Tom Loves Anna Loves Tom

No one has ever loved a girl as Tom loves Anna, or so it seems to him. From the first moment he sees her he is constantly by her side, sketching her picture, helping her ailing aunt and fiercely protecting Anna from her deceased brother's overly amorous friend. This is an unusually sentimental story of first love from a male perspective, inventive in its slow, deliberate focus on the idiosyncrasies of infatuation. Though the narrative suffers from lack of action and some immediacy is lost in lengthy description, much will be forgiven by those who want a quiet, intimate reading experience. Ages 12-up. (July)