The Piper's Son

Sep 02, 2011 Wendy Darling rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: aussies, young-adult, realistic-fiction, crush-worthy-boys, read-2011, readalong, 2011-publication, mature-ya

I want to put my arms around Tom Mackee and give him a huge hug. I have a soft spot for boys who behave badly but are hurting on the inside--and boy, does Tom behave badly. And boy, is he hurting.

The Piper's Son takes place five years after the events in Saving Francesca. Tom and Jimmy were my favorite characters from that book, so I was really happy to dive immediately into TPS right after finishing the previous novel. When we meet up with Tom again, he's gone through a lot of drinking, a lot o...more I want to put my arms around Tom Mackee and give him a huge hug. I have a soft spot for boys who behave badly but are hurting on the inside--and boy, does Tom behave badly. And boy, is he hurting.

The Piper's Son takes place five years after the events in Saving Francesca. Tom and Jimmy were my favorite characters from that book, so I was really happy to dive immediately into TPS right after finishing the previous novel. When we meet up with Tom again, he's gone through a lot of drinking, a lot of drugs, and a lot of one-night stands. He's also lost his favorite uncle, he isn't speaking to either of his parents, and he's become estranged from his friends and the one girl he's always dreamed about. Tom's now staying with his aunt Georgie, who is the other main character that we follow throughout the novel. Georgie is dealing with an unexpected pregnancy by an ex-boyfriend she thought was out of her life, and she finds herself in the untenable position of being torn between her pride and her heart. Both of them are very confused, very angry, and very, very sad.

I loved spending so much time getting to know the complex person that Tom turns out to be. What's brilliant about the book is that the author skillfully shows us his character through his relationships with his sister, his parents, and his friends, even though we know he's done a lot of crappy things to nearly all of them. I fell in love with the long letters he writes to Tara full of bravado and foolish hope, as well as his persistence in sending them, even though she doesn't write back. And I fell in love with Tom for the utter decency of character that we see revealed beneath all the ways that he lashes out at the people around him.

I was initially surprised at the unusual choice to spend so much time with Georgie, as the subject of adult women dealing with a tricky relationship isn't the usual YA fare. But I liked Georgie's story quite a lot, and I was impressed by how realistically her position is portrayed. Most of us can relate to knowing what is the right/easy/practical thing to do in theory, but we're held back by stubbornness and anger that are side the products of being terribly hurt. I will say that at first, it was a little confusing to be confronted by so many family members and characters and some of the story structure is a little confusing, but after awhile I became deeply immersed in where the author was taking us. I would loved to have also seen more about the elusive Jimmy, however; the few glimpses we got of him here and there were among the most touching moments in the book to me.

This is a complicated novel that touches on the themes of love, loss, joy, grief, integrity, hope, forgiveness, and redemption. Above all else, this is a story about family ties and how they lay the foundation for shaping what you are...but it's individual decisions that determine who you will be. I've thought a lot about whether teens today would really be interested in reading a book that is so very adult, and I don't know the answer to that--but I do hope they are. It's a book that deserves to be read.

But seriously, though. I really really really want a Jimmy book. (less)

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Aug 24, 2012 Tatiana rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: all Melina Marchetta fans

Shelves: 2011, ya, favorites, ala-ya-2012, aus-nz, b, 2012

As seen on The Readventurer

Update 8/23/12

Well, Saving Francesca is not my favorite any more. For now I am sticking with the statement that I prefer her fantasies more now. Although it's hard to say how I feel about it after the next round of rereads. Otherwise, I pretty much stand by everything in the original review.

Original review

I don't know how Melina Marchetta does it - takes a story that seems so soap-operish and turns it into something so honest and real.

Let me tell you what The Piper's ...more

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Sep 24, 2012 Nataliya rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2012-reads

This is the book for people with truly big hearts¹.

¹ Metaphorically speaking, of course, because in the words of warning from Dr. Sheldon Cooper, PhD:

This is a book about finding your way back after having lost yourself in the depths of grief. It is the story of people who desperately try and often fail to hold their lives together.

"I know this sounds cruel, Georgie," Lucia says, "but grieving people are selfish. They won't let you comfort them and they say you don't understand and they make yo

...more This is the book for people with truly big hearts¹.

¹ Metaphorically speaking, of course, because in the words of warning from Dr. Sheldon Cooper, PhD:

This is a book about finding your way back after having lost yourself in the depths of grief. It is the story of people who desperately try and often fail to hold their lives together.

"I know this sounds cruel, Georgie," Lucia says, "but grieving people are selfish. They won't let you comfort them and they say you don't understand and they make you feel *useless* when all your life you've been functional to them."

It is an emotional book, full of raw and exposed feelings. It is flowing with melancholy which gives way to anger which in turn gives way to love and hope just to swing back into the tender melancholy again. It is a book about people broken by their grief, who now have to come to terms with it and learn how to live as whole beings again. It is tender and touching, and quite lovely. With a healthy helping of angst, I must admit.

"Her voice whispering love soothes him. They'd never done that before. Weren't that type of family. Except now he doesn't know what kind of family they are. What word is it that can define them? What would they call his family in the textbooks? Broken? He comes from a broken home. The Mackees can't be put back together again. There are too many pieces of them missing."

Now, this lovely Melina Marchetta book *barely* missed the 4-star designation for me. Barely. Maybe because I've been calloused by life at this point. Maybe because I feel a little too old to fully accept the amount of angst that it has. Maybe because at times I felt like reaching into this book and very gently shaking the characters to their senses. And maybe because despite the ever-present melancholy I kept having this nagging feeling that somehow everything will magically turn out to be alright, even though to sustain the emotional protracted gut-punching it should not have. But 3.5 stars I gave it are well-earned, and for me Marchetta is becoming a writing force to be reckoned with.

"She knows that feeling too. Of believing that each time someone says her name, it’s to tell her that something bad has happened.""

If the above quote did not make you sadly sigh, you must be a robot. Or an incredibly happy-go-lucky person.

The part of this book that I loved and would be happy to give at least 4 stars to was the part with Georgie - a 42-year-old mother-to-be, caught in a sticky situation of carrying the baby (which she did not want for the reasons of her own) of a man who has betrayed her in the past. All while trying to get over the grief of losing her little brother - and, to a point, her twin brother as well. Georgie is a lovely character - both strong and vulnerable, sometimes unreasonable and petty, at other times amazing with the amount of generosity in her heart and soul. She felt real to me, and for most of her story I wanted to reach into the book's pages and give her the most sincere hug.

The part that cost this book quite a few of its stars was Georgie's nephew Tom, the other narrative voice, who appears to be more of a protagonist of this story than Georgie does. He is lonely and broken and lost and a mess and sensitive and misunderstood and all that stuff that is supposed to make my girly heart swoon at his vulnerability. Unfortunately, I tend to agree with this quote quite a bit:
"Tom could probably count on the hands of every member of his family, and extended family, and the city of Sydney, how many times he's felt like a dick this year."
More than anything, this book is the story of Tom's redemption and him finding his real self again after a trying couple of years of his life. But I found it hard to feel for him. Wallowing in his own despair, he seemed to be so hell-bent on being a jerk to anyone who dared to show any love for him that I decided to not open my heart to him - and that was surprisingly easy. I just think that the excuse of being a jerk because of your own misery only takes you so far, and that Tom was incredibly lucky to have a group of friends that for whatever reasons did not give up on him. They must have had bigger hearts than mine.

