Songdogs

Colum McCann’s first person narrator in Songdogs, named Conor, goes on a quest to understand his parents and perhaps find his long-estranged mother. This trip is not trivial in terms of miles covered — it takes him from hot, dusty Mexican towns, to a forest ranger lookout above the tree line in Idaho, to his windswept native Ireland — nor is it lacking for vivid colors, diverting characters, or a discussion of the long-standing grievances between his parents. His trek is absorbing, at times frustrating, but finally touching as reunited father and son gently spar, one generation against the other, and come to easy terms with each other.

Conor, in his early 20s, travels with a monstrous backpack, in a passive, desultory way, and show more finally arrives at his father's home in a small town in western Ireland. He surprises him by showing up, and the main current-day narrative kicks off. This story, as Conor tells it, becomes the central thrust of the novel, almost as if by default. Conor vividly remembers his mother, a captivating señorita from a sun-blasted town in eastern Mexico. Michael, Conor’s father, cut a swath through the remote town after mustering out from the war, and settled down with 19 year-old Juanita.

The narrative thus follows two time lines, one current, and one in the past. In the present-day story Conor finds Michael, who now lives a diminished, alienated life — it’s squalid: he neglects his hygiene, doesn’t do laundry, or pay any attention to the keeping his house. Their reuniting doesn’t spark any dramatic changes, but reacquaintance results in a subtle evolution between the two, where hard truths are acknowledged, and new understandings bloom.

This novel contains the vividly personal language of the questing youth. It contrasts sharply with the received platitudinal wisdom spouted by the hermit-like father. Don’t conclude that this is a depressing read; it’s way too vivid and plotted far too cleverly. It has as its core a classic human story of a family splintered by strong personalties and faded dreams. To catch an early example of McCann’s undeniable gifts, Songdogs serves beautifully.

https://bassoprofundo1.blogspot.com/2025/03/songdogs-by-colum-mccann.html show less

ETA: It bothers me that I don't explain more about the theme of the story, but I don't know how to explain without giving the whole thing away. In addition I am pretty darn sure that others may not interpret this story as I do. What I think is so tragic and beautiful at the same time is that the father, the photographer, being who he is and loving his wife beyond all else, simply HAD to take the photos he took of his wife. Those photos destroyed his wife and his relationship with her. If you read this, please tell me if you react as I do? I love both HOW McCann writes and WHAT he has to say.

******************

With his shirt open to the third button, he turned around from the fireplace. His chest was a xylophone of bones sticking out show more against his skin. His face and arms still held some tan, but the veil of his throat was lost to whiteness and the remaining chest hairs curled, acolytes of gray. His neck was a sack of sag and his trousers were huge on him. Not to healthy for him to be out in the cold. Although it would be lovely if I could see him cast in the way he used to. Even when I detested him, there were times when I was astounded just to watch him cast, back when the river was alive. Those flicks of the wrist like so many fireflies on the bank. The hooks glinting on the lapel of his overcoat. The huge sadness of him disappearing as the rod ripped away. Him counting under his breath, “One, two , three, here we go.” Lassoing it to the wind. Brisk upward motion of the tip of the glass rod, sometimes drawing off the flies by false casting. Finally watching them curl out over the water, and plunk, reeling the surface into soft circles. Stomping his feet on the bank. Spitting out over the water. All sorts of hidden violence in the motion. He coughed again…..

These lines are found within the first ½ hour of my listening to the audiobook reading by Paul Nugent. My breath was taken away. I couldn’t help but compare these lines with Steinbeck’s in his book “Travels with Charley”, also depicting a fisherman standing in Wellingtons in a river cluttered with garbage. McCann’s reference to garbage is to be found in the words “back when the river was alive” and a gate that slowed the stream’s tempo and reeds that grew along the embankment. Nugent’s timing, intonation and inflections make the Irish brogue come alive. For me this is pure poetry. And this is just one snippet. You should read McCann’s lines depicting coyotes. Steinbeck describes them too, but not like this! I should not compare, but how can I not?!

Now I am going to keep my mouth shut and see if this caliber of writing can be sustained throughout the entire novel.

The answer is yes. Astonishingly beautiful writing from start to finish. I would recommend that you listen to this because the narration was wonderful too.

