Songs in Ordinary Time is set in the summer of 1960 - the last of quiet times and America's innocence. It centers on Marie Fermoyle, a strong but v...
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Apr 18, 2008
Nomanisan
rated it: 
Oh, my. I absolutely detested this book; I finished merely because I HAD to get finished with it so that I could put it away. Morris has created a world in which no one is free of some warping or embittering experience except the family next door to the protagonists, and they are presented in such cliched, matchstick form as to be beyond credibility--they exist merely as a balance to the pitiful main family and the characters who attach to them in an ever-widening series of cracks in the socie
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Jan 15, 2011
Jen
rated it: 
this is a long ass book. i traded a David Sedaris book that i had just finished for this one at a youth hostel while i was traveling. if i wasn't on an island in a foreign country, i probably would have held out for something better, but options (on everything) were limited. amazingly, i got through 'Songs' and didn't feel like it was a waste of my vacation time. there are over 2 dozen characters and many subplots to keep up on, so that got a bit confusing at times. some of the subplots probably
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Dec 17, 2009
Lori
rated it: 
Songs is well written.
The characters are interesting.
The plot is believable.
The town is realistic.
And all of it is incredibly, incredibly depressing.
Not *one* single person in the entire book has a good life. Or even a reasonably happy one -- or a shot at happiness, at that. And the fact that it's well written does nothing to help the fact that it's painful to read about these pitiful little lives in this pitiful little town.
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The characters are interesting.
The plot is believable.
The town is realistic.
And all of it is incredibly, incredibly depressing.
Not *one* single person in the entire book has a good life. Or even a reasonably happy one -- or a shot at happiness, at that. And the fact that it's well written does nothing to help the fact that it's painful to read about these pitiful little lives in this pitiful little town.
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Jan 03, 2009
Laurie
rated it:
This novel tells the story of the down-and-out Fermoyle faily. Living in Vermont in the 1960s, Marie Fermoyle and her three children live in poverty and desperation, for more money, more security, and more affection. Marie Fermoyle, a hardened cynic, is so desperate for all of the above that she falls victim to the wiles of a con man. The Fermoyle children are blatantly aware that their mother is being fleeced, but the emotional distance of all the family members makes it difficult for any of th
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Feb 08, 2011
Katie
rated it:
I had mixed feelings when I put down this book last night after a long 2-week read. It was frusterating yet realistic in that many of the characters were angry, constantly fighting, and rarely able to catch a break. I longed for the Fermoyle family to end the novel at some sort of peace, but I felt like Alice was the only one who really achieved any sort of happiness (she also was the only one to get away from the clutches of her mother, who try as she might, only seemed to perpetuate the despai
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Jan 25, 2011
Darryl
rated it:
*** “Songs in Ordinary Time” by Mary McGarry Morris. This overly long novel is typical Morris in that the characters are ordinary people who get themselves into trouble by constantly making wrong choices. While the characters and their situations are interesting, the problems seem to go on and on with no solutions. Too many of her characters never seem to learn from earlier mistakes. The story involves mainly the Fermoyle family in Atkinson, Vermont in the early 60’s. Marie struggles but do
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Dec 16, 2010
Kelsey
rated it:
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers.
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Sep 27, 2009
Stephanie
rated it:
The characters in this novel are facing bleak prospects, their plights hard and long... no surprise; it is an Oprah pick after all.
I hesistantly picked it up - 740 pages of bleakness is what I first thought. What can I say, I've read enough of Oprah's picks to know that sometimes the journey she's recommended I embark on will leave me with feelings of hopelessness.
But altogether it was not a bad read... there is a bit of redemption in the end but the author is true enoug More...
I hesistantly picked it up - 740 pages of bleakness is what I first thought. What can I say, I've read enough of Oprah's picks to know that sometimes the journey she's recommended I embark on will leave me with feelings of hopelessness.
But altogether it was not a bad read... there is a bit of redemption in the end but the author is true enoug More...
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Dec 31, 2011
Susan
rated it: 
“Songs in Ordinary Time” was an Oprah Book Club pick in June 1997. Some might call it a 740-page tome. I loved every word.
In hundreds of mini-chapters, Morris takes readers to the summer of 1960 in small-town Atkinson, Vermont, where readers meet Marie Fermoyle, a divorced mother of three, along with her neighbors, her ex-in-laws, her boss, a variety of other townpeople – and, most significantly, Omar Duvall, a man without a shred of honesty.
Marie’s oldest child, daughter A More...
In hundreds of mini-chapters, Morris takes readers to the summer of 1960 in small-town Atkinson, Vermont, where readers meet Marie Fermoyle, a divorced mother of three, along with her neighbors, her ex-in-laws, her boss, a variety of other townpeople – and, most significantly, Omar Duvall, a man without a shred of honesty.
