This book was painful. Like,
I-feel-like-my-heart-is-bleeding kinda painful. A good kinda painful, then.
Naturally.
The
Piper’s Son is the sequel/companion to Melina
Marchetta’
s Saving Francesca, and it picks up the
characters’
lives
five years down the track. This time, Tom Mackee is our main character, along with
his aunt Georgie, as the book alternates between their viewpoints via third
person narration. They, along with the rest of their family and friends, are
trying to recover from some devastating losses in the past (both recent and
distant).
With protagonists that are 22 and 42, The Piper’s Son feels a bit more grown up than Saving
Francesca and Looking for Alibrandi,
and the third person narrative also sets it apart. The writing is even more
beautiful, if that’s at all
possible. I liked being able to get into more than one character’s head, as well as seeing them from the
outside. It gave the story a much wider scope than it perhaps would have had
otherwise.
Now, I thought Saving Francesca was sad, but I have to say, it’
s got nothing on The Piper’s Son. Tom
and Georgie are both so lost in their grief and it’
s such an emotional ride, made all the more potent by the extremely
realistic characters, conversations, emotions and actions. As with Marchetta’
s other books that I’ve read, I found myself nodding along
to a character’
s inner monologue more than once. I really felt their pain. And it was tough.
Thankfully, there are plenty of light
moments to balance out the sadness. As Tom slowly reconnects with the old gang
from St Sebastian’s, the
friendly teasing comes back into play and you can’t help but smile. The interactions between the Mackee family are
also tinged with humour, and there’s a lot of joy mixed in with their hurt. The best moments, though,
come from Tara (who is in Timor) and Tom’s email exchanges. Though they're half a world apart (literally and
emotionally), their spark is still there, waiting to be set alight. I just love
all of these characters; they’re
strong, unique, and well fleshed-out. I feel like I know them well… if only I had friends like these in real life!
Rating:
4/5
Spoilery Talking Points
- I was sad at the lack of Jimmy in this book. He was one of my favourite characters in Saving Francesca. I need to know that he's OK.
- On the other hand, the suggestion that Frankie's parents are doing great is heartening.
- I also kinda missed Siobhan! She seemed to be doing well though. I was kinda glad they were all still friends. Well, except for the whole Tom kerfuffle - but he made good in the end.
- On an entirely superficial note, I really want to know what Will's tatt looks like.
Eye Candy
 |
| Benedict Samuel as Tom |
 |
| Claudia Karvan as Georgie |
 |
| Emily Browning as Tara |
 |
| Guy Pearce as Sam |
Fine Print
Genre: Contemporary fiction
Published: March 2010, Viking
