The Last of Her Kind by Sigrid Nunez

Rating: 5.0

What it's about:
Ann Drayton and Georgette George meet as freshmen roommates at Barnard College in 1968. Ann, who comes from a wealthy New England family, is brilliant and idealistic. Georgette, who comes from a bleak town in upstate New York, is mystified by Ann's romanticization of the underprivileged class, which Georgette herself is hoping college will enable her to escape. An intense and difficult friendship is born.

Years after a fight ends their friendship, Ann is convicted of a violent crime. As Georgette struggles to understand what has happened, she is led back to their shared history and to an examination of the revolutionary era in which the two women came of age. Only now does she discover how much her early encounter with this extraordinary, complicated woman has determined her own path in life, and why, after all this time, as she tells us, "I have never stopped thinking about her." -taken from Barnes&Noble.com

My thoughts:
The Last of Her Kind is a beautiful, unforgettable story. It follows two women, Ann and George, through three decades starting in 1968. Those were some turbulent times and this book captures that feeling wonderfully. Sex, drugs, rock-n-roll, war, riots, racism. We see all of this through the eyes of Anne and George. And when Anne gets a life sentence in prison we get a pretty clear picture of prison life in the '70's and '80's.

I never lived through the '60 and I had some glorified ideas on what it would have been like. For example, I was always jealous of people who were there at Woodstock. After reading this book, I have a much clearer picture of what it was really like. No food or water, extremely unsanitary conditions, no bathrooms to speak of. Nunez really brings the '60's to life.

The spotlight of this novel is on the relationship between George and Ann who come from completely different backgrounds and are completely different people. What goes on around these women has major effects on what goes on between them. The Last of Her Kind is an enticing story with stunning prose. Historic and memorable.