When Marnie Was There: The Studio Ghibli Inspired Children's Ghost Story of Mystery and Love

For some weird reason it is getting rarer and rarer to read, or watch or consume really any media with a deep emotional relationship between two people without having the need to drift into romance or explain away how it is not romantic. So much fiction tends to either make friendship always equate to romance, or carefully dodge that by explicitly stating how unromantic two people's connections are. When Marnie was There does not try to shy away from a deep emotional relationship while also not feeling the need to explain it away.Like many, I heard about the Studio Ghibli film first. A lot of people were suggesting it was Ghibli's answer to their utter lack of any pro-lgbt text in any of their works. I would argue that not only is that true of Ghibli, they also lack very many stories where the lead and supporting roles are same sex. There seems to be a hyper heteronormative romance in the stories they tell to the extent that even same sex friendships go too far for them. This has been always something of a disappointment for me, as I, like many, generally and otherwise love their work. As of this writing I have not seen the film, but I am told that the lgbt subtext is really not there and mostly reading too much into it. This may or may not be true for the film, but it absolutely is true for the book. The characters feelings do not stray in that realm, while whatever possibilities could have been is not explored it is also not important and I for one would argue that since the book wasn't afraid of portraying a close same sex friendship, in a way it also does not fall into the typical trap of modern het-norm stories. This book doesn't try to tell an lgbt story, but nor does it feel the need to avoid it by explicitly saying it isn't one, which is getting shockingly rare these days. Certainly Ghibli hasn't done anything of that nature before (with the film based on this book being perhaps the biggest exception).What makes this story so amazing is the emotion. This is a wild emotional ride from start to finish, a bitter sweet but ultimately uplifting story that is beautifully woven from start to finish. The first couple chapters maybe rather slow, but things start to pick up and don't fall off again at any point. Characters introduced rather late in the story manage to still have emotional impact and importance despite having been in the story for so short a time and often newly introduced characters become emotional callbacks to previous points in the book. Personally I would dare someone to try to read this and not feel their heart strings tugged.So if you've seen the Ghibli film or not, this book is still a timeless classic. It is suitable for any age and while it maybe a somewhat quick read, it will surely be one of the more emotional books you've probably read in a while. I would recommend this book to anyone.

What a great story!!! I've bought a couple copies for friends and family.

I was engrossed from the first chapter. How many times did I feel like Anna when I was young? For that matter, how many times have I felt like her as an adult? To have the story turn so wonderful was pure delight.

This a fantastic book with an amazing story and setting. Worth a read from any book lover.The book arrived in good condition. There was no damage to the pages or yellowing. The out side of the book did have some scuff marks but they are very small and I hardly notice them at all, so condition is definitely not an issue.

The level of connection I felt to the Ghibli adaptation of this book was on another level. And of course, after that, I decided to give the source a go.Suffice to say, this book is the only literary media that has ever managed to make me cry. With only words and my own feelings, at the end of this story, I found myself shedding tears of... what? Happiness? Satisfaction? It's hard to explain. I feel connected to Anna in a way I suspect a lot of people who didn't enjoy the story couldn't. Sure, I may not have her exact series of problems, but I can understood the core of her character, that of being 'On the outside'. It's always increidble to me how with such a small, simple story this book managed to carve its way into my heart with a beautiful small town, a marsh and two girls (with, arguably, some romantic subtext that may or may not take a kind of strange and weird twist when you get to the end).Anna's and Marnie's interactions are ever so enjoyable, and I was surprised with how much tact and accuracy this book handled its themes: Being an introvert, adopted, parent abandonment, abuse, among many other smaller things. What others may have seen as Anna being rude or plainly unlikable I saw as a completely logical response to a situation she found herself in.And maybe even more, I loved the answer the book gave to all of these problems. Some may not be simple, some may not really have an answer, but... Well, it's simply beautiful.Please, do yourself a favour and read it. It's short and easy to read. Perfect for kids, too! What are you waiting for?

I read this book in one sitting. I loved every bit of it and couldn't wait for the mystery to unfold, just like Anna, I was having a hard time telling what was real from what was made up. It's a great bit of fantasy woven into her reality.It's wonderful to watch the main character, Anna, evolve into the person she's always wanted to be and along the way often becoming her own antagonist and holding her self back. She feels she's an outsider and secretly envies the insiders as she puts on her "ordinary" face so no one can tell the way she feels. Nearly every character in the book is rooting for Anna and wants to help her grow and soon you are as well.She's quiet but adventurous and makes friends with an upbeat girl named Marnie that lives by the beach. Before long they're good friends and just when Anna has really gotten to know her new pal, Marnie disappears as quickly as she appeared.The characters are lovable and incredibly supporting and each person that comes across Anna has a different reaction to her. She learns to interact with the world all while learning about herself, her family and her secret pastThe book, the town and the characters all have a quaint, relatable feel and it's easy to see why Miyazaki and so many others fell so in love with this story

I love the film, and this book is quite similar to it, but it seems a little more childlike in atmosphere. Its a great read if you have older children and a relaxing read for adults as well. I enjoyed reading it a lot.

Just finished it. I'm really happy this is in my collection. I loved the book, I loved the face.

After watching the animated movie I needed to buy this and I'm so glad I did!! Loved reading it and I would recommend it especially if you loved the movie!!

This is a wonderful book which I loved as a child. It's just as good to read again now, years later. It's wonderfully descriptive with both the location and the relationships brought to life. My niece is enjoying the book now - like other books, it seems to appeal down the generations.

Book is very light hearted as compared to the movie.