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How to Write the Soundtrack to Your Life
Murphy Parker is going to be a songwriter. If she can summon up the nerve to play in front of anyone other than her dad, that is. When an unplanned keyboard performance at school goes well, Murphy wonders if maybe her dreams have a chance after all. Until her entire grade accuses her of plagiarism.
Someone out there is playing Murphy’s songs. But why? How did they hear her play? Desperate to clear her name and reclaim her music, Murphy makes an unlikely alliance with two of her classmates. Turns out, friendship might be even more complicated than tracking down a song thief…
From the up-and-coming talent behind HOW TO MAKE A MOVIE IN 12 DAYS comes a funny and moving mystery about family, friendship and finding your voice.
Someone out there is playing Murphy’s songs. But why? How did they hear her play? Desperate to clear her name and reclaim her music, Murphy makes an unlikely alliance with two of her classmates. Turns out, friendship might be even more complicated than tracking down a song thief…
From the up-and-coming talent behind HOW TO MAKE A MOVIE IN 12 DAYS comes a funny and moving mystery about family, friendship and finding your voice.
- GenresMiddle Grade
272 pages, Paperback
Published August 25, 2020
About the author
Fiona Hardy
6 books40 followersFiona Hardy is a bookseller (and was in fact shortlisted for ABA Young Bookseller of the Year in 2017). She is a reviewer published in Books+Publishing, The Big Issue, and Readings Monthly, and was a committee member of the Australian Crime Writers Association, which organises the Ned Kelly Awards. Her short fiction has been published in The Big Issue Fiction Edition 2017, Gargouille, and other journals; her short story 'Green Thumbs' won the 2024 Scarlet Stiletto HQ Best Thriller Prize.
Her first book, 'How to Make a Movie in Twelve Days', was longlisted for the ABIA and Indie Book Awards, and was a CBCA Notable Book for 2020. Her second book, 'How to Write the Soundtrack to Your Life', won the 2021 Children's Peace Literature Award.
Her first book, 'How to Make a Movie in Twelve Days', was longlisted for the ABIA and Indie Book Awards, and was a CBCA Notable Book for 2020. Her second book, 'How to Write the Soundtrack to Your Life', won the 2021 Children's Peace Literature Award.
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
January 22, 2021
Reading Fiona Hardy is good for the soul - whether you’re young or old.
Fiona continues to bring such joy to Aussie middle grade with these fierce and fabulous books all about young people striving and creating and becoming more who they want to be.
I’m absolutely honoured to be in her orbit, frankly. Her books are a joy, and so is she.
Fiona continues to bring such joy to Aussie middle grade with these fierce and fabulous books all about young people striving and creating and becoming more who they want to be.
I’m absolutely honoured to be in her orbit, frankly. Her books are a joy, and so is she.
March 13, 2021
Trigger warnings: mental health, parental abandonment (in the past), theft of intellectual property, bullying.
I absolutely adored Hardy's first book, and given that this follows a kid in the same year level as the protagonist in the first book, I was really hoping I'd love this one as well. And yet I really struggled to connect with this story.
Don't get me wrong, there was a lot that I loved about it - it deals very frankly but also very gently with Murphy's mental health and her father's more complex mental health issues, and that's all too rare in middle grade books. I also liked the prevalence of music in the story and the diversity represented within the characters, and I especially liked the discussion of Murphy's family situation.
But honestly? There were so many characters that I had a hard time keeping track of them all. I found it quite slow moving a lot of the time. And it rapidly turned into one of those books that was quite easy to read when I was actually reading it, but the second I put it down, I lost all interest for some inexplicable reason. So ultimately, this turned out to be a middle-of-the-road book for me.
I absolutely adored Hardy's first book, and given that this follows a kid in the same year level as the protagonist in the first book, I was really hoping I'd love this one as well. And yet I really struggled to connect with this story.
Don't get me wrong, there was a lot that I loved about it - it deals very frankly but also very gently with Murphy's mental health and her father's more complex mental health issues, and that's all too rare in middle grade books. I also liked the prevalence of music in the story and the diversity represented within the characters, and I especially liked the discussion of Murphy's family situation.