"He kisses her and wants to beg her and the others to never give up on him. *Ever*. But he gets a feeling that he would be preaching to the converted."

3.5 stars from my calloused heart. I have not read the prequel to this one, Saving Francesca, but I will definitely look for it now. Melina Marchetta is a good writer, and I'm looking forward to more of her books full of heart and humor and always quite a bit of sadness.

"Once she made him watch Pride and Prejudice and for ages he would re-word Mr Bingley's apology to Jane Bennet, saying, 'I've been an inexplicable fool', for anything from losing his keys to burping out loud. Her reply to anything she wanted to do was Jane Bennet's response to Bingley's marriage proposal, 'A thousand times yes.'

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Mar 26, 2011 Mariel rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: incurable humanists

Recommended to Mariel by: do the right thing

Sometimes I can't take the shit in my real life (okay, my inner nothing to show for it life is mostly purgatorial neverending staircases too. Some stupid shit that amuses me way too much as well) and I pretty much have to run away for the cause of my fleeting hold of sanity (gasp!). My savior are those beach trips with my books. I've been shoring up all my hopes for them. I'm so happy that we've had beach weather again. The Piper's Son is my second beach book of 2011. I know this is going to be...more Sometimes I can't take the shit in my real life (okay, my inner nothing to show for it life is mostly purgatorial neverending staircases too. Some stupid shit that amuses me way too much as well) and I pretty much have to run away for the cause of my fleeting hold of sanity (gasp!). My savior are those beach trips with my books. I've been shoring up all my hopes for them. I'm so happy that we've had beach weather again. The Piper's Son is my second beach book of 2011. I know this is going to be one of my longing times because I kept taking hold of moments as they were happening (something I do when anything good happens). "I'm going to wish it was still this moment." The first book, Saving Francesca, is THE young adult book that is relevant to my past, present and (no use pretending) future (it doesn't matter that I'm not a teenager. Family doesn't end). So my life has been too much again for Saving Francesca reasons. I'll leave it at that, like family reasons are too much to explain to anyone not family. The Piper's Sons reasons are my reasons too. Crawl under a rock. No books and lights under the duvet. There's no damned light because it's too hard. The mind trains are stuck. I run away to the beach. It's freedom to not know anyone around (I can even do my awesome chair dance moves and not care who sees. New me! I love strangers). I am not staring at the dead end horizons any more. I really needed this story about Tom who has the complicated family life that is impossibly hard. He kills his good chances himself. Tom and Francesca... shit, I do relate to these two. I am still running away. But... this book is that new space, like "You can get through this" running away. I'm just happy to get out of the stuckness. If I could explain why I could believe Tom found his freedom from the old shit... I'm jealous too!

It feels like it could be seen from outer space. If it could be! Why Mariel loved The Piper's Son so damned much. Those feelings of wanting to change the world. From sitting in the sand? I'd write with a stick "THIS BOOK IS AWESOME, MAJOR TOM!" Yeah, maybe. If you've ever felt so much inside that it SHOULD be seen from outer space, only it isn't. The Piper's Son is seeing it. Yeah, that's it. Mind blind spots that are complicated family reasons of just you. And you get it anyway. Melina Marchetta must be a genius. Outer spaces as inner spaces.

Live through this... ?

P.s. I freaking loved it when Tom starts listening to Regina Spektor in secret.

My top Regina Spektor songs

1. Loveology
2. Prisoners
3. Daniel Cowman
4. Carbon Monoxide
5. The Genius Next Door
6. Folding Chair
7. Belt
8. Consequence of Sounds
9. Braille
10. Samson

P.s.s. I felt more intensely about this story and these people than this review lets on. It's hard to open up about how much I really get Tom and Francesca. Sometimes this shit becomes the part of you that to you're just sick to death of telling yourself about. Talking about it to people who don't have this inside them can be those punches Tom didn't pull to get rid of anyone who would help. Or fear that it does... They tell me. I'd rather be there, for them. I'm barely here for me sometimes.(less)

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May 31, 2011 karen rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: books-that-made-me-cry, littry-fiction, why-yes-i-ya

utterly destroyed.

all i did while reading this book is cry. in the middle of penn station for hours. in the receiving room at work. in the subway. at home. tears. everywhere. i am going to have to buy the copy i borrowed from work because my tears got on a couple of pages.

it is unprecedented.

and it doesn't hurt that i have been blue for a couple of months now, but it also doesn't help that this woman knows how punch you in the heart in a variety of ways with stealth and precision.

because it's...more

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Apr 07, 2011 Flannery rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: Anyone with a pulse

Recommended to Flannery by: Awesome people

Shelves: aussie-ya-is-the-cats-meow, favorites, read-in-2011, so-good-i-stayed-up-to-read-it, young-adult-teen, reviewed-2011, read-on-tour

In an interview at Persnickety Snark, Melina Marchetta said that she wanted to capture, “People holding it together and succeeding some days and failing other days” in this novel. Thank you. No, seriously, thank you for summing up a book that is so hard to capture. That comment made me think of a perfect quote--“You have to laugh at yourself because you’d cry your eyes out if you didn’t.” Sure, it’s from an Indigo Girls song but it’s still totally relevant. (right?) On those days you are failing...more In an interview at Persnickety Snark, Melina Marchetta said that she wanted to capture, “People holding it together and succeeding some days and failing other days” in this novel. Thank you. No, seriously, thank you for summing up a book that is so hard to capture. That comment made me think of a perfect quote--“You have to laugh at yourself because you’d cry your eyes out if you didn’t.” Sure, it’s from an Indigo Girls song but it’s still totally relevant. (right?) On those days you are failing, a sense of humor goes a long way. The grief that the Mackee/Finch family has been living with for the past year or two seems insurmountable. How can life go on when life as you knew it is over?

For those unfamiliar with the story, this book follows up on several characters from Saving Francesca, though this book can stand alone. Thomas Mackee and his close-knit extended family have been grieving the loss of Tom’s uncle Joe, who died in a bombing, for over a year. Tom’s mother and sister moved away, his alcoholic father checked out, his aunt is pregnant but believes that because her grief was the impetus for her ex to return, she shouldn’t celebrate the pregnancy. This might sound like a ton of family drama going on but honestly, every person has their problems. Every family has their issues. What this book really deals with is that belief that we all have that no one could ever understand how we are feeling, especially the suffering we go through when we lose another person who is such a huge slice of our world. It’s hard to go on living when someone who served as a point of reference is no longer there. It feels so singular, like we are going alone. And sometimes it feels like it’s easier to live in oblivion.

