Glimmer

by Annie Waters

Praised by reviewers for the realism of its depiction, the story of a young, fatherless woman's secret spiral into a nervous breakdown and her courageous journey to recovery is reminiscent of Sylvia Plath's classic, The Bell Jar. Reprint.

Genres: Fiction, Literary Fiction, Mental Illness

207 pages, Paperback

First published May 19, 1997

Reviews

[Betsy · Rating 3 out of 5]

This story is told from the view point of a mixed race girl who, unlike her siblings looks more black than white. This difference and the fact that her father left the family when his wife refused to abort her have left the young woman with a lot of psychological problems. The details in her life are revealed as a series of reminiscences she has while hiding in her dormitory room from a possible stalker. It is a quick read and somewhat interesting, but in no way a definitive look at racial issues in America today. Worth a couple of hours if you happen to run across it, but not worth seeking out.

[Sierra King · Rating 2 out of 5]

I wanted to love it. I couldn't. There were so many different plot opportunities that were mentioned, then dropped. (she changed her name, gender identity, her perceived size, sexual identity, etc) In such a short book, I think it would have been better to have gone further just on her identity as a mixed person in a family of more white/white passing people in a predominantly white society. Just my opinion.

[Janie Johnson · Rating 3 out of 5]

I had never heard of this book nor the author. It was a decent read of a girls slow descent into depression. She thought she could fool her family into think everything was great with her, such as her start in college, her social life and her personal life, when in fact it was the complete opposite.

I think the author portrayed the main character, Sage, very well, as well as the issues with depression. The readers get glimpses of Sage's life throughout the book before she went to college, and are able to visualize where her issues started and why she was in this traumatic state of depression. As I read the book I became a part of Sage's life and witnessed this descent first hand.

The author touches on a couple of other issues besides the depression with this character. Those being an interracial child, and not only her but her siblings as well, and single parent homes. I think both had an effect on Sage. She struggled with identity issues, especially when people knew of the parents, and asked her if she was white or black. As far as the single parent home, I think Sage struggled with that because of her own ideas as to why her father was not around.

Reading about Sage's life made me realize how scary and how life threatening depression can become. You never quite realize how bad it can get for someone who is faced with depression. It is not something to mess around with for sure.

"I hope things are ok in St. Louis, that your Ma is not too busy checking our babies for black genes and your Pa is getting better after his heart attack. Tell him from me that it's not good for a man's heart to hate so bad he can taste it."

[Erica Palaj · Rating 4 out of 5]

Got this at a used book store for 50 cents and was pleasantly surprised. A very quick, easy, good read.

[Emily · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don’t have much to say about this book. I finished it and sort of just went, “Hmmm.” It was just interesting enough to take on a vacation and keep me distracted on the plane, but not so interesting that I stayed in my hotel room reading and missed out on all the fun.

I would like to comment on the cover. The cover has a big green thing on it. I’m not totally sure if it is a shamrock or a big green moth. Or, it might be a shamrock with antenna. I don’t know for sure. All that green made me think it was going to have something to do with Ireland. Instead, it is about a girl who loses her mind when she goes to college (not in Ireland). And all this Irish talk is so appropriate for today…St. Patrick’s Day!

My other thought on the Irish stuff: Was anyone else confused in elementary about whether or not you should wear green? I got pinched no matter what. It was usually by the mean girls and boys. I finally stopped complaining about it to my mom because she would always tell me that they pinched me super hard because they really liked me and probably wanted to kiss me. That is the biggest load of crap ever. (When people shoved me in the hallway or something like that, my mom would tell me that it was because they wanted to have sex with me (a ten year old), but shoving was the most contact that they could muster up the courage to do. Are you just totally amazed that I am as normal as I am?) St. Patrick’s Day was just justification for picking on the nerds. I was a major nerd, i.e. I was required to tuck dresses into a pair of pants, rather than wear just a dress, because boys wanted to look at my panties SOOOO bad. Oh man! I can’t write anymore about this! It is freaking me out!

[Polynyas · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book begins as a story of a young woman who believes she is being stalked by a man she met at her job the previous summer. What develops is the story of the same woman struggling with a breakdown, coping by fading into the real and imagined history of her family.

Well told from several view points.

[Erin Coleman · Rating 5 out of 5]

For me this book was a similar reading experience to "The Bell Jar," and "I Never Promised You a Rose Garden." I love all three books, and related to them on such a deep level as a young woman who has suffered with mental illness. I have no idea why this book isn't more popular than it is; the writing is brilliant and the characters are so true to life. "Glimmer" is one of my favorites for sure.

[Liz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sage is the youngest child in a biracial family – white mother, black father – and off to college for the first time. We see her family through her eyes as she hides out in her barricaded dorm room, avoiding a stalker, whom we slowly come to realize exists only in her troubled mind. A quick read, which is good, because this is a page-turner.

[Andrea · Rating 4 out of 5]

At first I thought this book was generic, then the last few chapters were a tour de force that made me cry. I think this is a book that young adolescents should read. It is also something you can breeze through, still feeling the impact.

[Princess · Rating 4 out of 5]

I felt tears when Sage's father, John Jefferson Taylor, was there to save her from what she's suffering at. The family bond, though their mother asked their father to go away if he does not want to hold any responsibility for Lilly Sage, the youngest, is strong, somehow.

[Candice · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very intriguing. I love the whole story line. I couldn't believe the outcome. Very surprising.