But honestly? There were so many characters that I had a hard time keeping track of them all. I found it quite slow moving a lot of the time. And it rapidly turned into one of those books that was quite easy to read when I was actually reading it, but the second I put it down, I lost all interest for some inexplicable reason. So ultimately, this turned out to be a middle-of-the-road book for me.
October 21, 2021
Read with my 7 and 11 year olds. As usual Hardy presents a cast of down to earth Aussie characters dealing with real life issues such as parental depression and friendship skills. It is a good who dunnit storyline wity character development. Unfortunately this book lacked the comic relief characters typical of Hardy's other works and so my 7 year old slightly less engaged with this one.
March 20, 2022
Themes: school life, single parenting, blended families, shyness, mental health challenges, music, friendships, theft of intellectual property, nebulous school staff members and others
I enjoyed this book but found it rather long at 272 pages. It incorporates a number of themes, as listed above. The gist is that 11-year old talented keyboard-player, Murphy has composed music which someone ‘steals’ and adapts to post online. Murphy is ostracised at school by many fellow students as they think that she was not the original composer, when she plays the music at special whole class music lessons. They presume that she ‘stole’ the compositions when in fact it was the other way around.
The book has a certain ‘who-done-it’ vibe. I guessed early on who the real thief was, albeit several alternative options were offered.
Murphy’s so-called ‘best friends’ Marcie and Jhyll (often referred to as ‘terrible’ - the adjective was over-used) denounce her, while at the same time, other classmates come to her support. There is a special bond with mysterious class loner, Avery. I would have liked to see Avery’s character taken further; to see more of his background story and a greater character arc development. There are some bossy and overbearing students. As a primary school teacher, I can’t imagine some of the events in the book actually taking place - the characters are sometimes just too precocious in their ways and actions and would not be able to do what they did in a primary setting.
I found the multiple accounts of Murphy’s cousin, Junie’s cooking attempts (Junie mixes sweet and savoury in weird combinations) to be unnecessary textual padding. So too were the several times when elderly neighbour, Mrs Oswald, engages in the same repartee about youngsters using her first or last name. One such anecdote for each of these idiosyncrasies would have been enough.
Murphy’s father’s depression challenges are sensitively dealt with and at the back of the book there is a list of websites for those facing mental health problems. Murphy has anxiety challenges and is a shy kid who communicates poorly with others. It is good to see her grow in confidence through the book.
Perhaps this book would have been better pitched at a YA audience, with more ‘meat’ and some deeper boy-girl relationship issues in it. I anticipated the villain early on and was eager to move on to something different. However, I read through to the end, as I value the fact that every author works so darn hard and does their best.
I enjoyed this book but found it rather long at 272 pages. It incorporates a number of themes, as listed above. The gist is that 11-year old talented keyboard-player, Murphy has composed music which someone ‘steals’ and adapts to post online. Murphy is ostracised at school by many fellow students as they think that she was not the original composer, when she plays the music at special whole class music lessons. They presume that she ‘stole’ the compositions when in fact it was the other way around.
The book has a certain ‘who-done-it’ vibe. I guessed early on who the real thief was, albeit several alternative options were offered.
Murphy’s so-called ‘best friends’ Marcie and Jhyll (often referred to as ‘terrible’ - the adjective was over-used) denounce her, while at the same time, other classmates come to her support. There is a special bond with mysterious class loner, Avery. I would have liked to see Avery’s character taken further; to see more of his background story and a greater character arc development. There are some bossy and overbearing students. As a primary school teacher, I can’t imagine some of the events in the book actually taking place - the characters are sometimes just too precocious in their ways and actions and would not be able to do what they did in a primary setting.
I found the multiple accounts of Murphy’s cousin, Junie’s cooking attempts (Junie mixes sweet and savoury in weird combinations) to be unnecessary textual padding. So too were the several times when elderly neighbour, Mrs Oswald, engages in the same repartee about youngsters using her first or last name. One such anecdote for each of these idiosyncrasies would have been enough.
Murphy’s father’s depression challenges are sensitively dealt with and at the back of the book there is a list of websites for those facing mental health problems. Murphy has anxiety challenges and is a shy kid who communicates poorly with others. It is good to see her grow in confidence through the book.
