: It's always interesting to get other readers' 'take' on a book - it's almost as thought they read a different book! Ironically, some of the things others had a problem with are the very things that so impress me about this book.10/29/09 (approximate): This is my favorite novel by Ruth Rendell writing as Barbara Vine, and at this point just about my favorite novel, period. I recently finished reading it for the eleventh time. I much prefer the book's British title, ASTA'S BOOK, for a character's name definitely influences how you envision them.A famous diary that may provide clues to a brutal murder, a present-day narrative by the diarist's grand-daughter, and a trial transcript - from these elements Rendell weaves together a spellbinding narrative about the search for identity. In doing so she creates a world and characters that I hate to leave behind, as she also does in A DARK-ADAPTED EYE, A FATAL INVERSION, THE HOUSE OF STAIRS, and THE BRIMSTONE WEDDING, which is why I've re-read these books so many times. It's also a very interesting look at the relationships between women: mothers and daughters, sisters, aunts and nieces.7/05/10: Time for my annual re-reading . . . 11/21/10: I took it very, very slowly, savoring a few pages most nights before bed, after I'd put aside whatever my current main book was. Was this the 12th or 13th reading, or the 14th? I can't honestly say. But I still turned the pages as eagerly as I did the first time.12/08/11: Just finished re-reading my favorite book by my favorite author. I've had a bad case of "reader's block" for the past 2 months, only managed 2 books apiece in October and November - I hoped that re-reading ASTA'S BOOK would help me out of the reading doldrums - I resisted temptation a couple of weeks ago, only reading the opening page, but last week decided Oh well, what the heck. And I did get lost in its spell once again.12/03/12: Just as good the 15th time. And a welcome relief from some of the gloomy stuff I'd been trying to read.
I found Anna's Book (by Ruth Rendell writing as Barbara Vine) to be an interesting story, but also one of those rare books I am indifferent to having read -- I am not particularly glad or sorry to have read it, and while I would not recommend against it, I would not particularly recommend it. The main characters are three women, Anna (whose diaries, written 1905 through the mid-60s, are at the center of the book), Anna's favorite daughter Swanny, and Ann (Swanny's niece and Anna's granddaughter). The story revolves around two related mysteries, that of Swanny's birth in 1905 and a woman's murder and disappearance of her child that occurred around the same time in Anna's neighborhood. The three women are well drawn, but only Anna is a compelling and interesting person. Swanny's character seemed to be patched together in an effort to make the story more dramatic and complex. Her beliefs in her origins (and her subsequent behavior related to those beliefs) did not ring true to me. Ann, who is the main narrator, is not unsympathetic, but neither is she particularly interesting. Anna is notable for her many flaws -- a marked (but believable) tendency to selfishness and lack of empathy for a supposedly beloved daughter. She is complex and fully realized, unlike the other two important characters. It seemed to me the story rambled and the mysteries were not compelling (at least not to me), nor always believable. I found the description of Swanny's last years to be an oddly convenient as a way to cement the connection between the murder/disappearance and Swanny's identity issues. The connection between Swanny's original distress over her origins and Ann's love interest seemed forced, another hard-to-go-with coincidence. The ultimate solution to the missing diary pages were immediately obvious as a possibility when the pages are reported missing from the original notebook. It did not seem believable that Ann, with her background, would not have considered this possibility. I also found it to be unsatisfying, that we get no information on what led Swanny to her beliefs about her origins. Finally, the comeuppance of Ann's former friend at the end of the novel (while Ann rides away into a happy sunset) seemed a gratuitous attempt at comic irony on Rendell's part.
What do You think about Anna's Book (1994)?
This was on the shelf of the house we rented in Santa Fe. When it was time to leave, I was only half-way through. Tragedy! I contemplated "accidentally" packing it, but am happy to report that I remained honest.Thanks to the library at home, I got to finish. This is a strange, interesting book. Anna, the diary-keeper, is enigmatic, unlikeable, and frustrating. She takes long walks on Hampstead Heath, lies to her children, and bullies her maid. But hers is only half the story.Though a grisly murder and disappearance is at the heart of the story, around which several plots turn, this isn't a mystery, or a thriller. A mix of diaries, Denmark, identity, madness, history, and coincidence. I can't separate out one thread that overwhelmingly defines the story, only that I always wanted to keep reading. UPDATE: Several reviewers have complained about the 'dry' chapters on the murder trial. I thought that was one of the most engrossing parts. Different strokes...
—Alisa
[Firstly this is ASTA'S BOOK in the UK - why do US titles override here? Slightly annoying] This is one of my favourite books of all time, I must have read it 6 or 7 times (possibly more, I haven't counted). I love how Asta's story is slowly told alongside the 2 mysteries to which it is key. Asta is a great character who personality shines through from her early 20s in the diary entries, to her last years. It is a book which more than stands up to re-reading, you can try and pick out the clues once you know how the story will unfold.
—Kath
This is yet another great book by Barbara Vine/Ruth Rendell. She is one of my favorite writers and this book did not disappoint. I started out feeling sorry for the main character of Anna, but soon discovered her true character of cruel mother who only loves one of her children and makes a point to show favoritism to that one child. While the others weren't abused, they certainly were overlooked. I grew to dislike Anna immensely and felt zero sympathy for her even though I am also the mother of a stillborn child. Anna is rude, highly critical, and finds fault with everyone except herself and Swanny.She has trouble showing her emotions (if she has any) to anyone other than Swanny, her favorite child. She didn't even cry when her oldest son was killed in the first World War and even goes so far to write in her diary on pages 51-52 in an entry dated September 5, 1905 "I love her(referring to Swanny)I like writing that down because a few weeks ago, if anyone had asked me and asked me to be really honest, I'd have said I don't love anyone in the world". "I get worried about the boys if they're ill or I can't find them in the street but I don't care about them". Yup, she's great mom material all right.
—Sarah