Marie’s oldest child, daughter A More...
Sep 30, 2010
cheryl
rated it:
Again, I'm wanting a half star. 2.5 really fits better and I will probably keep waivering between 2 and 3.
Songs in Ordinary Time is written in a lovely prose and is focused on developing characters and place. These tend to be winning qualities for me. The tale explores many inhabitants of a small Vermont town with a focus on a single mom, her drunk ex, her three kids, and the con-man who takes up residence in her life with promises of riches and, perhaps more importantly to her, s More...
Songs in Ordinary Time is written in a lovely prose and is focused on developing characters and place. These tend to be winning qualities for me. The tale explores many inhabitants of a small Vermont town with a focus on a single mom, her drunk ex, her three kids, and the con-man who takes up residence in her life with promises of riches and, perhaps more importantly to her, s More...
Dec 17, 2011
Rebecca
rated it:
my rating should be more like 25. It is better than okay but a little extreme to say I liked it. I respect it but did not like it. The book is well written and I didn't notice any serious flaws. But it just didn't do anything for me. Usually I can enjoy depressing books and feel moved by them or feel better that my own life wasn't that miserable. But this did not touch me or move me or even leave me all that satisfied with my life.
Perhaps the problem is me. I wasn't feeling well when More...
Perhaps the problem is me. I wasn't feeling well when More...
Feb 07, 2010
Ann
rated it:
I had read one other book by this author and loved it -- especially the poetic q1uality of the writing.
This one -- although rivetinng was not quite as good as the last. The topic -- a dysfunctional family and all its traumas, issues and communication (or lack of) was not quite so enticing. Nor did it lend itself to the style of writing I encountered in the first book of this author I read.
However, it is a good read -- the Fermoyle family -- all of whom seem sad, lonely an More...
This one -- although rivetinng was not quite as good as the last. The topic -- a dysfunctional family and all its traumas, issues and communication (or lack of) was not quite so enticing. Nor did it lend itself to the style of writing I encountered in the first book of this author I read.
However, it is a good read -- the Fermoyle family -- all of whom seem sad, lonely an More...
Jul 25, 2009
Debbie
rated it:
I actually ended up liking this book --- although it ended abruptly. It reminded me a lot of Carson McCullers or even a little Flannery O'Connor or Faulkner-like -- because it's a collection of these misfits --- the focus is on a family, but we also get glimpses of all the characters in this town. They're all so pitiful, lost, eccentric, etc. It took me a long time to read the book, however. I could only read about 25 pages a day, but I kept reading because I couldn't figure out how it would
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Feb 22, 2008
Stephanie
rated it: 
I learned nothing, and I have no idea what Oprah was thinking. For 740 pages I stuck with this book, thinking it has to get better, there has to be something more. There isn't. Everyone ends up in the same place they started.
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Sep 27, 2011
Kathy
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers.
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Mar 07, 2009
Lori
rated it:
Beautifully written and depressing. Not something to read if you're looking for a good time.
It reminds me of a song by Patty Griffin, Poor Man's House. The stories are different but the themes are the same for me...difficult to break the cycles of life into which we're born and unbelievably sad (I suppose sadder still is that both stories are believable and are real for many people).
You can click here to listen to a cover version of the song instead and then move on to s More...
It reminds me of a song by Patty Griffin, Poor Man's House. The stories are different but the themes are the same for me...difficult to break the cycles of life into which we're born and unbelievably sad (I suppose sadder still is that both stories are believable and are real for many people).
You can click here to listen to a cover version of the song instead and then move on to s More...
Jan 19, 2010
Alice
rated it:
This books reminds me of why I stopped reading Oprah's book club selections. Thank goodness I don't live in Arlington, VT, where this book is set (nominally, via references to ski boots and neighboring NY and Quebec). The town is composed of the entire class list from "ACME book of Dopes and Losers." They are all here: the Con Man, the Drunk, the Bitter Divorcee, the Pervert, the Conflicted Priest, the Seemingly Normal Person with Hidden Secrets..not a likable character in the bunch.
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Nov 08, 2010
Heather
rated it:
Not a favorite.
Every single one of these characters continually made the worst possible decisions at every opportunity. It became increasingly absurd that no one seemed to ever learn from their mistakes or to even recognize that their own poor decisions were to blame for their misery.
The con-man was written very well- he came off as sleazy and slimy as he should have been. All of the characters were written really solidly, to be honest. It was just the constant, unfailing, p More...
Every single one of these characters continually made the worst possible decisions at every opportunity. It became increasingly absurd that no one seemed to ever learn from their mistakes or to even recognize that their own poor decisions were to blame for their misery.