Perhaps this book would have been better pitched at a YA audience, with more ‘meat’ and some deeper boy-girl relationship issues in it. I anticipated the villain early on and was eager to move on to something different. However, I read through to the end, as I value the fact that every author works so darn hard and does their best.
September 8, 2024
Peers have difficulty leaving quiet kids alone. Murphy Parker is an excellent example. Abandoned by her mother and with a father who struggles with mental illness, she's in her own head a lot. She lives with her dad's brother Pete and his wife, sharing a room with her older cousin Junie, famous within the family for trying outrageous recipes out on them in her quest to become a chef. Murphy finds solace in composing music on the small keyboard that's the only thing her mother left behind. Unfortunately, she seldom writes down any of her compositions. When one of her two friends pulls the plug on her earphones in a music class at school, she's so into what she's playing, she fails to realize everyone can hear the song until it's too late. Most of the other kids are shocked at her talent...Until the next day when the song appears in a skateboarding video and is attributed to a mysterious band, leaving many believing she stole the song. What ensues involves treachery by her friends, some new and more loyal ones, detective work, and a big surprise when Murphy discovers her betrayer. It's a delightful and sometimes messy journey that shows how she grows as well as how strong the bond is between her and Dad. An excellent choice tor any juvenile library collection.
August 13, 2022
That’s two for two amazing books by Fiona Hardy, how does she do it?! Such a wonderful balance of humour and seriousness without getting harrowing. I just love the realness of the kids’ voices with the yelling and the cleverness. Murphy does come across as younger than Hayley which I really liked, it felt truer to her age. It takes Murphy a lot longer to put things together and to work out the right words to say though that bit is more her shyness.
The start did upset me a little seeing how awful her so-called friends were to her, but the majority of the book is watching her form new good friendships and that was just so heartwarming and a relief to see.
Her relationship with her dad and how the whole family manage his mental illness was such a wonderful example of how to be and what to say. My heart ached for both of them and I’m so glad Fiona protected them both by not writing the worst that could happen. I was slightly braced for that even though I told myself such darkness wasn’t Fiona’s style and I was right and so grateful to her.
I wasn’t gunna read Homer’s book cos I so don’t care about sports but I think I might soon.
The start did upset me a little seeing how awful her so-called friends were to her, but the majority of the book is watching her form new good friendships and that was just so heartwarming and a relief to see.
Her relationship with her dad and how the whole family manage his mental illness was such a wonderful example of how to be and what to say. My heart ached for both of them and I’m so glad Fiona protected them both by not writing the worst that could happen. I was slightly braced for that even though I told myself such darkness wasn’t Fiona’s style and I was right and so grateful to her.
I wasn’t gunna read Homer’s book cos I so don’t care about sports but I think I might soon.
January 18, 2023
This book had me hooked. I couldn't stop reading until I found out who the thief was. I very much enjoyed that the book featured a different way that families can live together. I appreciated the way it talked about depression, although I wish it did not make it seem like all depression meds have very negative side effects. I enjoyed the characters although I felt there might have been too many kids in the story to really get each character. It pose great questions about friendships and would be helpful for any tween or teen navigating difficult friendships. It showed how good friends should treat one another.
December 6, 2020
Fiona Hardy has a whole Middle Grade series about kids living their artistic passions in primary school - first book is about a budding film-director, second is a song-writer and I think the (2021 forthcoming) third book may be about a boy who wants to be a ballet dancer more than a football player ... https://affirmpress.com.au/publishing...
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 23, 2021
I preferred her first novel because it felt fresh. This follow-up was still really enjoyable, but felt quite similar in style - I guess because it really was a follow-up (same kids, different main character)
October 26, 2020
Review to come
March 27, 2022
I loved this so much. The representation of mental illness is phenomenal!!
January 10, 2024
This book was great but I just found it kinda boring, and you knew what was coming next most of the time.
April 23, 2025
Such a wholesome book
July 31, 2023
Hidden within this middle school mystery are deep and important messages of acceptance, friendship, and having courage to stand by the underdog. Murphy’s father struggles with depression and Fiona does a beautiful job of showing how hard Sam worked to be a good father and the impact on the whole family.
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews