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chalkletters's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
When first read, some books create incredibly strong memories: where you were, what you were feeling, who was around you. The Piper’s Son is one of those books for me. I remember sitting in my bedroom in the Woodside Park flat I shared with Rebecca, with my bed against the innermost wall, crying my eyes out. And yet, I couldn’t remember what happened that was so moving, beyond the vague idea that there was a pregnancy involved.
Melina Marchetta does an amazing job of following up the story of Saving Francesca. In the years that have passed since the first novel, relationships have changed, huge life events have happened, which makes the characters and the story much more realistic than if everything had continued as it was up until the moment the new story started. It’s bittersweet, because there are almost as many characters missing as there are still in touch with each other, but that’s life sometimes.
The Piper’s Son features new characters, too: Tom’s family and work friends. Unfortunately, some of these are a little hard to keep track of. The Finch-Mackee families are so sprawling and interconnected that it’s not always obvious who is who or to whom they’re related. Dominic, Georgie, Sam and Callum are all easy enough, but then there’s Lucia and Bill and another Tom and Gracie who might be Grace. At times, a family tree would have been really helpful!
While the story was still captivating, the emotions didn’t hit as hard this second time around. Nonetheless, the endings were extremely satisfying, and the characters are just as real as ever. Melina Marchetta leaves the reader with the certainty that these lives will continue to grow and develop, that there will be difficulties, but that hopefully they’ll be able to help each other through them.
Content Warnings
Minor: Death, Drug use, Pregnancy, Alcoholism, Death of parent, and Infidelity
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