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Грехът на пианистката
Миналото винаги се плаща в настоящето…
Никому известна пианистка се появява в малко канадско градче и приема да свири в църквата на местната общност. Скоро обаче тайната, от която е решена да се скрие тук, става достояние на всички и личността на Елен Жиру е разкрита. Непознатата французойка, която преди е имала голяма компания за изработка на пиана, днес ще отговаря пред закона за делата си.
С романа „Грехът на пианистката“ писателят Кърт Палка ни превежда през спомените на една силна жена, която в миналото е била притисната до ръба. Колониалните времена, Първата световна война, възходът и крахът на семейния бизнес и преместването от Франция в Канада са само част от събитията, предхождащи рискованото начинание, довело Елен до най-големия й грях. Виновна или морално неопетнена ще се окаже тя?
Никому известна пианистка се появява в малко канадско градче и приема да свири в църквата на местната общност. Скоро обаче тайната, от която е решена да се скрие тук, става достояние на всички и личността на Елен Жиру е разкрита. Непознатата французойка, която преди е имала голяма компания за изработка на пиана, днес ще отговаря пред закона за делата си.
С романа „Грехът на пианистката“ писателят Кърт Палка ни превежда през спомените на една силна жена, която в миналото е била притисната до ръба. Колониалните времена, Първата световна война, възходът и крахът на семейния бизнес и преместването от Франция в Канада са само част от събитията, предхождащи рискованото начинание, довело Елен до най-големия й грях. Виновна или морално неопетнена ще се окаже тя?
296 pages, Paperback
First published December 29, 2015
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2811 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 425 reviews
April 16, 2025
The perfect wintertime read, I would imagine, as soft snow dusts the barren frosty fields.
Sorta like it was on the old-time Bay of Fundy coast for Hélène Giroux, aridly awaiting trial for a crime no one thinks her mature modesty could for even a moment entertain committing. It would be nice to read this imperfect, leisurely paced novel, once again, while snowbound.
Its wonderful and so-carefully accretive atmosphere is so haunting...
For I loved Hélène, her decency, her resigned sense that perhaps “dulce et decorum est (in hic) patria mori....”
Yes, for perhaps, as the snowflakes scatter into pleasant oblivion the obtrusive ground-level realities of the First World War’s gross denial of all decent behaviour, and the uglier realities of a personal postwar secret no significant accumulation of whiteness can now hide... perhaps, in such a winter refuge, it would even be sweet in her adoptive country to resign the weary toil of life at last.
The book ambles through the course of an underplayed feminine life, serene in its quiet integrity.
I don’t think I’ve ever read such a wonderfully downplayed recent novel, in these times that are designed for their shock value alone.
This book was an oasis of calm common sense for me in 2005...
Just emerging from the sordid struggles of an overly-pushy office environment - how life had accelerated since I joined my then seemingly-so-sleepy establishment in the early 1970’s! - this was the anodyne I needed for my fast and furious lifestyle.
The novel strolls quietly - and almost a bit too impersonally, though in 2005, that was ME - through this wonderfully intelligent French woman’s fin-de-siècle industrious life.
Her youthful passion for the piano. Her lifelong mastery of building those very instruments. The men in her life. Her passions - and her mistakes.
Now that I am rereading Thomas Hardy, I see clearly that The Piano Maker is modestly cast in the mold of such slow nineteenth century novels as his.
As I say, at times I yearned for a touch more humanity from Palka. Perhaps in his other novels it’s evident. His writing is (almost) masterful, but austere.
It’s beautiful - but beautifully distant.
Distant as the snow-covered farmers’ fields in the Canadian Maritime provinces in the old days, glimpsed from the window of a chugging locomotive by a middle-aged widow named Hélène, distant to this world in her discrete reserve, en route to her destiny...
Yes, perhaps that’s just it. For Hélène is as beautifully distant as a mourning woman...
Mourning her secret past - a past soon to be made public, as snow fills up the fields.
Sorta like it was on the old-time Bay of Fundy coast for Hélène Giroux, aridly awaiting trial for a crime no one thinks her mature modesty could for even a moment entertain committing. It would be nice to read this imperfect, leisurely paced novel, once again, while snowbound.
Its wonderful and so-carefully accretive atmosphere is so haunting...