The con-man was written very well- he came off as sleazy and slimy as he should have been. All of the characters were written really solidly, to be honest. It was just the constant, unfailing, p More...
Dec 15, 2009
Beth Anne
rated it:
Until I saw this on a friend's "currently reading" list, I had forgotten this book existed.
i read this book when it first came out and I was in college. i remember being utterly depressed, but impressed by the writing in this heartbreaking novel.
i felt such a connection to every character. each one was written with such spirit and life, i got lost in the story as if it were happening around me.
i know that this story warrants a second read, as it took More...
i read this book when it first came out and I was in college. i remember being utterly depressed, but impressed by the writing in this heartbreaking novel.
i felt such a connection to every character. each one was written with such spirit and life, i got lost in the story as if it were happening around me.
i know that this story warrants a second read, as it took More...
Nov 28, 2010
Dionne
rated it:
Oh, Oprah! Whatever did you see in this book? Only because of my hard-and-fast rule that I must finish reading every book I start, did I complete "Songs in Ordinary Time". Had the book been capped at, say, 300 pages it might have been, at least, moderately tolerable. At page 600, I was ready to physically hurt people . . . and there were still 152 pages to go! I'm truly at a loss for even one kind word to say about this book. The whole thing was fraught with far too many characte
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Apr 10, 2008
Monica
rated it:
I've had this book sitting on my shelf for a long time, and was really looking forward to reading it. This was not a book that kept calling me back, so it took about a month to get through (which is unusual for me).
This is a story about the disfunctional Fermoyle family, and their quirky, misfit townspeople. The main storyline tells how Marie Fermoyle falls for a con-man, despite her hard, no nonsense attitude.
What I didn't like about this book: There were so many char More...
This is a story about the disfunctional Fermoyle family, and their quirky, misfit townspeople. The main storyline tells how Marie Fermoyle falls for a con-man, despite her hard, no nonsense attitude.
What I didn't like about this book: There were so many char More...
Mar 15, 2009
Sarah
rated it:
It’s an Oprah book club book, so of course it’s long, with a detailed plot, but also wonderfully written. Taken individually, our lives may seem routine and “ordinary”. Connected with those around us, however, life is anything but ordinary. This book highlights a period of time in one family’s life, and the community around them. Just as in real life, what the family views as “ordinary” is actually a story filled with emotion and unexpected surprises. The author does an excellent job creating w
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Sep 09, 2011
Lee
rated it:
Long at just over 700 pages, this book had a very real feel for small town life and all the overlapping relationships, the author has a knack for bringing in characters that ultimately are related to others. This pieces together the townfolk and I liked the oddities involved. One stupid little thing that bothered me was the author referring to hamburgers as "hamburgs" - if that's a colloquialism, it's one I've never heard before...
Dec 21, 2008
Zanny
rated it:
This is one of those books that I never got into. I finished it because I almost always have to finish books that I start reading, but it wasn't an enjoyable read. I didn't care for the mother's theatrics and self pity. I did find some parts of the book amusing, the interaction between Marie and Alice, the dysfunctional family, the pathetic con-man, Omar. However, it certainly isn't one of the better books I've read.
Jul 27, 2011
If I had one word to describe this book it would be, detailed. The great thing about reading this book is how the author shows multiple perspectives of events in the town and how they all come full circle. The mishaps of one may cause chaotic events for others. I give this book a positive recommendation for the authors talent at creating such well developed characters and making a book which is 700 plus pages seamless.
Sep 26, 2011
Pam
rated it:
This was an Oprah pick and, as many of hers are, has some very strange and not very likeable characters in it who make all the wrong choices. While this is depressing and upsetting, it does make for a good read and good discussions which is why I'm giving it four stars. Cannot remember enough to really review but since I know I've read other books from this author and have more to read, it had to be good.
Sep 08, 2009
Megan
rated it:
A very depressing, but captivating historical fiction novel. The story centers around a mother and her three children. The family is poor and each member has issues (stemming from their father's embarassing public alcoholism). A peddler, Omar, arrives in town and is bad news, but the mother falls for him anyway.
This novel weaves in the stories of the various townspeople as we see each character struggle and fail.
The characters are very believable and much happens-- all of it sorry. More...
This novel weaves in the stories of the various townspeople as we see each character struggle and fail.
The characters are very believable and much happens-- all of it sorry. More...
Jul 27, 2009
Peg
rated it:
An Oprah book suggestion, read by a goodreads buddy with a resulting favorable rating. Seven hundred and forty pages of a "good read." Basically the story is set in the summer of 1960 in a small town in Vermont. "It centers on Marie Fermoyle, a strong but vulnerable divorced womans whose loneliness and ambition for her children make her easy prey for the dangerous con man Omar Duvall." Enjoy.