McCann never writes books about happy, simple situations, but he shows beauty and hope. This book ends with a huge salmon leaping high over the brook and the line: "Let this joy last itself into the night." The lines are exquisite. His message too, but this is no fairy tale. This book is about a son trying to understand his parents, their relationship and how he fits in. His mother is Mexican, father Irish and a photographer. He fought in the Spanish Civil War. The son travels to all these places and through his father’s photos and his own memories he seeks to understand the past. Sex is both cruel and glorious, that is my only hint. I understood why each, the mother, the father and the son, felt and behaved as they did. Love and sorrow. Good memories and regrets. When you look at your own parents and your relationship to them don't you too see love and sorrow all jumbled together? Readers’ circumstances will be different but we can all recognize the emotions.

This is my favorite book by Colum McCann! I have only one complaint: I want more, longer books and more of them.

Completed Mar 22, 2013 show less

I should have a list of books that were more deserving of attention and care than I bestowed upon them. But sometimes life just interferes with my reading. Yet, I did love this book, even though I had put it aside for days on end.

This is my first book by Colum McCann and I know there will be more. In here he tells a story that is never black and white, as the most important relationships in our lives aren’t. A son returns to visit his aging and dying father while he reminisces on their life and his mother’s disappearance years earlier.

Photography has been a hobby /obsession for me for many years now, and I loved that photography and its capacity of eternalizing a moment plays such an important part in this book.

Thanks Chrissie show more for pointing me in the direction of Songdogs. Highly recommended. show less

3.5 Stars

Songdogs is Colum McCann's first novel, It is a multilayered story and written with McCann's usual sharp writing style and eloquence of prose.

The story is set around Conor Lyons who just returns from abroad to Mayo in Ireland after a five year trip to visit his aging father. He spends the week going over his fathers past life as a photographer when he spent time wandering through war torn Spain and then through Mexico where he meets and marries his wife(Conor's mother). After a period of time the couple return to settle in Ireland.

I love McCann's character development and the sense of time and place in his stories, Each novel is an experience and you are transported by his imagery and story telling. I think this would make an show more excellent book club read as the characters are real and complex and you just want to dissect this novel on completion and I can imagine a wonderful book club discussion around this one.
This is a tale of rememberance and while the story flows I did however find that his flowery and sensual prose (while beautiful) did on a couple of occasions interrupt the flow of the story for me.

I listened to this one on audible and while the narrator was good for the most part I cringed when he read the characters of the father (Michael) and other minor characters as felt they were almost cartoonish and would have preferred to have read a hard copy of this one. An enjoyable and satisfying read but not one for my favorites list.

This is my 5th novel by Colum McCann and [b:Dancer|110896|Dancer|Colum McCann|https://d2arxad8u2l0g7.cloudfront.net/books/1312004781s/110896.jpg|2247523][bc:Dancer|110896|Dancer|Colum McCann|https://d2arxad8u2l0g7.cloudfront.net/books/1312004781s/110896.jpg|2247523] is still my favorite to date. show less

A terrific and enjoyable story for Colum McCann's first novel. Both heartwarming and at times harrowing. Let down a little in the middle by some slow sections, but the writing is pockmarked with brilliance throughout and the talent bursting from McCann's pores is fully evident in this tale of place and family.

'Songdogs' is one of those books I picked up rather blindly for a university task. I picked it because of its dynamic storyline, and although it's not really the kind of book I'd write, I still feel content about reading this book in particular.

Colum McCann is an Irish writer; I don't know a great deal about his work, but I think it's safe to say that he likes exotic characters. Characters that do not have ordinary lives. This is also the great strength of 'Songdogs'. A young man called Conor goes looking for his mother, a Mexican beauty that followed her husband and photographer Michael on his journeys.

Every character has his or her own peculiar mindset, which makes this novel rather interesting to read. Even though I struggled with show more some descriptive parts, the real 'moments' of the novel have a lot of punch and bring across a beautiful melancholic message. A good book, no more, no less. show less

Beautiful language and a great concept. Not one of his best, but definitely a hint at his greater works to follow.

A good novel, but one that best shows what to avoid as a young writer. McCann’s style, as usual, is enviable, yet he often wanders off course in favor of a fluffily worded scene. The relationship between the much older father and his young, mix-raced son is well-drawn, however. The father and son’s interactions illustrate the quintessential relationship of two people who love each other, yet do not understand each other and/or do not know how to communicate with one another.

Another beautiful aspect of the book, is the correlation of the river to that murky relationship as well as the ability of all things to move on show more like water. show less