But it wasn’t all sad. I truly laughed as much as I wallowed in this one, and often out loud. Tom's family and friends really make his turnaround. No, they make each other's turnarounds. At one point in the story, Francesca and Justine are trying to argue that Tom cried while watching Lord of the Rings. The girls text Siobhan and Tara to ask what movie Tom cried during and Siobhan answers “LOTR,” but Tara answers, “He cried when those two muppets climbed that mountain in New Zealand.” (167) I couldn’t stop laughing at this because I have several jokes with my friends that run along this line. (how people describe movies, actors, etc. but we know exactly what they mean when they say something ridiculous) Sometimes all I want is to call, email or text one of my friends just to get back the other half of a joke—it’s the reassurance of a shared memory. Family are the ultimate example…and we all know that families never forget anything. (Hell, my sister is still pissed about me knocking over her dollhouse OVER TWENTY YEARS AGO. Seriously Casey, get over it.) Anyway, I really loved the family and friendship dynamics in this one. (view spoiler) I was really glad there was so much discussion going on about how it feels to be those people on the outside trying to help. No one knows what to say but they keep trying, and waiting, and trying some more.

I know I really love something when I don’t give a shit what anyone else says about it. You’d think it would be the opposite — teeth-baring rage directed at any naysayers. Sure, I’ll fight to defend it if someone says they didn’t enjoy x or y about it but when it all boils down, it means so much to me that everyone else can just go to hell if they don’t see its value. I’ll be in my own little corner (in my own little chair) poring over my favorite books (including this one) laughing hysterically, giving my heart a workout, inconsolably sobbing, and hoarding my memories like that packrat garbage lady in Labyrinth.

This book gave me a heartache and a stomachache. I thought I would cry, even before I knew where the book was going, even before I cracked the book open. But I didn’t. Not until the very last few pages and it was more like two tears streaming silently down my face. I wish I could know these characters in real life. I’d marry Tom Mackee in a nanosecond. And please, Melina Marchetta, please tell us what’s happened to Jimmy. (view spoiler)

I’m leaving this picture I drew as a placeholder for my review. It’s totally honest. In this book, Melina Marchetta will rip out your heart and serve it back to you on a silver platter.

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Mar 30, 2012 Emily May rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: ya-na, 2011, fave-ya, contemporary

Edit 31/08/11: After re-reading some of my favourite parts of this book, I decided to overlook what made me decide to give it 4 instead of 5 stars before. It's just too good for anything less than 5.

Original Review
First I have to explain why I'm not giving this book the full five stars it seems everyone else is giving it. Likely it is just me being stupid and inappreciative of subtle beauties but I thought towards the beginning there were too many parts of the book that lost me. I understood th...more

Edit 31/08/11: After re-reading some of my favourite parts of this book, I decided to overlook what made me decide to give it 4 instead of 5 stars before. It's just too good for anything less than 5.

Original Review
First I have to explain why I'm not giving this book the full five stars it seems everyone else is giving it. Likely it is just me being stupid and inappreciative of subtle beauties but I thought towards the beginning there were too many parts of the book that lost me. I understood that the writing was great but I couldn't grasp where the story was going or the point behind it and I spent about half of the first 80 pages getting distracted.

And then... I got it. No, I really did. It was the kind of story that is meant to be subtle but turns out all the more meaningful for it. Melina Marchetta is undoubtedly a fantastic writer who creates very believable and imperfect characters. Tom, let's be honest, is a little shit, he deliberately says things he knows will hurt people and he's just generally not a very nice guy. But you feel his pain too. This book is an example of the good kind of angst, the kind that leaves the reader feeling just as wounded as the characters in question.

The vast array of troubled characters who have experienced all kinds of heartbreak and hurt could have turned this novel into something cliched, melodramatic and soap opera-ish. On the contrary, the author conveys nothing but raw, gut-twisting emotion; it's difficult not to at least get teary-eyed at some point.

Also, I had to compare Tom's one and a half night stand turned I-won't-admit-it-but-I-desperately-need-you with Tara Finke to the love angst of Adam in Where She Went. Not because the relationships themselves are particularly similar, but because I experienced a similar depth of emotion told in very different ways. It has to be said, even though it has already been said by many others before, the scene where Tom goes down on Tara and thinks about the bell line from the poem. Oral sex goes poetic? It's oddly beautiful.

I don't suppose I wrote this review for any other reason than I couldn't help myself. I mean, it's not as if the book needed some more raving about, the many reviews already shout it out pretty loudly. So, you know, if you haven't read this book... you know what to do.
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Mar 29, 2012 Chachic rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: actual-books-owned, favorites, from-book-depository, best-of-2011, aussie-books, signed

2012 NOTE: I first read this March last year and just reread it because of Marchetta Madness. Funny that I finished rereading this one the same day I posted a review last year. :P Maybe I should make it a yearly tradition? Glad I now have the Aussie edition because it's even more beautiful in person. And yep, the book itself is just as amazing as I remembered (it still made me cry).

2011 review: Originally posted here.

Today's my birthday and I'm glad that I get to post a review of what has becom...more

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Dec 08, 2010 Alexa rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: Where She Went by Gayle Forman

Shelves: favorites, 2010-reads, to-reread, aussie, own, tour, new-adult, audio, signed

My review can also be found on my blog Collections.

I love Thomas. Out of all the boys in Saving Francesca, it was definitely Thomas who stood out to me. Really happy to know more about him and his situation, including the rest of his family's. Melina Marchetta is always so great with family and friend relationships.

I also loved the parts with Thomas and the other characters from Saving Francesca, especially Tara, the girls, and Will Trombal. Awesome friends and hilarious moments. The new charact...more

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Nov 03, 2011 Sparrow rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: punching-tour, reviewed, young-adult

I have decided to write a review of this book, but it is sensitive territory, I think, and I don’t want to make anybody feel from my review the way I feel from the book. I am not giving the book a star rating because I can’t tell if it is a good book or not through the amount that I hate it on a personal level, and I feel like giving it a low rating would discount other people's experiences of tragedy or something. (Okay, after almost a year of considering it, I did decide to rate this book. Sor...more I have decided to write a review of this book, but it is sensitive territory, I think, and I don’t want to make anybody feel from my review the way I feel from the book. I am not giving the book a star rating because I can’t tell if it is a good book or not through the amount that I hate it on a personal level, and I feel like giving it a low rating would discount other people's experiences of tragedy or something. (Okay, after almost a year of considering it, I did decide to rate this book. Sorry, guys.) I can’t even tell if I think it is a deeply false book, or if it is just deeply false to my life. This is probably one of those experiences of wrong place/wrong time. I think if I had seen The Notebook in high school instead of after college, I would not have hated it, just like if I had read The Piper’s Son some other time, maybe I would not have hated it. This is also one of those times when I should have stopped early on and not pushed through. Why have I not learned this lesson yet? Anyway, I’m sorry I hate this book so much because so many of my wonderful friends love it. You will say I didn’t understand, and that will be true.

