Ann Brashares Books In Order

Publication Order of Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants Books

Publication Order of Standalone Novels

Publication Order of Non-Fiction Books

Born on July 30th, 1967, Ann Brashares is an American young adult fiction writer better known for her seriesSisterhood of the Travelling-Pants. Ann Brashares was born in Alexandria, Virginia but she grew up and schooled in Chevy Chase. Together with her three brothers, they attended the Quaker school, the Sidwell Friends School Washington in DC. She later joined the Barnard College, which was part of the Columbia University, where she studied and graduated with philosophy. Ann Brashares’s first job involved working as an editor for the 17th Street Productions. The company was later acquired by the Alloy Entertainment where she worked briefly after that. Ann Brashares is married and lives with her artist husband currently in New York.

Ann Brashares wrote her international bestselling book, Sisterhood of the Travelling Pants in 2001 as her debut book after leaving alloy entertainment. Three more other titles followed the “Pants Series” with the last one, Forever in Blue, being released in 2007. In 2005, Ann Brashares’s first book was made into a film. The other books were also later made into series in August 2008. Besides authoring young fiction books, Ann Brashares also author’s adult novels. Her first novel, The Last Summer, was released in the year 2007. Since then, Ann Brashares has published many other books, both fiction and non-fiction.

Sisterhood of the Travelling-Pants

Sisterhood of the Traveling-Pants is the first installment in Ann Brashares series Sisterhood published in 2001. This is a contemporary young adult series that features the friendship of four teenage girls, Lena, Tibby, Bee and Carmen who grew up in Bethesda MD. These girls were born within weeks of each other. These girls had one thing in common. They all discovered that, despite their different body shapes, curves and sizes, there was one pair of jeans that fitted them all. Not only did the pair fit each, but also brought major changes in their lives whenever they wear it. Carmen purchase jeans at a thrift shop. However, they didn’t look that great as they were not only worn but dirty and also speckled with bleach.

Despite having very distinct personalities and characters, the four girls develop excellent relationship making them look like sisters. Summer sets in and they part for the first time, each exploring the different points of their lives. Bridget, who is tall, athletic and blonde, sets off for a soccer camp in Mexico. Carmen, exquisitely curvy, travels to the south to visit her father who resides in South Carolina. Tibby stays home hoping to find a summer job as she works on a documentary and aspires to be a filmmaker. Lastly, Lena decides to spend her summer by visiting her grandparents living in Greece. Before departing, the girls or rather sisters, decide to make a pact with a serious set of rules.

The pact indicated that they should circulate the pants among themselves during the vacation, as a way of keeping their close friendship alive. The pants acted as a symbol or a source of generous sisterhood support as they encounter various challenges in their new environments. For each, they found the pants infused with strength and support from fellow friends. According to the pact, the pants were to be mailed in a specific folded manner coupled with a letter describing the summer.

In an in-depth discussion, Ann Brashares’s book focuses and explores the basics of family dysfunction, the bond of friendship and death. The pants became a sign of unity between the four friends turned sisters, which symbolized love, strength, and courage. Despite that the girls are not perfect, with flaws and different characters desiring different things in life, they still maintain their friendship to the extent of living as sisters. The sisterhood of traveling pants is definitely a good read, especially for young teens. Other compilations in this series include The Second-Summer of Sisterhood, Girls in Pants, Forever in Blue and Sisterhood Everlasting installments consecutively.

The Last Summer

The last summer is an adult novel by Ann Brashares. The novel features two siblings, Riley and Alice and their friend Paul. All are in their early twenties and crumbling to grasp what the world has for them at that age. So to say, they are trapped between childhood and adulthood. The three have always spent summer in their parents’ modest beach house located at the Fire Island, New York. The two sisters visit the house every year, being the house they knew since childhood besides coming to visit Paul, their former neighbor.

Being in their twenties, the current summer appears not the same with previous ones. Cupping between childhood and adulthood, each tries to figure out their relationships both among themselves and the outer world. Riley, though seemingly immature by clinging on making a career out of being a lifeguard, is their leader. She always encourages her younger sister Alice and Paul to cling to their childhood traditions and avoid or rather reject the current pretentious adult pressures. Unknowingly or unexpectedly, Paul and Alice develops feelings and fall in love.

The two love and respect Riley, bearing in mind the pieces of advice she gives them about giving in to peer pressure. Due to guilt, they decide to keep their relationship secret, hiding it from Riley. With time, Riley becomes seriously ill testing the strength of their love. The bonds, both of the family and friendship are put at stake. Ann Brashares elicits the reality when it comes to love and personal relationships amidst friendship. Especially when it comes to people who have experienced the story firsthand, reading and dripping off the pages slashes little pangs in their heart. According to Ann Brashares, the idea of love is always easier than the practice of it. Certainly, many readers and reviewers have attested to that.

With that said, Ann Brashares is at her best writing both fiction and non-fiction novels. This backs her royalty being among the New York Times best sellers. Besides being a good read, her books enables you to relate the write-up with certain real life experiences. Not only are Ann Brashares’s novels exciting and enjoyable to read, but are also educative.