For I loved Hélène, her decency, her resigned sense that perhaps “dulce et decorum est (in hic) patria mori....”
Yes, for perhaps, as the snowflakes scatter into pleasant oblivion the obtrusive ground-level realities of the First World War’s gross denial of all decent behaviour, and the uglier realities of a personal postwar secret no significant accumulation of whiteness can now hide... perhaps, in such a winter refuge, it would even be sweet in her adoptive country to resign the weary toil of life at last.
The book ambles through the course of an underplayed feminine life, serene in its quiet integrity.
I don’t think I’ve ever read such a wonderfully downplayed recent novel, in these times that are designed for their shock value alone.
This book was an oasis of calm common sense for me in 2005...
Just emerging from the sordid struggles of an overly-pushy office environment - how life had accelerated since I joined my then seemingly-so-sleepy establishment in the early 1970’s! - this was the anodyne I needed for my fast and furious lifestyle.
The novel strolls quietly - and almost a bit too impersonally, though in 2005, that was ME - through this wonderfully intelligent French woman’s fin-de-siècle industrious life.
Her youthful passion for the piano. Her lifelong mastery of building those very instruments. The men in her life. Her passions - and her mistakes.
Now that I am rereading Thomas Hardy, I see clearly that The Piano Maker is modestly cast in the mold of such slow nineteenth century novels as his.
As I say, at times I yearned for a touch more humanity from Palka. Perhaps in his other novels it’s evident. His writing is (almost) masterful, but austere.
It’s beautiful - but beautifully distant.
Distant as the snow-covered farmers’ fields in the Canadian Maritime provinces in the old days, glimpsed from the window of a chugging locomotive by a middle-aged widow named Hélène, distant to this world in her discrete reserve, en route to her destiny...
Yes, perhaps that’s just it. For Hélène is as beautifully distant as a mourning woman...
Mourning her secret past - a past soon to be made public, as snow fills up the fields.
October 25, 2017
Once again I have been mesmerized by Kurt Palka’s storytelling and wonderful writing. This is the story of Hélène Giroux, daughter of Master piano makers in France, and later a Master herself. Hélène’s story moves in time and place from the years leading up to WWI through to the 1930’s, and from France to Asia, to England, and to Canada, with many shorter and longer side-trips in between.
During the war years, Hélène loses her mother, her husband, and eventually the family business. She and her young daughter Claire seek sanctuary in England but times are hard for everyone financially. Through friends, she is able to find her way to Canada, and an old acquaintance helps her to find ways to support herself.
Hélène is strong and resilient and determined, yet even she cannot foresee the strength and courage that will be required to move through everything life brings her way. There is an underlying mystery and eventually there is a trial to face, even though this concerned a time in their lives that Hélène thought was well behind them.
I cannot articulate what is about Kurt Palka’s stories and writing that I find so compelling. The dialogue is definitely part of it. How people address each other, and the ways they communicate feel so true to reality. Even beyond that, the way he weaves their descriptions and activities throughout their interactions with each other brings them vividly into my mind’s eye. It is the endearing little movements and ways they carry themselves and relate to each other that makes me want to reach in to the story and touch them.
I loved this book and would recommend it to everyone who is interested in the times and places mentioned. A bonus also awaits anyone who has ever been moved by music.
During the war years, Hélène loses her mother, her husband, and eventually the family business. She and her young daughter Claire seek sanctuary in England but times are hard for everyone financially. Through friends, she is able to find her way to Canada, and an old acquaintance helps her to find ways to support herself.
Hélène is strong and resilient and determined, yet even she cannot foresee the strength and courage that will be required to move through everything life brings her way. There is an underlying mystery and eventually there is a trial to face, even though this concerned a time in their lives that Hélène thought was well behind them.
I cannot articulate what is about Kurt Palka’s stories and writing that I find so compelling. The dialogue is definitely part of it. How people address each other, and the ways they communicate feel so true to reality. Even beyond that, the way he weaves their descriptions and activities throughout their interactions with each other brings them vividly into my mind’s eye. It is the endearing little movements and ways they carry themselves and relate to each other that makes me want to reach in to the story and touch them.
I loved this book and would recommend it to everyone who is interested in the times and places mentioned. A bonus also awaits anyone who has ever been moved by music.
