Shine Annie

By Betty Oglesby Payne

Annie Ruth Watson is the daughter of Big Sid Watson, the biggest, blackest farmer in Tobacco County, Georgia. The year is 1960 and her senior year of high school lies ahead. After that . . . who... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 158838019X
• ISBN13: 9781588380197
• Release Date: January 2001
• Publisher: Newsouth Inc
• Length: 244 Pages
• Weight: 0.81 lbs.
• Dimensions: 8.0" x 0.8" x 5.3"

Customer Reviews

A Highly Recommended, Instant Literary classic

"The day is coming for our lights to shine...young lady, you've got the potential to shine. Don't limit yourself..." This terse reminder from Carl, her older brother, perfectly encapsulates the promise of young Annie Ruth Watson's life - a promise that everyone is aware of, from her parents to her teachers to her cousins to everyone in her neck of the woods in Tobacco County, Georgia. The daughter of Big Sid Watson - the biggest, blackest farmer in town - Annie is afforded numerous privileges and opportunities that others can only dream of, and, when it comes to her future, the sky is limit. However, while everyone else ponders her becoming a doctor, lawyer, or some other highly respected professional, she only aspires to be one thing: Mrs. Raymond Baldwin. Completely head over heels in love with her high school sweetheart, Annie can't wait for the day to finally come when the two of them will finally wed, consummate their relationship, and live the rest of their lives in marital bliss. The only problem: Raymond can't wait either - but, instead of patiently allowing Annie's plans for them to come to fruition - he soon strays lustfully into the arms of another. Raymond's actions - and their disastrous consequences - quickly tear Annie's world apart, and, in her bemused state of emotional grief, she makes a snap decision that forever alters the course of her life. Suddenly, she goes from rising academic scholar to struggling young wife and mother, and - despite it all - she still carries a flame for Raymond. Forced to come face-to-face with the ramifications of her actions, Annie must learn to grow up in a hurry amid the fast-changing landscape of an ambiguous new world. The debut novel by Betty Oglesby Payne, Shine Annie takes its rightful place among the esteemed ranks of instant literary classics. In masterful fashion, Payne pulls back the layers of African American culture and society, providing the reader with invaluable history lessons not typically taught in textbooks. Much like Zora Neale Hurston and Alice Childress before her, Payne exposes the love, pain, beauty, and ugliness of the burdensome lives often thrust upon us - expertly displaying just how none exist without the others, and that all contribute to our evolution into the flawed - yet powerful - beings that we all are. The greatest strength of Shine Annie, though, lies in its compelling underlying message that the lives we often aspire to are not the ones we eventually lead - and the diverted paths we ultimately take, while initially appearing to weaken us, are actually pre-designed to make us stronger than we ever would have been had we traveled in any other direction. An outstanding offering from a powerful new literary voice. Highly recommended. Linda Waterson Apex Reviews

Tobacco County Annie

Payne has taken another approach than that of Alex Haley's Roots. She brought the events of the civil rights movement back in such a well written novel only she broke down the calendar of events as they probably did happen as we young'uns call it (back in the day.) Although I've never lived in Georgia, I can recollect a lot of these same events happening here in Texas. Big Sid, his character took me in as his own little girl. Reminding me of what a father's love meant and how special it is. Maybelle, her motherly instincts were so on point and she displayed what mother's nowadays are truly lacking in parental skills. Granny and Aunt Geechee, I bet them gals back in their younger day could tear the house down if provoked. But in their seasoned age, they just call it as they see it. The cousins, Annie Ruth, Billie Lee and Aldonia, quickly reminded me of my cousins and our time of growing up and dealing with the very same issues. Raymond, Lenny, Curtis, Mark and all the others, well what can I say, boys will be boys. Shine Annie is no different than today with the issues they deal with, only how they dealt with them. The black and white issues, we are dealing with today, the lies, infidelity, religious choices, the unwed mothers, the teenaged pregnancies, as well as the illnesses and the suicide. They are still the same issues we are dealing with today only now we can understand what it was like back then after reading Shine Annie. Payne took me on a prolific journey back into the 1940's up to the 1960's and a little bit beyond. I found myself walking the pages of this book and realizing although I didn't walk those dirt roads back then, I sure felt like I was walking them while reading this book. It's amazing how we think we want a certain thing at that very moment, and when it happens, we can kick ourselves and ask, "Why did I do that or let that happen?" Payne demonstrated everything from good to bad, love and hate to hurt and pain. How can one overcome their own personal issues and struggles with race, choices, and many other different things? On those dirt roads in Tobacco County, GA and in Rail City, take the journey with each of these characters, but don't do it on the surface only, allow your heart and your mind to release all inhibitions and find yourself in the parking lot of the juke joint, or in the backseat of the car with Annie Ruth and Billie Lee. See yourself as that person hiding in the shadows of the street when Raymond and Gabriella are sneaking peeks with each other, or shadow yourself when dreams are put on hold for those we love as well as these characters. Life has a lot to offer us, only if we made long term decisions rather than spur of the moment decisions. Annie Ruth shined in her own right, but all prevailed in Payne's novel, "Shine Annie. "I can truly see this book being made into a movie. So well written and versed. Betty Oglesby Payne, when one reads this book, they will be amazed at your gr

