Searching For Anna Book: Download and Comments

[GraceBlue]

Wow wonderful book! I read it this morning. It was so touching, espcially when Annasmom told little stories of Anna. My heart broke when I saw her handprint.

One question/confusion I do have...when Anna dissappeared, it was mentioned in the book that the dog, Saturn didn't bark. Later in the book, when Annasbro remembered the 'couple in the car' he mentioned he had to "settle the dog" was Saturn barking at the couple? Perhaps, Saturn knew the abductor (if there is one) that took Anna right from her yard and didnt bark?

 

[laini]

After several hours of downloading adobe last night until 3 a.m., I was able to download the pdf. (thx dr. doogie for the obvious suggestion )


It was well worth the trouble and wait. I can't wait to read your story, Annasmom. Thanks for sharing with us.

 

[rideforfun]

I've finished the book. Thanks so much -- it is very powerful. I will reread again this weekend and note my questions. I pray for everyone involved.

 

[Dr. Doogie]

One question/confusion I do have...when Anna dissappeared, it was mentioned in the book that the dog, Saturn didn't bark. Later in the book, when Annasbro remembered the 'couple in the car' he mentioned he had to "settle the dog" was Saturn barking at the couple? Perhaps, Saturn knew the abductor (if there is one) that took Anna right from her yard and didnt bark?

Interesting question! Annasmom, do you know where Saturn was during the five-minute window of time that Anna disappeared?

 

[Dr. Doogie]

After several hours of downloading adobe last night until 3 a.m., I was able to download the pdf. (thx dr. doogie for the obvious suggestion )

Stating the obvious is my specialty. Glad you were able to access the file.

 

[Dr. Doogie]

I've finished the book. Thanks so much -- it is very powerful. I will reread again this weekend and note my questions.

One of our hopes is that the book will raise questions and angles of investigation that we have not explored yet. Please feel free to post those questions under the appropriate thread (just to keep the information on the forum logically organized).

Thanks for the kind words about the book - Annasmom has done a fantastic job in documenting not only the facts, but the emotions of the search also. The manuscript is ultimately a 160 page love-letter from a mother to a daughter that she has not seen for thirty three years. If Anna reads the book, I know that she will be proud of how her family has searched for her all of these years.

 

[Annasmom]

Interesting question! Annasmom, do you know where Saturn was during the five-minute window of time that Anna disappeared?

I can't really remember for sure. I believe he was in the fenced back yard. Anna was pretty good about closing gates behind her (country girl training), so if she went up to the road to get the mail, she may well have shut him in the yard. At any rate, we heard no barking that I recall. Things just got very quiet all of a sudden. As I have said before, Saturn was just a youngster and didn't always bark at things an adult would have barked at.

 

[smile22]

have yet to read the book but will this weekend since i am finaly off from work till monday. i was reading the first page of this thread on the book and someone mentioned that the dog was kinda not settled the first time he saw the people in the car annas brother was the dog barking was he happy? did he have the look of fear on him.? what if those same people came back to take anna and beacuse the dog was settled down he saw these people again and thought nothing of them beacuse he saw them before and they semed to be harmless

 

[LadyCat]

I've been lurking and reading this forum for month or so now. I have prayed that you will find your daughter or that she will find you. Your book (which I'm still reading) is amazing, and is a wonderful document. I'm sure it will spark something and perhaps provide another step on the way to finding a resolution to this long mystery.

(as an aside, I noticed that you refered in Chapter 20 to Doug posting on WebSearch'. I know you said this chapter is still being worked on, so I wondered if this was supposed to read 'WebSleuths'?

The section reads: After some months, Doug started a thread under “Cold Cases” on WebSearch, an Internet bulletin board which calls itself a “crime sleuthing community”, with more than 5700 members. )

 

[SadieJane]

I have only just begun to read it, but I must give my applause to Anna's Mom! Great job! I feel like I got to "meet" Anna in a way. She was such a unique and wonderful little girl. This book will be such a gift to her when you meet again, so she will know all you & your family did to find her.

It was so eerie to hear Brody telling you to let Anna stay with him when you had a cold so she wouldn't be "contaminated." Seeing pictures of him just gives me the creeps. He has a spooky vibe, even in photos. It's truly upsetting to read about how he came to command George Waters's mind as his sickness worsened. I am also struck by what a little window there was for Anna's abduction to take place. It's every parent's nightmare.

Also, I know this has been mentioned before (at least I think I know... lol) but Anna's Mom, you don't remember any of the other names Brody suggested for Anna, right?