June 18, 2018
This was such a beautiful story and it had me absolutely enthralled right from the get go. Historical fiction is either a hit or a miss for me and this was definitely a hit! It had just the right mix of history and storytelling to draw you right in and really make you feel for the characters. I also really loved that it was partially set in Montreal/Quebec, it made me feel really connected to the story. I really enjoyed how it all came together in the end, it was such a fitting conclusion to the story!
July 26, 2017
A good story, quietly written. I enjoyed the first 2/3 of the book, then it lost steam. It could have been the book, or it could have been me.
March 10, 2019
This novel reminded me of the movie Chocolate, where a strange woman arrives in a small town and starts to transform it. But the comparison ends there for the light hearted movie does not end with the same dramatic and tragic revelations contained in this book.
Helene is a middle aged French woman, skilled in playing piano and in the craft of piano making. She is well dressed, walks with a limp and drives a brand new car. It is 1933 and she arrives via Montreal at a rural Nova Scotian village, St. Homais, on the French Shore. Rather quickly by displaying her talent for music, she obtains work and accommodation at the parish church, playing piano and conducting the choir. Like with all small towns, she attracts both fans and detractors, for she is from away. And she has secrets. Big ones. Some even leading to murder. When her dark secret is outed and she is placed under house arrest in the church pending trial, business booms in St Homais, for everyone wants to attend church to see a suspected killer, everyone wants to attend a murder trial. The fans and detractors alike, except for Helen's inner circle of loyal friends, become gawkers.
We are quickly introduced to two story lines: one in the present day beginning when Helene arrives in St. Homais; and the older one of Helen's childhood, her apprenticeship in the family piano factory, marriage, and business partnership with a man, Nathan, who was to shape her future in more ways than one. The two story lines interweave slowly and build up to a rapid-fire climax when they become inseparable from each other, one scene from the past leading to the next from the present and vice versa. A very clever device on the part of the author to maintain suspense and interest.
In the process, we are given glimpses into the affects of World War I on survivors and on the occupied territory, France, in this case: the conscription of men, the inevitable news of a loved one dying, the futility of love when the men are transient and very soon dead, the shutting down of businesses due to the lack of labour, the monotonous meals scrounged from anywhere, even hunted in one's backyard, the scramble for firewood during winter, the routine billeting of soldiers in citizens' houses. We get an insight into piano making, and the sale of antiquities that Helene gets into with the aid and coaxing of Nathan, an older man who once desired her but had to settle for being her business partner. Hers is a charmed life amidst the devastation of war and the perils of travelling to colonized foreign lands to secure treasures paid for so richly by colonial museums and private collectors, a practice now considered illegal with former owners seeking redress. Inevitably Helene too has to face the occupational hazard of the lure of filthy lucre.
To discuss the plot any further would be to create spoilers, so I will refrain other than to say that Palka spins a good tale, backed with rich historical data and exercising strong narrative control. As much as he will dwell inordinately - perhaps to create suspense and mood - on a scene where Helene paces her bedroom awaiting trial, he will rush through the entire year she spent in Indo-China in a few pages. I thought he would get into trouble depicting the platonic, non-sexual relationship between Nathan and Helene but he manages that well, for it is a pivotal hinge and could have snapped the story apart like being caught in a bear trap.
I have read Palka's earlier novel, Clara, and I saw shades of similarity: war and its effects (In Clara we were dealing with WWII), strong women with tragic flaws who marry soldiers, converging story lines. However while Clara, read like a family history being fictionalized, The Piano Maker is a suspense novel and is far more interesting to read once you get through the early set-up chapters. I had the pleasure of meeting the author at a reading recently and I hope he continues to write more fiction in the years ahead.
Helene is a middle aged French woman, skilled in playing piano and in the craft of piano making. She is well dressed, walks with a limp and drives a brand new car. It is 1933 and she arrives via Montreal at a rural Nova Scotian village, St. Homais, on the French Shore. Rather quickly by displaying her talent for music, she obtains work and accommodation at the parish church, playing piano and conducting the choir. Like with all small towns, she attracts both fans and detractors, for she is from away. And she has secrets. Big ones. Some even leading to murder. When her dark secret is outed and she is placed under house arrest in the church pending trial, business booms in St Homais, for everyone wants to attend church to see a suspected killer, everyone wants to attend a murder trial. The fans and detractors alike, except for Helen's inner circle of loyal friends, become gawkers.
We are quickly introduced to two story lines: one in the present day beginning when Helene arrives in St. Homais; and the older one of Helen's childhood, her apprenticeship in the family piano factory, marriage, and business partnership with a man, Nathan, who was to shape her future in more ways than one. The two story lines interweave slowly and build up to a rapid-fire climax when they become inseparable from each other, one scene from the past leading to the next from the present and vice versa. A very clever device on the part of the author to maintain suspense and interest.
In the process, we are given glimpses into the affects of World War I on survivors and on the occupied territory, France, in this case: the conscription of men, the inevitable news of a loved one dying, the futility of love when the men are transient and very soon dead, the shutting down of businesses due to the lack of labour, the monotonous meals scrounged from anywhere, even hunted in one's backyard, the scramble for firewood during winter, the routine billeting of soldiers in citizens' houses. We get an insight into piano making, and the sale of antiquities that Helene gets into with the aid and coaxing of Nathan, an older man who once desired her but had to settle for being her business partner. Hers is a charmed life amidst the devastation of war and the perils of travelling to colonized foreign lands to secure treasures paid for so richly by colonial museums and private collectors, a practice now considered illegal with former owners seeking redress. Inevitably Helene too has to face the occupational hazard of the lure of filthy lucre.
To discuss the plot any further would be to create spoilers, so I will refrain other than to say that Palka spins a good tale, backed with rich historical data and exercising strong narrative control. As much as he will dwell inordinately - perhaps to create suspense and mood - on a scene where Helene paces her bedroom awaiting trial, he will rush through the entire year she spent in Indo-China in a few pages. I thought he would get into trouble depicting the platonic, non-sexual relationship between Nathan and Helene but he manages that well, for it is a pivotal hinge and could have snapped the story apart like being caught in a bear trap.
I have read Palka's earlier novel, Clara, and I saw shades of similarity: war and its effects (In Clara we were dealing with WWII), strong women with tragic flaws who marry soldiers, converging story lines. However while Clara, read like a family history being fictionalized, The Piano Maker is a suspense novel and is far more interesting to read once you get through the early set-up chapters. I had the pleasure of meeting the author at a reading recently and I hope he continues to write more fiction in the years ahead.
June 11, 2016
This was an easy and highly engaging book to sit out and enjoy the June sunshine this afternoon. "The Piano Maker" refers to the novel's female protagonist, Helene Giroux, who mysteriously appears in a small French village in the easterly Canadian province of Nova Scotia. Residents are intrigued enough to wonder as to why such a unique woman would stay in their little town and the reasoning behind Helene's arrival quickly emerges to the reader's attention.
I've never read a Kurt Palka novel before, but I certainly will be keeping an eye out for his other books in the future. As an aside,I felt it was very interesting that there was no author's note at the back of the book. Simply a link to a website if we wanted more information. Mr. Palka, we're readers! Of course,we want the back story!
I've never read a Kurt Palka novel before, but I certainly will be keeping an eye out for his other books in the future. As an aside,I felt it was very interesting that there was no author's note at the back of the book. Simply a link to a website if we wanted more information. Mr. Palka, we're readers! Of course,we want the back story!
April 3, 2016
Enjoyable, intriguing fascinating read with a strong, independent woman as the main character.
August 24, 2015
I adore strong female characters, especially when they are from a time in history, 1814 - 1830's, when it was unusual for women to be skilled craftsmen, have a career, be business smart, have male friends and travel to exotic locales to boot. Helene, from The Piano Maker, is all of that and more. Author, Kurt Palka, tells us Helene's story, which begins in Montmagny, France and ends in Saint Homais, Nova Scotia, with adventures in Haiphong, England, Montreal and Alberta in between, with skill and wonderful attention to detail. I found myself wishing to share a cup of tea with Helene so that she could tell me more about her amazing life. Love, deep sorrow and unimaginable circumstances touch Helene's life and threaten to haunt her until, finally, she tells her story, in court, and at last finds closure. This was a book that I started at midnight and could not put down until the wee hours of the morning. It was well worth it. I look forward to reading more of Mr. Palka's work.
June 28, 2017
Its not often that I will read a book in a day.