Your heart will shine

If you travel deep down south on a dusty road in Tobacco County, Georgia, you'll come across a big farmhouse built in the 40s. Inside, up a set of creaky, old stairs, in a sweltering hot attic, there's a fabric-covered box with a Victorian floral print shoved in a corner. Inside that box are the memories of days gone by. That antique box holds faded and torn black and white pictures, some cracked, some stuck together, others are moldy with hand-scribbled descriptions written in pencil on the back. The only people who remember the faces and places in the pictures have gone on to be with the lord a long time ago. There's a picture of young girl named Annie Ruth, with her smooth brown skin and the eyes of a dream deferred. Her eyes hide the pain of disappointment deep inside. Looking fondly at her are a baby, Patricia, with bright eyes and the innocence of youth, and Curtis, her husband. With his chest puffed out and the countenance of a man who loves being a husband and father, Curtis shows immense pride in his family and you can tell that the ground on which his feet are planted is his own. Annie Ruth and Curtis weren't real however. Tobacco County doesn't really exist. The images however are very real; they are alive and in vivid color between the pages of Shine Annie. Betty Oglesby Payne has taken a snapshot in her mind and described it with exacting detail in her freshman novel. She expertly recollects the mindsets, pains, and the debilitating conditions of a racist Jim Crow reality. It's more than a body of fiction to entertain; it's a lesson in history, social consciousness, morality and exaltation of Black culture. Shine Annie tells the coming-of-age tale of a young girl who is forced to grow up and accept responsibility for choices made in haste. Life goes on all around her and she makes adjustments to each of those challenges; sometimes making the right decision, other times opting for the easy route not the high road. Her first love almost loses his life at the hands of white men who are intent on teaching him that loves certainly does know color. Her cousin, conceived from rape, struggles with loving a man who loves himself more than he loves her. Her Daddy, Big Sid, provides a model of character and integrity when the forces around him are working to oppress and dehumanize him. Anyone that remembers the pain of segregation, anyone who wants to understand the past to grasp an understanding of the present, anyone who is looking for a compelling read that conveys emotion and weaves a unique tale would do well to read Shine Annie. It stands out as a wonderful alternative to contemporary ghetto lit that recycles the same materialistic tale. This most certainly is a snapshot of days gone by that will touch your heart and make your heart shine.

Shine Annie, another remarkable AA novel.

This is a great book! I think it's a must read for all young ladies from mid-teen years and older. I could not put this one down for it held my attention up until the very end. Payne has done a wonderful job sharing what life is like for many African American women and their relationships with both negative and positive black men. Her description of family and how they support one another is unique and refreshing. I highly recommend this book! Men, you will enjoy this book, too, and find that from life struggles and strife, one grows and becomes a much stronger person.

I know this story!

Annie Ruth. Lucinda. Billie Lee. Curtis. Lenny. Raymond. Mr. Sid. Miss Bostic. Gabrielle. Edwina. Reverend Phillips. I know these people.Rail City. Tobacco County. Fort Valley State. Morehouse. Albany State. Savannah State. I know these places.The Civil Rights Movement. Voter registration. Martin Luther King's arrest in Albany. GA. Hanging out at the local juke joint. Hauling moonshine. I know these events.As a black southerner and child of the sixties, I can relate to so much of Payne's prose in her excellent first novel. The story told here is one that vividly tells the hardships and triumphs of a young woman growing up in the racially charged and changing South of that time. Her sacrifices, as well, as those made by all around here, make for an enthralling read. The author has done a magnificent job in bringing to life characters and situations so real that the reader feels as if he is reading a biography with dialogue. "Shine Annie" does just that: illuminates and elevates a pride that can only be felt by the people that experienced the era. For the uninitiated, it is a welcome "lesson."