The Song Reader

This is a story about secrets, mental illness, love, and healing. Mary Beth is the older sister, a waitress with a side job as a song reader. Her clients tell her what songs continually pop into their heads, and Mary Beth, using charts and her own scientific method, helps them figure out what a certain song is telling them about their life and what they should do about it. Little sister Leeann is in high school and worships her older, beautiful sister. Dad left the family when Leeann was very young, and Mom died in a car accident, so Mary Beth is the caretaker and does an excellent job. She even adopts a 1-year-old little boy, Tommy, who is abandoned by one of her clients. All of this, though, is taking an unseen toll on Mary Beth, and show more everything comes to a head when a situation with a client takes a tragic turn. That's when the family secrets come out, and Leeann learns the truth about her parents and her sister. Leeann is the narrarator of the book and has lots of teenage moments but is also heartbreakingly honest and sweet and tough when she needs to be tough. Based on the cover, I thought this was going to be a light, chick-lit-type read and didn't have high hopes for it, but I was pleasantly surprised. show less

This is the second book I've read by Lisa Tucker, the first being, Once Upon A Day, and again I was impressed. Although I liked Once Upon A Day a little more, The Song Reader is an enticing story that eventually uncovers the hidden history of a family comprised of two young sisters. The younger sister, Leeann, is moving through adolescence yearning for her absent father, dealing with the death of her mother, and being raised by her overly responible older sister, Mary Beth. Mary Beth creates a business of "song-reading": helping people in their small town come to terms with their minor neuoroses by examining the songs they can't get out of their heads. A chain of events around Mary Beth's song-reading pulls the plot along, helping us show more discover the reasons behind the family's disintegration. Although a subject of heavy, psychological undertones, the author skillfully crafts in some humour and always an underlying sense of hope about the future. show less

A bit Richard-and-Judy-pick-of-the-monthish, but a nice easy read. Quite different from the book I thought it was going to be – I assumed it would focus more on the song reading, with quaint, heart-warming tales of the respective clients (and I’d quite like to read that book), but it turned out to be an interesting study of mental illness and how it affects not only the sufferer but also the entire family.

Teen-aged Leeann lives with her older sister Mary Beth in a small Missouri town. Their mother died several years ago and their father left long before that so the sisters have become their own family. Mary Beth works at a local diner but she also works as a 'song reader' wherein she charts the songs that are stuck in her clients' minds to help them solve life's problems. When one of her clients uncovers a sordid family secret that involves a wealthy and influential man in town the consequences are devastating to both Leeann and Mary Beth. As the town turns against Mary Beth, Leeann is forced to become the adult in the family taking care of her sister and her sister's adopted toddler son. This leads to secrets about the sisters' own show more family that will change their lives forever.

There was a lot going on in this book that was never adequately explained. I realize that mental illness cannot be easily recognized as one type or another but just what is going on in this book? I don't think many of the scenarios are very believable and I especially don't see a 16-year-old girl and her boyfriend quoting Browning sonnets to one another. On the whole - meh. show less

Wow, such a sad story. As someone who loves music and knows it plays a huge role in my life, I think that the premise of this book could be real. All music if laid out on paper that you have heard in your mind can be a part of the pattern of who you are and what makes you tick and the experiences that you have had throughout your life I really do believe in Song reading.

Great story even though it is so sad because the characters are so strong and brave and that is great example to me!

I'm sure the review's description of the premise intrigued me. A young woman is able to help people solve personal problems by analyzing the songs that stick in their minds. But in the first half of the book where that's the focus, the book feels like what the cover looks like--lightweight chick lit. But then midway through the book takes a sharp turn to a domestic dram of a deeply troubled family in which the mother has died & the mentally ill father has left. It's not very satisfying.

A friend recommended this book to me, saying how amazing it was, so I picked it up at a used book store when I spotted it. I tried reading it last year and could not get through it. This time, I was able to push through, but I never felt really absorbed into it. The story is about two sisters, Mary Beth and Leeann. Leeann, the younger sister, adores Mary Beth, her beautiful, clever, song reading sister. Song reading is sort of like psychoanalysis through music and without professional schooling. Everything spirals out of control when one of Mary Beth’s suggestions has bad consequences. The sisters both struggle to come to terms with their family drama and romance.