What prompted me was my in-person book-club. It was the book-club that recommended we read it, but I was way too absorbed in other books to pick it up until yesterday. I didnt actually plan to read it at that point, mainly because I wanted to wait until I got to Nova Scotia on my cross country tour challenge. However, it seemed I could not put it down for long, as KP really draws the reader in immediately.
The writing is as spare and austere as the little towns that dot the French Shore of Acadia.
A woman shows up in one of these towns, a stranger with a reference and gift for both languages and the piano. Although elements of her story were a bit too fantastical, and the information about the hand construction of pianos was a bit overwhelming, for the most part the male author quite gets the female pov.
Perhaps the perfect mystery tale for those who dont much like mysteries, I'd give it 4 out of 7 which translates to GR 3.5
What prompted me was my in-person book-club. It was the book-club that recommended we read it, but I was way too absorbed in other books to pick it up until yesterday. I didnt actually plan to read it at that point, mainly because I wanted to wait until I got to Nova Scotia on my cross country tour challenge. However, it seemed I could not put it down for long, as KP really draws the reader in immediately.
The writing is as spare and austere as the little towns that dot the French Shore of Acadia.
A woman shows up in one of these towns, a stranger with a reference and gift for both languages and the piano. Although elements of her story were a bit too fantastical, and the information about the hand construction of pianos was a bit overwhelming, for the most part the male author quite gets the female pov.
Perhaps the perfect mystery tale for those who dont much like mysteries, I'd give it 4 out of 7 which translates to GR 3.5
April 1, 2016
I really enjoyed this book. It was well written, and interesting to read about this woman and her very interesting life. It held my interest right from the start. Can't wait to read another book of his.
January 3, 2025
An odd tale of a French widow set in Canada after the First World War that was slow to get started and then veered in an unexpected direction. It’s an easy read that held up through a lot of skimming, and yet was still enjoyable. Also, a bit of a surprise ending, and not exactly what I was hoping for.
April 27, 2017
An interesting enough yarn. But the depiction of Canadian criminal procedure is abysmal. Thus the courtroom drama is just silly.
June 21, 2018
Closer to 2.5. The writing and storyline overall were fine; however, it needed more depth, the addition of a plot twist and overall better development of the storyline. It's more akin to a CBC afternoon movie. I don't have any strong dislike for it, only that I wished it had more depth. It was a light breezy (wintery) read.
April 4, 2021
The first 3/4 of this book was slow, melodramatic build up to some action. Lots of wallowing. The situational development added a positive dimension to the story, but there was simply too much of it. I get it, we are supposed to feel bad for this lady and the Nathan guy is a d-bag. It would have been better to just cut some of the melodrama out.
July 19, 2016
I liked it, though it was nothing particularly remarkable. Reminded me of a lesser version of Burial Rites or even Alias Grace.
October 8, 2017
https://ayearofbooksblog.com/2017/10/...
The Piano Maker was a surprise 5 star book. I discovered this author as part of the Canadian summer reading challenge by the County of Brant Library. I had never heard of this author and am sure glad that he was square a on the Bingo Card.
This story followed a woman who arrived in a small Canadian town in a swirl of mystery and gossip while she keeps the community spellbound with her beautiful music. The piano in the parish was built by her family and as she plays the treasured instrument the history of the family business is shared. The reader learns of the plight of this woman and her family as they fled the dangers of the Great War. Almost destitute, a widow and mother Helene travels to Canada and becomes entangled with a man from the past and his questionable business of selling sourcing and selling artifacts.
This novel has love, danger, war, suspense and death. It was a great novel which was difficult to put down. Kurt Palka was born in Austria, previously made wildlife films in Tanzania and Kenya and worked as a journalist.
The Piano Maker was a surprise 5 star book. I discovered this author as part of the Canadian summer reading challenge by the County of Brant Library. I had never heard of this author and am sure glad that he was square a on the Bingo Card.
This story followed a woman who arrived in a small Canadian town in a swirl of mystery and gossip while she keeps the community spellbound with her beautiful music. The piano in the parish was built by her family and as she plays the treasured instrument the history of the family business is shared. The reader learns of the plight of this woman and her family as they fled the dangers of the Great War. Almost destitute, a widow and mother Helene travels to Canada and becomes entangled with a man from the past and his questionable business of selling sourcing and selling artifacts.
