Monday, July 28, 2008
Songs for the Missing by Steward O'Nan
Published by Viking Adult
ISBN: 978-0670020324
The Effects of One Woman
Kim Larson is a teenage girl who lives at home with Mom, Dad, and younger sister, Lindsay. She is popular in school, she has a boyfriend, a job, and is making plans to head off to college. Until, one day, she disappears. Her family, friends, and neighbors are frantic to find her -- and make some additional discoveries about themselves along the way.
Songs for the Missing was my first Stewart O'Nan book, and I liked it. I wasn't sure what to expect other than it would probably be a depressing novel, but I found I enjoyed reading it and I enjoyed anticipating the next chapter with each page I read. I had to keep reminding myself I was reading fiction and couldn’t just go to the Internet and look up the end of the story, although I was extremely tempted to read the last page halfway through the book. I was kept in suspense, and that suspense kept building as I learned about each new detail of Kim’s disappearance. Although O’Nan’s purpose wasn’t to write a thriller that focused on the disappearance of teenager Kim Larson, but to write a story that focused on the effects that disappearance had on those around Kim; he focused on the impact Kim’s life, and the uncertainty of her return, had on those around her. Kim’s family and friends were left to discover her secrets and deal with each other’s reactions to her absence. It took me awhile for it to sink in that finding Kim wasn't O'Nan's purpose -- his purpose was more about the relationships of those who knew and loved her. I had some trouble reconciling that in my mind, since I just wanted a happy ending, and it did drive me to distraction as I kept wondering -- will they find her? Is she alive? Do they find her, but too late? This is where I blame myself, not the author, for that distraction. I think Stewart O'Nan did a fabulous job with this one.
Songs for the Missing was my first Stewart O'Nan book, and I liked it. I wasn't sure what to expect other than it would probably be a depressing novel, but I found I enjoyed reading it and I enjoyed anticipating the next chapter with each page I read. I had to keep reminding myself I was reading fiction and couldn’t just go to the Internet and look up the end of the story, although I was extremely tempted to read the last page halfway through the book. I was kept in suspense, and that suspense kept building as I learned about each new detail of Kim’s disappearance. Although O’Nan’s purpose wasn’t to write a thriller that focused on the disappearance of teenager Kim Larson, but to write a story that focused on the effects that disappearance had on those around Kim; he focused on the impact Kim’s life, and the uncertainty of her return, had on those around her. Kim’s family and friends were left to discover her secrets and deal with each other’s reactions to her absence. It took me awhile for it to sink in that finding Kim wasn't O'Nan's purpose -- his purpose was more about the relationships of those who knew and loved her. I had some trouble reconciling that in my mind, since I just wanted a happy ending, and it did drive me to distraction as I kept wondering -- will they find her? Is she alive? Do they find her, but too late? This is where I blame myself, not the author, for that distraction. I think Stewart O'Nan did a fabulous job with this one.