ANDI TERAN reads from her debut novel ANA OF CALIFORNIA

Ana of California (Penguin Paperback Original)

 Many a young reader has been charmed and transported by L.M. Montgomery’s Anne of Green Gables and its spunky, smart heroine, Anne Shirley. Debut novelist Andi Teran reworks this classic coming-of-age tale for the 21st century in Ana of California and gives us a new—and equally loquacious—underdog to root for in Ana Cortez. Teran introduces characters with modern sensibilities and issues while staying true to the heart and spirit of Montgomery’s bestselling series. Teran’s novel also reflects her own Mexican heritage, bringing much needed diversity to contemporary literature.

Fifteen-year-old orphan Ana Cortez (“one n, like fauna—not Anna, like ‘banana’”) has just blown it with another foster family. It’s a group home next—unless she agrees to attend a farm trainee program in Northern California, run by brother and sister Abbie and Emmett Garber. If she works hard, she’ll be allowed to stay on and file for emancipation when she turns sixteen. Having lived in East L.A. all her life, Ana doesn’t know a tomato plant from a blackberry bush, but she’s out of options. Despite being unskilled and unprepared for hard-working farm life, Ana quickly comes to love Garber Farm and the small town of Hadley. She makes friends with Rye, the daughter of Abbie’s best friend, finds a mentor in Manny, Garber Farm’s foreman, and keeps running into the cute but hard to read Cole Brannan. But when she inadvertently stirs up trouble in town, Ana is afraid she’s ruined her last chance at finding a place to belong. Where can she go once she’s used up all her options? In the grand tradition of Anne of Green Gables, The Three Weissmanns of Westport, and Clueless, Andi Teran’s captivating debut novel offers a contemporary twist on a beloved classic.

Praise for Ana of California

“Newcomers will find a smart-mouthed heroine, a small town populated by a cast of lovable characters, and zippy dialogue that keeps the plot trotting along. Anne of Green Gables fans will rejoice; . . . Ana's high jinks will leave both types of readers smiling and asking for more.”—Kirkus

“Andi Teran’s first novel is vivid and fully realized, an entire universe expertly condensed into the pages you hold in your hands. Ana herself is a complicated delight, and by the end of the book I wanted to scoop her up into my arms.” —New York Times bestselling author Emma Straub

“What is so memorable about this novel is the reminder that happiness is a choice, a courageous and daring opportunity to express love for the things we value. At the outset we learn that Ana Cortez is an orphan, but as we live with her during one particular summer on Garber Farm we witness the creation of family before our eyes, and admire the passion, humility and valor of one of the most tender-hearted characters in literature today—a jewel of a book.” —Mario Alberto Zambrano, author of Lotería

Andi Teran’s nonfiction has been published by Vanity Fair, Monocle, and the Paris Review Daily. Her interview subjects are varied and fascinating, including Miranda July, Juliette Lewis, Lenny Kravitz, and David Lynch. Other past projects include co-writing and starring in an Off-Broadway play, photographing rocks that look like monsters, and directing a short film. She’s a native of El Paso, Texas, and currently resides in Los Angeles.