This novel has love, danger, war, suspense and death. It was a great novel which was difficult to put down. Kurt Palka was born in Austria, previously made wildlife films in Tanzania and Kenya and worked as a journalist.
October 15, 2019
Wat een mooi verhaal. Een vrouw komt te wonen in een dorp aan the French shore in Canada en legt zich toe op het kerkkoor en pianospel. Ze maakt zich geliefd, maar sommigen moeten de vreemdeling niet. Ze lijken gelijk te krijgen wanneer de vrouw opnieuw wordt aangeklaagd in een moordzaak waarin ze eerder vrijgepleit was. Wat in het verleden is gebeurd, wordt langzaam duidelijk.
Zoals ik het nu vertel, klinkt het als een verhaal zoals ze zo vaak verteld worden. Toch is De pianobouwer anders. Herinnering en heden lopen op het goede moment in elkaar over, daar aan die Canadese kust.
Het zou een film kunnen zijn (doe toch maar niet, want de magie van het boek gaat erbij verloren).
March 24, 2020
Honestly liked this more than I expected but I also think there was still a lot of wasted potential. The plot was great and the setting was great, but there was little emotional connection between me and the characters, the whole book had an air of detachment over it. There could have been more depth to the characters and their emotional relationships. That bothered me because there was a lot to explore with the events that happen in the book, but the author always described everything in a very unemotional way. Other than that I was positively surprised because I knew nothing about this and randomly got it from some 3€ bin at a discounter a while ago. It definitely deserves to be on regular bookshelfs, not just in the discounter bins imho.
August 31, 2024
Гледайки корицата, имах една предварителна нагласа за разтърсваща история, дълбоко докосваща. До средата книгата ми вървеше много скучно, тровава. Непрекъснато те прехвърля от място в място, започнах да губя нишката, в кой момент за коя случка става въпрос. С напредването на страниците историята се навърза, но това отне почти половината книга. Ако не беше описан съдебен процес и няколко страници на същинската история, вероятно историята щеше да продължи да доскучава. Разтеглена в описанието, тъпчеща на едно място.
October 29, 2015
*Nudging up towards 3.5 stars*
CanLit that isn't CanLit. No earnest, existential navel-gazing here. Just a good old-fashioned yarn that happens to be set in Quebec. Mystery and romance generally make a good combination, and never more than when a mysterious, independent woman arrives in a post-Great War Quebec village.
There are some big issues towards the end, but none of the preachiness you'd normally endure from CanLit. The story holds up all by itself before that point.
CanLit that isn't CanLit. No earnest, existential navel-gazing here. Just a good old-fashioned yarn that happens to be set in Quebec. Mystery and romance generally make a good combination, and never more than when a mysterious, independent woman arrives in a post-Great War Quebec village.
There are some big issues towards the end, but none of the preachiness you'd normally endure from CanLit. The story holds up all by itself before that point.
February 23, 2016
This is a great little mystery with a strong female lead. The big "reveal" at the end was an interesting situation that makes you wonder what you would do in the same situation. The alternation between past and present was quite seamless as well. It's a very quick read and I liked that points were arrived at quickly; so many authors seem to drag things out! This is a nice succinct story! Enjoy.
September 12, 2016
I really enjoyed this book, which was chosen for my book group! Based upon my assumptions made from the title, it went in directions I never would've guessed, which made it all the more enjoyable. I also appreciated that it was a quick read and didn't take a huge time investment. Mr. Palka did a good job of weaving the past and present together as the story came to its conclusion.
May 13, 2025
I could not put this book down. It had me right from page 1. The back and forth in time was a bit annoying and sometimes confusing but well worth it to keep the suspense. I loved his writing. Not too wordy but beautifully descriptive. A wonderful book.
March 10, 2016
I loved this book and the character of Helene. A strong woman who followed her dreams and stayed true to herself over the years. A touching and sad story but wonderful all the same.
June 11, 2016
This was a good read. A great mix of European historical fiction and Canadiana. Very original.
September 3, 2016
Read this book in one sitting! Simply got into it and couldn't put it down. A suspenseful read with an interesting, strong woman as the main character.
