Monday, January 14, 2008

Book #2: Songs Without Words


Title: Songs Without Words
Author: Ann Packer
Liz and Sarabeth, now in their forties, have been best friends since childhood. When Liz's daughter Lauren attempts suicide, their friendship is rocked by their past histories, especially the suicide of Sarabeth's mother.
I loved Ann Packer's first novel, The Dive from Clausen's Pier, so I was really excited to find Songs Without Words sitting on the new releases shelf at my library the other day. The things I loved best about Clausen's Pier, specifically the way Packer draws conflicted characters and makes us like them despite their faults, are present in Songs Without Words as well. But Songs Without Words didn't engross me the same way that Clausen's Pier did. Mostly it scared the crap out of me. The first novel deals with a woman who has to decide whether or not to break up with her fiance after he becomes a quadreplegic (she was contemplating the breakup before the accident). In my personal life, I had already successfully navigated dating/marriage part of my life, so I could look in on the novel as a casual outside observer. But Songs Without Words is about the perils of having teenagers and getting older, which are two things that aren't too far down the road for me. Will it be as hard for me as it was for Liz? I hope not.
As an aside, doesn't it seem like there are a whole lot more solitary people in literature and film than in real life? For example, in this novel Sarabeth is an only child whose parents have both been dead for 20+ years. Other than her best friend, Liz, she has basically no family. In my reading over the last few years, I can't tell you how many characters I've read about who have literally no family in their lives. And they're all screwed up to a certain degree. Maybe giving my kids lots of brothers and sisters will help them from becoming as depressive and morose as most of the solitary characters in 21st century American Lit.

6 comments:

Kermit~the~Frog said...

Heh. Having just finished The Corrections, I'm having a hard time seeing siblings as saviors today.

Shelah said...

LOL! I read Franzen's memoir this summer (can't remember what it's called) but I think he would agree with you based on his own sibling experience.

BAK said...

I am so glad i'm not the only one who was dissapointed with this book. I LOVED Dive, but I thought that Packer totally had a "sophomore slump" with Songs without Words. I seriously had to force myself to finish it. I thought the second half was a lot stronger than the first, but still, most of the action did little to further the plot.

I did feel that I got a lot of knowledge about staging, though. Maybe one day that will come in handy (that was supposed to be sarcastic.)

lyn said...

I devoured Dive from Clausen's Pier and was actually wondering if she had written another book. Wonder no more.

Yes, there are people out there that are only children and have no parents. Yes, they are messed up. I know this first hand: I married one of them and then divorced him (enough said?!)

Courtney said...

Maybe you can use this book as justification to Eddie as to why you need more kids.

Susan said...

Just wanted to say that I appreciate your book reviews. I just finished this book, it was an interesting read.