Annie’s Ghost

Annie’s Ghost
Steve Luxenberg
Hyperion
ISBN: 978-1-4013-2247-2
Non- Fiction, Family Relationships
Reviewed by Shelley Wenger

Most families have secrets. Steve Luxenberg’s family had a secret. His mom told everyone she was an only child. So, when a mention of a possible sister was made, Steve’s journalist life carried into his personal life. He needed to find out the answers and why his mom would hide such an important secret. He was even more confused since his mom always pushed for honesty and did not tolerate even a little lie.

Annie’s Ghost tells Annie’s story, one that is not always completely known. When it first came out that his mom had a sister, it was thought she was sent to a mental hospital at a very young age. Steve at first thought maybe his mother did not really know her sister since they were both so young. Looking back, Annie was not institutionalized until she was almost twenty-one. So Steve’s mom lived with her for many years which confused Steve even more. Then he was unsure if his father had ever known of Annie. Steve also looked into Annie’s files and tried to figure out if she even really needed to be institutionalized.

Annie’s Ghost shows the hard reality of finding out about someone after a death. Steve’s search sent him across the country. However, most of the people who would have known Annie were dead. Many of his mom’s friends were also dead. Records were hard to find. Sometimes they were lost. Annie’s Ghost tells the often painful route to the truth, or as close to the truth as we possibly can know.