 

[Annasmom]

(as an aside, I noticed that you refered in Chapter 20 to Doug posting on WebSearch'. I know you said this chapter is still being worked on, so I wondered if this was supposed to read 'WebSleuths'?

The section reads: After some months, Doug started a thread under “Cold Cases” on WebSearch, an Internet bulletin board which calls itself a “crime sleuthing community”, with more than 5700 members. )

Thank you, LadyCat! That one slipped by us. Yes, it should be WebSleuths.

 

[Annasmom]

Also, I know this has been mentioned before (at least I think I know... lol) but Anna's Mom, you don't remember any of the other names Brody suggested for Anna, right?

I can't be sure, but one was "Christiana Benedo". I'm not positive of the spelling.

 

[HeartofTexas]

I can't be sure, but one was "Christiana Benedo".

The name Christiana Benedo sounds very Italian, which would be in keeping with Brody's real name being Anthony Giordano. I wonder if Christina or Christine, or some variation thereof, could be the name of his mother, and possibly Benedo (Benito?) was her maiden name. I'll do some checking on Ancestry.com to see if I can find anything like that. Many times Italian sons are very close with their moms, so it could have been a way for him to pay tribute to her.

 

[Annasmom]

HoT, I was thinking the same thing. Closest name I found was Benito also.

I'm pretty sure it was Benedo--kind of taken from my maiden name. I hated the made-up name, I remember. His object was to come up with his "magic 27", according to his system of numerology (which apparently is unlike any other system Websleuthers have come across), so I don't think he was looking at a family name here. More like coming up with something I would accept that still put him in control. As you see, I resisted--up to a point.

 

[smile22]

in the book this stood out to me

there was a panel truck a youngish driver and an older passanger driving towards the ocean i thought they were mighty friendly for strangers

sometime between one and two i heard anna in the glased in porch me and joe used as a bedroom i heard anna talking at about two talking to the cats

what was she saying to the cats? was it talk she would have said to the cats or was it human talk she would have said to someone else. is it possible someone opend up the door and took anna or she saw some strangers and opend up the door for them beacuse they have said were here to see your parents and they may have told her not to get u or joe? could the people in the panel truck have been both males and one of them was brody and waters or could one of them have been brody with another male or was it a female in the car. did this friend of yours know what brody and waters looked like? i think the panel car has to be looked at first annas brother said the car had washington plates a man and a women in the car. and they wouldnt get in the car. now think like a kidnaper ive spoken to all the children they wouldnt get into the car our plan was to get anna maybe that day or scout her out get a feel for how she acts towards strangers and stuff. knowing that her and her brothers saw the car with the washington plates they wouldnt come back with the same car and plates that would give away to much and easy trace what i think they did was borrow a car or rented one for the second time they came so they wouldnt look suspicus had her brothers had been around. assuming that these people took anna


annasmom or joe did anything pan out from the clicks on the telephone annas mom u said that u mentioned that to the police but they didnt seem suprised?

 

[mysteriew]

Has the police file arrived yet?
When I read about clicks on the phone and police not being surprised, I wondered if maybe the phone had been tapped by police. And that could have been why they were so reluctant to turn the file over.

 

[laini]

Annasmom, I just finished reading Searching For Anna. For lack of better words, it really touched my heart. Thank you again for sharing your story.

 

[smile22]

still reading it very very intresting book. something that also stood out from the book was the footprint was it small or rather large maybe the people who took anna wanted to leave the sock and footprint as a means to lead the search in the water and not on land i think they were doing that so that the police could say we think she went into the water but then we cant find a body or something and leave it at that they wanted everyone to think she drowned so that their master plan of action to get anna out of the state would work. think about if u were going to commit this crime how would u do it how would u think like a kidnaper

 

[Annasmom]

annasmom or joe did anything pan out from the clicks on the telephone annas mom u said that u mentioned that to the police but they didnt seem suprised?

It is very unlikely that anyone came around to the back door. They would have been visible making the entire walk from the road, in front of the big window, etc., into the fenced yard. The friend who mentioned the van did not know what Brody and Dr. Waters looked like. The clicks on the phone were almost certainly neighbors on the party line listening in (since the phone rang for all the neighbors at the same time--one of us had two short rings, another one long ring, etc.). We may be able to tell more about this when the police report arrives.

 

[Annasmom]

Has the police file arrived yet?
When I read about clicks on the phone and police not being surprised, I wondered if maybe the phone had been tapped by police. And that could have been why they were so reluctant to turn the file over.

They say they've mailed it, but I haven't received it yet. I think the delay was just bureaucracy at work, since they were quick to send it once the detective on the case gave them the word.