It seems like Marchetta tends to write something similar to the Job story. Job was never one of my favorite stories from the Bible (being more of a Jonah and Ruth girl myself), but it was my dad’s favorite for a little while, during a more lucid time in his life, so I have done some thinking on it. This book reminded me of a conversation I had with my dad about Job once. In my memory, which I think I have tailored to my reading of this book, my dad was talking about why he loved Job. The story starts out by telling you that Job is God’s chosen and someone with no faults. The author tells you, and so you know, that none of the things that happen to Job are punishment. And then, right away, God makes a bet with the devil that Job will never turn against Him, and He unleashes the devil on Job just to prove it.

In the first page, maybe second, the devil destroys Job’s whole life, and it only takes a sentence or two. He burns down Job’s farm and kills his livestock; a building collapses on all of Job’s children, maybe spouses and grandchildren, killing them instantly; and then Job’s body falls apart with boils and scabs and whatnot. Job’s wife tells him to curse God and die, and they go their separate ways. Everyone Job knows abandons him. But, that is not what the story is about. That is all just preface. The story is actually about three of Job’s “friends,” who come and visit him, and who are total pompous assholes. They sit around for the entire story, trying to work out for Job what he did to deserve God’s wrath. It is actually an annoying story to read, to me, because the stuff these guys say is so unbearably windbaggy. Then there is a cool part at the end where God comes by and says, “Who are you to ask why this happened? I’m God, I created the behemoth, and you’re nothing.” Old Testament God is so much more interesting than New Testament God. Anyway, my dad loved that this story about ultimate tragedy is mostly about human blame.

My friend was saying the other day that life feels like she used to have all of these warm winter coats wrapped around her and suddenly they’ve been stripped off and the wind is chill. That’s it exactly to me. And I feel like Marchetta tries to write characters whose coats have been stripped off, but to me she fails, and that leaves me confused and bitter at the emptiness of the stories. I do not want to question anyone’s experience of loss, but watching Marchetta’s kids does not feel like watching loss to me, though I think it is supposed to. Job feels more like someone left in the wind. Because tragedy might be part of nature, but the chill wind is people. All of Marchetta’s characters experience tragedy, but then they are surrounded by so many people who just want to devote their lives to helping and encouraging that it is false to me.

I think I wouldn’t hate it, like I probably wouldn’t hate The Notebook, if so much of it didn’t eerily resonate with me. I have said and done those things, had those experiences, or at least known a close friend or two who did. So, then, the ultimate hugs and puppies feel like deliberate falseness injected into a very real story. I take them personally, and they are very effective messages that hurt my feelings a lot. They are “friends” sitting around saying, well, look how similar this person’s life is to yours, and everybody fell all over themselves to give this person bags of diamonds when they were sad. And I don’t even want to make it out like I have some terrible life, or people are sooooo mean to me, because I totally don’t and they obviously aren’t. I just think Marchetta, like Nicholas Sparks, throws in natural tragedy – death, depression – for emotional impact, and then shies away from hard truths. Like, what if every single bad feeling ever between characters was not just a silly misunderstanding? What if people actually didn’t like each other and that’s why they were assholes? I am not a fan of the theory that people are assholes to each other because they just love each other so much. I think it is more often because they don’t. I feel very uneasy about the opposite message.

Marchetta takes away a scarf, which we hear rumors that a character had before the story began, and then replaces it with snow gear, a hazmat suit, and a plastic bubble. I do not want to see characters suffer more, but it feels manipulative to use real tragedy to facilitate the Grease story. For whatever reason, the specific things that sent me through the roof in the story were (view spoiler). At another time in life, I think I would have read it and hoped it somehow related to reality, like I think I would have hoped with The Notebook. But now I read it and just feel bitter and old and confused. I don’t want these kids to stop having fun or even get off my lawn, but I need a little easier transition between before and the after of this ABC Home Makeover.(less)

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view all 22 comments

Aerin I loved the book, but I really see where you're coming from here - the things you mention in your spoilercut were exactly the things that tripped me u...more
Jan 08, 2012 11:27pm

Sparrow Ooo, I just saw that you rated it, so I wondered what you thought. Yeah, a lot of the serious things were resonant with me in not a great way, but I k...more
updated Jan 08, 2012 11:57pm

Jun 06, 2011 Janina rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: contemporary, death-loss-grief, music, read-in-2010, made-me-cry, from-down-under, unputdownable, favourites, favourite-characters, alternating-pov, on-my-shelf, beautiful-writing, older-ya-vibe, young-adult-fiction

I know I should have savoured this book in its entirety. I should have read slowly and taken my time. The book clearly deserves savouring.
But I have no restraint. Instead, I holed up in my room for the whole afternoon (hurray for being a university student with Friday afternoons off!), neglecting food and any means of communication, and finished The Piper’s Son in about eight hours, taking only very small breaks. Now I feel a bit lightheaded and dizzy, my eyes are puffy and a little red from cr...more I know I should have savoured this book in its entirety. I should have read slowly and taken my time. The book clearly deserves savouring.
But I have no restraint. Instead, I holed up in my room for the whole afternoon (hurray for being a university student with Friday afternoons off!), neglecting food and any means of communication, and finished The Piper’s Son in about eight hours, taking only very small breaks. Now I feel a bit lightheaded and dizzy, my eyes are puffy and a little red from crying, but I have this wonderful feeling only very few books can give me. They make me forget the world around me completely, they make me feel with their characters and love them despite their obvious flaws and they make me wish the book would never end.

All of Melina Marchetta’s books I’ve read so far are among them, and Thomas Mackee’s story is no exception. Marchetta simply has a way with words that makes her novels so compelling and unputdownable (does this word exist?), and her characters do not only feel authentic and realistic to me, they feel like real people. People I would love to know and be friends with, to be honest.

It was amazing to see the group of friends from Saving Francesca again (and even some secondary characters from Jellicoe Road, although they only made a brief appearance), and I feel a little sad now that the book is over and I had to leave them behind. I simply adore the way Marchetta portrays the friendship between Francesca, Tom, Justine, Siobhan, Tara and Jimmy. Those people have become friends although they didn’t even like each other at the beginning, and despite their differences and the mistakes they made, they will always stay friends and help each other, no matter what happens.

But apart from that, it was equally great to meet the new characters introduced in this novel. I loved Tom’s aunt Georgie and the dynamics in the Mackee household. This family clearly has lots of issues and some don’t know how to deal with them, but there is always an underlying sense of understanding and love.

Also, it is great to see a novel that is somehow able to bridge a gap between YA and adult literature, as the story is told in alternating form from both Tom’s and his aunt’s points of view. And, despite being a novel about grief and loss, it had its hilariously funny moments!

So, well, I will stop gushing here, sorry. It's always a little hard to write reviews for books I absolutely loved - after a while I realise how limited my vocabulary is when it comes to praise.
Should you somehow not have gotten the hint up until now: I would strongly recommend you read this book (if you haven't done so already).