August 28, 2016
Disappointing, to say the least. Apart from the fact that the 'mystery' was pretty obvious almost as soon as there was mention of frostbite, there were numerous little bits that just didn't ring true. I get annoyed at a book that is poorly edited, and that's really the problem with this one. The story might be okay, but the little details just irritate. Helene has a shelf made for her room in the church -- and in one day, the man has showed up with a perfectly made (pegged, fitted, sanded?) the next day, and it's even been varnished!!! I've done a little wood refinishing (not even starting from scratch) and can't imagine that anything this perfect would be done within a day -- and even the varnish was obviously dry!!! After that, more and more things jumped out. Like being north of Edmonton in the winter and getting up at 7 a.m. in the early grey light -- that would be about 10 a.m., not 7!! And they carried packages of frozen peas and carrots? Birdseye had just started packing frozen food in 1929 and yet they have it in an outpost far north of Edmonton in the next year or two?? And the custom made shoes -- wasn't she supposed to be broke? and yet ordering three pairs of custom shoes? I can't afford three pairs of anything more than imitation crocs!!
Not my favourite.
Not my favourite.
May 11, 2020
Hélène Giroux is een Franse zelfstandige vrouw die opgroeit in een familie van piano bouwers. Ze studeert onder de beste en het duurt niet lang voordat zij zelf naam mag maken in de branche. Totdat de wereld in chaos beland door de Eerste Wereldoorlog. De keuzes die Hélène moet maken lees je in haar flashbacks. Het boek begint namelijk met Hélène die aankomt in een klein dorpje in Canada. Daar probeert ze haar leven weer te vinden. Maar haar verleden blijft haar achterna komen.
Het boek had een mooie verhaallijn aan het begin van het boek. De flashbacks en het heden pasten bij elkaar, maar je was als lezer nog echt op zoek naar de reden van de flashbacks. Op het moment dat dit gebeurde, begon ik mijn interesse een beetje te verliezen. Het was niet meer spannend of vernieuwend. Ik kon het bijna voorspellen.
De Piano bouwer was een prachtig boek, waarin de muzikale achtergrond geweldig was, echt vond ik dat sommige keuzes van de hoofdpersoon niet realistisch waren en daar ergerde ik me aan.
Het boek had een mooie verhaallijn aan het begin van het boek. De flashbacks en het heden pasten bij elkaar, maar je was als lezer nog echt op zoek naar de reden van de flashbacks. Op het moment dat dit gebeurde, begon ik mijn interesse een beetje te verliezen. Het was niet meer spannend of vernieuwend. Ik kon het bijna voorspellen.
De Piano bouwer was een prachtig boek, waarin de muzikale achtergrond geweldig was, echt vond ik dat sommige keuzes van de hoofdpersoon niet realistisch waren en daar ergerde ik me aan.
February 26, 2016
This is a well written mystery/historical novel with a strong female lead. I really appreciated the straightforward manner in which this book was written. The mystery of why Helene, the protagonist, ended up where she was and what had occurred before she arrived kept me continually wanting to know more.
The alternating between past and present was quite seamless. The situation revealed at the end genuinely makes you wonder what you would do in the same circumstances. For that reason, I'd suggest this as an ideal novel for book clubs (though this was not read for my book club).
As another reviewer mentions, It's a quick read and I liked that points were arrived at quickly; so many authors seem to drag things out! This is a succinct historical fiction novel that I definitely recommend. I plan to seek out more of Kurt Palka's novels after reading this.
The alternating between past and present was quite seamless. The situation revealed at the end genuinely makes you wonder what you would do in the same circumstances. For that reason, I'd suggest this as an ideal novel for book clubs (though this was not read for my book club).
As another reviewer mentions, It's a quick read and I liked that points were arrived at quickly; so many authors seem to drag things out! This is a succinct historical fiction novel that I definitely recommend. I plan to seek out more of Kurt Palka's novels after reading this.
July 18, 2016
The Piano Maker is the best book I have read this year. It is a difficult book to put down and I found myself making excuses to read, on buses, subways, before classes, etc. It is a mystery. The character development is phenomenal. I really started to like Helene and all she had been through during WW1. The information on the piano factory, her technical skills understanding music as well as her professional talent as a pianist is amazing. Helene joins forces with a man she has been cheated by and then he is killed in her presence and she is tried a second time for his murder. The courtroom drama is well written and the jury’s mood is swayed. I don’t want to give away the ending, but it is a surprise. I would recommend The Piano Maker to all reading audiences. For those liking The Girl on the Train, they will love The Piano Maker.
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