Thanks a lot to Nic for sending this over and to Olivia for letting me borrow it!
(less)

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Apr 28, 2012 Aly (Fantasy4eva) rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: big-fat-tears, crushing-on-the-cover, dark-and-gritty, digging-the-premise, fast-paced-and-engrossing, gave-me-sleepless-nights, great-banter, had-me-at-hello, hilarious, i-ache-for-you, lets-be-mates, my-kinda-protagonist, own, quoted-the-hell-out-of-this, smarty-pants, so-amazing-i-actually-reread-this, the-twirls, utterly-charming, what-a-babe, you-inspire-me

Isn't the Aussie cover just gorgeous?

Photobucket

“She's tired and leans her head on his shoulder, which is the resting place for all their heads, but when Justine and Siobhan and Francesca use his body so shamelessly he doesn't feel the need to turn his head and press his mouth against their hair..

Tom wants oblivion.
He's 'aiming for oblivion' because he is sick of everything.
His uncle Joe died a few years back and he has never been quite the same since. He is still full of anger and grief and bitterness. W...more

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Nov 27, 2010 Arlene rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: Street Corner Bookers

Recommended to Arlene by: Albie Thank you!!!

Shelves: favorites, read-2010, aussie-books, gifted-to-me, young-adult

Maybe she’d always been there. Maybe strangers enter your heart first and then you spend the rest of your life searching for them. - TM

I don’t know how she does it, but Marchetta delivers it every time - a fictional story that seems so real, a cast of characters you’re not ready to let go of, and a powerful dialog that reaches into your heart and soul and reveals lessons and observations that have you contemplating love, life, loss and redemption. Absolute and shear perfection that I will never...more Maybe she’d always been there. Maybe strangers enter your heart first and then you spend the rest of your life searching for them. - TM

I don’t know how she does it, but Marchetta delivers it every time - a fictional story that seems so real, a cast of characters you’re not ready to let go of, and a powerful dialog that reaches into your heart and soul and reveals lessons and observations that have you contemplating love, life, loss and redemption. Absolute and shear perfection that I will never get enough of.

The Piper’s Son is a heart-wrenching story told in alternating POVs of both Thomas Mackee and Georgie Finch. It takes place two years after the death of Thomas’ Uncle Joe and the day he walked away from his friends from St. Sebastians and his family that was on the verge of imploding. Georgie has a set of issues of her own as her pregnancy progresses and she struggles to make sense of her life and the man that cheated on her seven years prior. This story takes you on their journey, one of healing, forgiveness and finding one’s way home again.

As with Marchetta’s other books, I love the cast of characters she creates and every single one is a gem in their own right. They are full of surprises and ready to take you on their exploration of life. I loved the twist with Mohsin the Ignorer. It made me realize that the worst thing you can do is not give someone a chance or simply the benefit of the doubt. Wow, when his bit was revealed, I was this close *gestures thumb and index finger one inch apart* to starting the story from the beginning to get a different perspective.

Frankie, Tara, Justine and Will were fun to revisit, but I wish.wish.wish Jimmy would have made an appearance. But no worries, this book delivered a healthy dose of surprises, sigh-worthy moments, and misty eyes that I hope others will enjoy as much as I did.

Melina Marchetta, the words you to commit to page are magical and the journeys you deliver are heart rending. You are a literary genius!!

Final note: A big HUG and thank you my kiwi friend Albie for sending me this beauteous book all the way from New Zealand. You are the bestest and I ♥ you for sharing this wonderful book with me!! It is South Carolina bound to the next SC Booker because it deserves to be shared and cherished. Alexa, you're up! :)

Favorite quotes
Don’t let anyone take care of you. Can you maybe leave that for me to do? I mean, take care of you? Feel free to take care of me in return… because I think I’ll need you to do that.- TM

Death by humiliation... - TM

Play me something that makes me feel,
This soul inside is made of steel.
Brain is breathing, but heart’s not beating,
And babe I need you to make things real.

Walk inside me without silence,
Kill the past and change the tense.
Empty gnawing and the ache is soaring,
Take me places that make more sense.
-Thomas Mackee(less)

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Jan 28, 2012 Aly (Fantasy4eva) rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: those who crave something amazing.

Shelves: big-fat-tears, hilarious, favourites, oh-how-the-heart-flutters, boys-that-make-me-swoon, crushing-on-the-cover, fast-paced-and-engrossing, i-ache-for-you, my-kinda-protagonist

She's done it again. It feels cruel almost, to know that this is the end. I mean I still struggle with knowing that there is nothing to follow after JELLICOE ROAD but to have another one of my personal favourites come to an end is going to be tough to digest for a while.

Dear, dear Thomas. It's an odd feeling to know that one of your favourite characters might just be a complete stranger to you. You know when you think you know someone, and then you find out that really, you were not even close....more She's done it again. It feels cruel almost, to know that this is the end. I mean I still struggle with knowing that there is nothing to follow after JELLICOE ROAD but to have another one of my personal favourites come to an end is going to be tough to digest for a while.

Dear, dear Thomas. It's an odd feeling to know that one of your favourite characters might just be a complete stranger to you. You know when you think you know someone, and then you find out that really, you were not even close. Kind of hurts huh? I felt that the moment I was on the first page because I knew this was not the Thomas I thought I knew. I got that feeling at the pit of my stomach, the same feeling when I started WHERE SHE WENT and was given this angry, bitter and not so sweet Adam that was so different from the Adam Mia had promised me from the first book. Why do the girls always get it so wrong huh? I mean our sweet Francesca had no clue, not really.

From what I gathered from the first book - I knew that Thomas was quite crude, funny, sarcastic and sweet when he wanted to show you that side of him but mostly he just kept to himself, so nothing prepared me for this guys who is big on drinking, drugs and plenty of casual sex. I also was not prepared for how far his feelings reached when it came to Tara. Heck I knew he liked her, really liked her even, but wow. It would seem tough Thomas has a weakness. Too bad he broke her heart, too bad that he's too lost to even attempt to win her back. With the death of his uncle Joe it was the last straw to anything in life which gave him a grain of stability. He dropped out of university, walked away from the one girl he had ever loved and lost contact with the only friends that he ever truly cared for. The boy, sadly, is one big mess.

I found something with THE PIPERS SON that I didn't quite find with SAVING FRANCESCA. Like JELLICOE ROAD it evoked such emotion within me, I mourned his anger, pain and loss. This tough exterior and bad attitude he used to push people away when he was falling apart inside. How he could turn me to mush when he talked with such genuine love and passion when it came to Tara, but then turn around and stare at his father with such hate that even I had to wince. His anger is understandable though. When his father's drinking went too far his mother left taking his sister with her. And although she pleaded with him to come with her he just couldn't bring himself leave his fathers side. Now that's love and courage. But when the repercussions this decision is fixed with anger and disappointment it turned him into a completely different person. The Thomas who just does not care anymore. However, frustration lies with the mother. I can't be ok with her just up and leaving her husband when he was at rock bottom. And I don't care how much she begged him, she should have done everything in her power to ensure her son came too if she really had to go. She took her daughter with her but had the nerve to leave him as if it would somehow be more bearable for him. She was his mother, he was not hers. And as much as I hate how much his father treated him unfairly and was hard on him, I can't help but feel that his mother wasn't all that different. Neither seemed to consider his feelings when it came to anything big or small. It's so clear when you take a step back. Thomas is lonely and afraid.

The book switches from Thomas to Georgie- his aunt - POV. She's an interesting character who is harbouring her own pain. With her boyfriend doing the unforgivable and then realising she is pregnant with his child - she is left in this awkward, and extremely painful relationship which is slowly tearing the both of them apart. It's so painful to watch that I just wanted them both to be happy. They had both suffered enough and it had come to the point that either they broke all ties or worked past what happened. Georgie and Thomas' relationship has to be one of the most genuine and touching one' out there. She is there for him and always has been, in ways that even his parents were not able to. Above all else though, she truly understands him.

Whilst Thomas surrounds himself in all this hate, he once again comes across old friends. Friends that he left behind. Francesca and Justine are back, and they are not about to let Thomas off the hook quite so easily. It's strange but quite interesting to see the characters though someone else' eyes. Whilst Francesca likes to see the good in people, our boy Thomas is all about the bad. He let's no one of the hook, but on the other hand both are very observant. Will also makes an appearance. To be honest I was always a little iffy about him. His whole arrogance always rubbed me the wrong way and, even now, although I know him and Francesca adore each other a BIG part of me wanted to scream. WHY NOT JIMMY, WHY! And here is where I mention my favourite character. The character that did not even make an appearance in the novel. That kind of kills me. After hearing this vague small story of what's happened with him I wanted to know more, I wanted to know if he was ok, because Jimmy was always mysterious and in the end he remained a mystery. I don't like not knowing characters I click with and when it comes to Jimmy there's practically a big question mark hovering over his head. It's very frustrating. However, for this very reason he could, no should, get his own book. It's so clear to me that Jimmy' story needs to be told. Not only do I love the guy, but he seems to know more about his friends than anyone else.

There are these magical moments that give us a glimpse of this sweet and tender side of Thomas. As you watch him battle with himself you see the love he has for Francesca and Justine. His guilt and worry for Tara and Jimmy. How hard he is trying to push away but how determined they are to have their Thomas back. And it's so obvious that he pushed them away because he knew they were the only ones who could break through the barrier and reach him. Although I was always fond of Thomas this book made me see him in a different light. So different from the prankster and light-hearted Thomas I thought I new. It makes me want to read SAVING FRANCESCA right now and this time around give him my undivided attention. Look out for every expression and word. Try to see where it all went wrong.

Luca and Anabel. It was so lovely to see them. It's wonderful how they all have such important and charming stories of their own. I can imagine there being a book for each one. Tom' two grandfathers falling in love with the same girl, his Aunt Georgie and Sam going through the good times, before they new where life would lead them, the romance that bloomed between his parents and is still there despite all that's happened, his uncle Joe and his beautiful girlfriend, and then it's Tom and Tara, leading eventually to what I couldn't help but notice. There's something beautiful in being a witness to something that will inevitably happen as they grow up. Just knowing. Luc and Anabel are charming characters and they are two people that some years down the line when they meet again, will completely fall in love. I guarantee it. And there's something sad as well as lovely about that. Seeing these two individuals who are so sweet and so meant for one another. I can already imagine their book. *sighs*

The Mullet boys and Ben, guys, are here. Very brief appearance but they are there nevertheless. Not so much the Mullet boys but it was Ben who had my heart racing. He was a character from JELLICOE ROAD which I held a silent sort of fondness for. And although his appearance was brief and hardly all that satisfying, the moment he entered the room, my eyes latched on, and I ached to stand up, run over to him, ask him to sit beside me and just talk. Ask him how life has been, ask him how the others are, gosh I would do anything to know how they are, Taylor, Jonah, Chas. I miss those guys so much sometimes it's ridiculous. Most of all I wanted to hug him, and tell him what their story means so me.

There is so much depth and beauty in THE PIPERS SON. Every page I went though made me more and more anxious because I knew it would eventually lead me to the end. And I didn't want to let go. Seeing all these new and old characters had such a profound affect on me. Because let's face it, Marchetta's characterization is just divine.

How do I even explain what Marchetta's characters do to you? It's so hard to put into words, but there's something magical about them. You can't pry your eyes away and once Thomas gives you that grin, Francesca that love, Jonah that intense *swoon worthy* stare, Taylor that heart, Justine, Ben and Chas that loyalty - it's close to impossible to ever go back. You'll struggle with other books because you know what potential is out there.

SAVING FRANCESCA is wonderful, yes, but THE PIPERS SON, is amazing. (less)

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Apr 05, 2013 Isamlq rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: everyone

Shelves: favorites

I haven’t read Saving Francesca yet… but from reading reviews of it, it seemed Tom MacKee was quite the guy. So to say that I was excited to get started on his story might be an understatement.

I love Melina Marchetta; she and John Green are probably two of my favorite YA contemporary writers. Now, to categorize The Piper's Son as just YA would be doing it a slight disservice because it is so much more than that! It’s about friendship and all the stuff attached to that. It’s about family and all...more

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Jul 20, 2011 Ariana rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: alternating-pov, aussie, favorites

4.5 stars.. This was such a beautiful story (as usual).

I am a Marchetta fan - she is simply amazing, she knows how to rip your heart out and then to put it back in place.
And, BTW, if the next one is about Jimmy i'm going to be so, so happy :D

PS: not sure why but I simply can't talk about Marchetta's books, she is just too awesome for me to put into a few words what she sais in a whole wonderful story.
I wouldn't be able to do justice to her work .. after all, what is better than reading a book b...more

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Oct 29, 2012 Hanne rated it 5 of 5 stars

Recommended to Hanne by: Wendy

Shelves: coming-of-age, kleenex-alert, shelf-a-ton-13, contemporary-fiction

This is the thing: i hardly ever cry in real life, but when it comes to fiction and imagination i can cry like there is no tomorrow.

1) Award winner for crying-my-eyes-out in the category Movies: Breaking the Waves by Lars Von Trier. A 3 hour gorgeous, but emotionally horrific movie with the fabulous Emily Watson. I started crying after 20 minutes and i didn't stop until the very end. I remember my mother forcing me to drink 2 glasses of water before we headed back home. She was scared i was dehy...more

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Mar 16, 2012 Jared Vincent Lacaran rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: Barack Obama

Shelves: all-time-favourites, re-read, to-be-reviewed

One day, you pass strangers by and think, I used to hang out with them.

Set 5 years after Saving Francesca, this book tells the story of Thomas Finch-Mackee, or just Tom (like in that nursery rhyme, Tom, Tom, the Piper's Son). After his uncle Joe died, Tom's family, and life, started to fall apart.

In this extremely heartbreaking novel, Marchetta narrates how a broken down young man slowly puts his life back together, piece by piece, and how a pregnant woman tries to cope with all the troubles th...more

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Oct 02, 2011 Kat Kennedy rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: contemporary-fiction, favorites, kat-s-book-reviews, leaves-awesomeness-behind, australian-writer, books-i-want-for-christmas

I was going to write a review for this, but no. Just go read Ceridwen's instead.

What are you still doing here? Go!

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Dec 19, 2011 Watermelon Daisy rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: EVERYONE IN THE WORLD.

Shelves: favorites

It took me a LONG time to read this, yes, but don't be fooled by that. I had examinations and a lot of things to catch up to, making no room for reading at all.

You know how you have that one book which you read, and you immediately feel respect for the author? Yes, well, this was it. I’ve read plenty of Melina’s works before, but none of them touched my heart like this one. “Looking for Alibrandi” was a nice book, but it wasn’t really deep. “Saving Francessca” has itself on my “Favourites” shelf...more

It took me a LONG time to read this, yes, but don't be fooled by that. I had examinations and a lot of things to catch up to, making no room for reading at all.

You know how you have that one book which you read, and you immediately feel respect for the author? Yes, well, this was it. I’ve read plenty of Melina’s works before, but none of them touched my heart like this one. “Looking for Alibrandi” was a nice book, but it wasn’t really deep. “Saving Francessca” has itself on my “Favourites” shelf, but at the same time, it’s a little too happy for my liking. But this book? I loved it. Every single second of it I was feeling something for the main character, Tom. He caught my heart, despite having so many negative things about himself. It’s amazing how, even though he’s my definition of “dickhead,” he manages to be so lovable and sweet.

The main story is a sequel to Saving Francessca, only this time it’s five years later and written from Tom’s point of view. However, it’s actually in third person and occasionally switches to Georgie’s point of view. It has a subplot –Georgie’s pregnancy and her relationship with Sam, who’s the father of the baby but then she told him to leave. Wanna know more about this fabulous story? Read it.

We are then reunited with Fancessca, who I really missed. Although I have to admit, Tom makes her sound girlier than she really is with his comments towards her interests and life in general. But this is one of the things I love: people have different views. Though she appeared pretty outspoken and tomboy-ish, she appeared as the “typical female” from Tom’s point of view. It was only Tara Finke who could win his heart.

Tara Finke was definitely one of my favourite characters of all time, along with Tom. Then there’s Georgie and Sam who I absolutely love. Tara is so wacky and even Tom admits that she is a complete nutcase sometimes, but she has a nice grip on reality and is logical at times. I love her. I think it’d be amazing if we got to know a little more about Tara –perhaps another book? (winks)– but it really doesn’t matter. I imagine it was a happy ending between her and Tom.

The thing about this book is how relatable it is. You don’t have to have an aunty who’s pregnant with a child and had recently kicked her husband out, a father who’s an alcoholic, a best friend –girl– who you left after a one-and-a-half night stand. You just need to be somebody who needs saving. And this is one of those books where the boy doesn’t think anybody can help them –and from the very start, I could’ve agreed with him– but slowly and steadily, he realises how much he needs the people in his life.

Altogether, this has been one of the most beautiful stories I’ve ever read in my lifetime.

Read. It.

Remy xx(less)

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Jun 15, 2012 Haleema rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: Everyone

Shelves: das-deep, disturb-me-and-die, damn-good-writing, heart-wrenching, i-am-in-love, must-meet-author, absolute-favorites, love-the-quotes, believable-characters, wish-i-wrote-this, brilliant-story-telling

When I returned this book to the library, I didn't want to let it go.

How can Marchetta do this to me?

Why did she have to leave my heart into a million pieces and then put them back together in such ease? Just like that? While I'm the one who was suffering and crying and wanting more and more throughout the whole damn book? That's not fair. Does she not know what she's done for a reader like me? How did she do that all within 328 pages? Sometimes it takes a lifetime to truly feel this heart-brok...more

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Sep 23, 2011 Lyndz rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: reviewed

4 & ½ stars

This is a beautiful book about life and how it is not always cupcakes and sunflowers. The only reason that I didn’t give it 5 stars is because this is not the type of book that I normally like & it didn’t really grab me right off the bat. Once I got into it though, I fell in love.

The characters were dynamic and inspiring and so real. The story line was definitely a tear jerker. I loved the poetic imagery this book drew upon. Just an all around wonderful book. Definitely worth...more

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Mar 20, 2011 Wendy F rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2011, melina-marchetta, favorites, young-adult, contemporary, my-lovers, gritty, tear-jerker

Dear Melina,

You write books with such deep heart and poise. You don't state how your character is feeling, you weave that emotion into the story with ease. To read your books is to open up your own heart and feel each pain and hurt with your character. My tears when I read your books are real and they come from deep in my soul, where you touch me. I am in awe of your talent.

A fan forever,
Wendy

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Mar 13, 2011 Catie rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: read-in-2011, ya

This is the third Melina Marchetta book I’ve read that deals with a large close knit family healing itself after being broken apart by tragedy (I don’t include Looking for Alibrandi or Finnikin of the Rock in that list), but I definitely wouldn’t say that the topic has gotten old for me. I think that’s Marchetta’s gift – she can take a simple story and fill it with so much gut wrenching truth and emotion that it’s just beautiful.

This book follows Tom Mackee, who was first introduced in Saving Fr...more This is the third Melina Marchetta book I’ve read that deals with a large close knit family healing itself after being broken apart by tragedy (I don’t include Looking for Alibrandi or Finnikin of the Rock in that list), but I definitely wouldn’t say that the topic has gotten old for me. I think that’s Marchetta’s gift – she can take a simple story and fill it with so much gut wrenching truth and emotion that it’s just beautiful.

This book follows Tom Mackee, who was first introduced in Saving Francesca, and his aunt Georgie. Tom has been lost and alone for the past year, following his uncle’s unexpected death, and his father’s collapse into alcoholism. He’s turned his back on the close group of friends that once held him together, including the girl that he’s loved for years. Georgie’s been grieving for her lost brother, and finds herself unexpectedly pregnant.

I think that this is one of Marchetta’s funnier books. Tom has inherited none of his father’s charisma and gregarious nature and somehow finds a way to say exactly the wrong thing in all situations (which he seems to turn into somewhat of a talent). I loved revisiting Will, Francesca, Tara, Siobhan, and Justine. I wonder if we’ll ever find out what’s happened to Jimmy? I also loved the new characters – Ned the cook and Sam in particular.

This book is filled with so many recognizable truths. I feel completely unable to express how much emotion and feeling this book dragged out of me, but I feel drained. The relationships are presented with all of the stark, miserable, awkward, beautiful complexity of reality and are never simplified. The only very minor complaint that I have is that I would have liked to see the addiction/alcoholism shown with the same wide spectrum. I felt that the topic was a bit glossed over, but that’s more like something that I just would have preferred. This novel is pretty perfect the way it is!

Perfect Musical Pairing

William Fitzsimmons - The Tide Pulls From The Moon

I only listen to William Fitzsimmons when I want to have my guts ripped out and wallow in sadness. This song is filled with a quiet yearning to be a different, better person and escape the history of your parents. It's the perfect mood for The Piper's Son.(less)

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Oct 18, 2010 Nic rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: aussie-ya, favourites, adult, 2010, swoon-worthy-read

"Maybe she'd always been there. Maybe strangers enter your heart first and then you spent the rest of your life searching for them."

Marchetta is a writing god!!! I have spent the day re-reading parts of this book that I love. I didn’t want this story to end.

The Piper’s Son is set 5 years after Saving Francesca. It is from Thomas Mackee’s POV and also his Aunty Georgia‘s, POV. Thomas Mackee isn’t the loveable misfit we all remember, he is sad and pissed off at the world. He is grieving the loss o...more "Maybe she'd always been there. Maybe strangers enter your heart first and then you spent the rest of your life searching for them."

Marchetta is a writing god!!! I have spent the day re-reading parts of this book that I love. I didn’t want this story to end.

The Piper’s Son is set 5 years after Saving Francesca. It is from Thomas Mackee’s POV and also his Aunty Georgia‘s, POV. Thomas Mackee isn’t the loveable misfit we all remember, he is sad and pissed off at the world. He is grieving the loss of his Uncle Joe and dealing with his family and his world falling apart. Georgie is also dealing with her grief but also falling pregnant to her ex who cheated on her 7 years ago. This is the story of Thomas and Georgie putting their lives back together.

The writing is brilliant, it pulls you into Thomas & Georgie's world. It doesn’t feel like you are being told a story, it feels like you are there with the characters. I became emotionally invested in them and it was heart wrenching at times. But thank goodness Marchetta balance the pain with hope and threw in humour to match the heart ache.

The characters are amazing. Flawed, realistic and loveable. I admit after reading Saving Francesca I had a bit of a crush on Thomas Mackee and this book didn’t help with that. Even if he did make me mad which happened a lot. We get flashbacks of his relationship with Tara. And also get to watch him try and rebuild that relationship through emails and telephone calls. I loved the emails, I loved seeing Tom put his feelings out there! We are introduced to Georgie and I adored her story. She was dealing with guilt about the baby, at what costs did it come. And she never believed she deserved happiness. I could have read a whole book just about her. We get to see Francesca, Will and Justine again. Jimmy though was mentioned briefly but is absent (here’s hoping Marchetta writes a book about his life!).

Overall, another favourite from Marchetta. A book I will read over and over again!

Note: I don’t think I would call this book YA. Not that I don’t think mature teens wouldn’t enjoy it but I would classify this book as adult.(less)

19 likes · like · see review

Jun 17, 2011 Megan rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: favorites, not-mine-library, young-adult

The Piper’s Son begins with Tom Mackee, and Tom is a mess. He’s perpetually wasted, on the outs with his family and friends, jobless and homeless. Throughout the novel we follow Tom, his friends and his family and see so many people (not just Tom) right the wrongs in their lives. The people Melina Marchetta has created have so much depth. They are flawed and their relationships are far from perfect. Yet, there is an astounding amount of unconditional love between them that comes across as so ver...more

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Feb 27, 2012 Belle rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: all-the-feelings, aussie-aussie-aussie, love-you-long-time, swoon-alert

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 de...more 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 their 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!

This review and more appear on my blog http://bellesbookshelf.blogspot.com.au/
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Mar 11, 2013 Tanja (Tanychy) St. Delphi rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: favorites, contemporary, realistic

Well dear world,

there is only one Melina Marchetta!

Sincerely,

me

Review also posted at Ja čitam, a ti?

I have no idea why I'm still try to write reviews for Melina's books. Probably because I know there is few of you still left to read her books. This is me trying to make you do so but really my words can't describe the beauty of these books.

In case you don't know The Piper's Son is sort of continuing the story from Saving Francesca. You could see my review for the later and find some things ab...more

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Jul 22, 2011 Erin rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: the world at large

Shelves: reading-challenge, great-characters, crying-forever, love-geometry, want, five-stars, big-romance, love-the-protag, dark, a-league-of-their-own, fictionational-love, multiple-narrators

I read this book with a perpetual lump in my throat. So, so much better than Saving Francesca, but I still recommend reading them both.

The Piper's Son is told in alternating perspectives between Tom and his aunt Georgie. This is probably due to my youngish age, but I enjoyed Tom's sections infinitely more than Georgie's. I was on Tom's side every step of the way, probably to a ludicrous degree. Even when my head told me he was being a douchebag and his ex-friends were right to keep him at arm's...more

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Mar 20, 2011 Cinnamon rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: flamingnet, own, 2011, realistic-fiction, young-adult, reviewed, 5-incomprehensibly-awesome

This review may also be found on A Thousand Little Pages.

Two broken people, destroyed by circumstance and the irreversible passage of time.

There is Tom -- the uni drop-out who spends his time pining for the girl whose heart he broke so many winters ago. Drowning in regret, he finds solace in escape, just as his alcoholic father blots out the world when life becomes too much to handle. And then there is Tom’s Aunt Georgie, confused and yearning for understanding after that one little event that f...more This review may also be found on A Thousand Little Pages.

Two broken people, destroyed by circumstance and the irreversible passage of time.

There is Tom -- the uni drop-out who spends his time pining for the girl whose heart he broke so many winters ago. Drowning in regret, he finds solace in escape, just as his alcoholic father blots out the world when life becomes too much to handle. And then there is Tom’s Aunt Georgie, confused and yearning for understanding after that one little event that fractured her life, even though the one person who can mend her is the one who broke her in the first place.

This is the story of the rediscovery of hope, as bits and pieces of Tom and Georgie’s lives continue to chip off and crumble in front of their weary eyes. This is where the healing begins.

I would never have given this book a second glance if shown its American cover: A boy guitarist in a striped shirt? Come on… How much more unoriginal can you get? However, I’ve had the luck to read a few of the brilliant Melina Marchetta’s works before and have thoroughly enjoyed every single one. To say that I was excited to start The Piper’s Son would be the understatement of the century.

Who would have thought that Marchetta could take something that resembled a cheesy Asian drama in character and plot and portray it as something so raw and real? You have your heart-broken protagonist with the messed-up family and the unrequited love and an adult counterpart with a marriage ripped apart by an affair. As usual, angst is always present, snaking its way through the story and leaving slimy trails of betrayal in its wake. It takes talent to write cliché into something of beauty and sadness and growth and forgiveness. Even though this book is as far from the fantasy genre as you can get, The Piper’s Son was magical. Yes, realistic novels can be magical, too.

And despite the almost depressing feel of the synopsis, there is also an abundance of humor – puns, sarcasm, and witty remarks about random things such as a certain grandfather’s bum in super short jogging shorts and the mortification that accompanies said shorts during morning jogs around the neighborhood.

A sort-of sequel of Saving Francesca but with a side character as the main one instead, The Piper’s Son is one of those rare books that deserves a re-read. Even the second time will be as engrossing as the first.

Books Source: Review Copy via Flamingnet(less)

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