Rating: 
Summary: I must agree with the Mountain Magic!!!
Review: After reading this book I had a very strong feeling to write a review with hopes to Capture everyone out there who is drawn to intuition and also those skeptics. This was a very moving story for myself and I truly believe for those people who have a curiosity, a calling, feeling or intution, you will pick this book up for the blessing of it. McCrumb takes you through two and a half centuries of a famious singer, Lark McCourry's generation, bring you to a point of understanding her relationship with her father. One chapter is geared to the twentieth century Lark McCourry's life and the next chapter takes you back to her ancestors lives, weaving the story together all along the way. It was nearly impossible to put the book down at times. I was actually drawn to this book in my local town library while looking for a good fiction to take along on a 4 day trip from Maine to Greensboro North Carolina (HOW COINCIDENTAL IS THAT!). I picked it up twice but decided against the choice and took two others instead. After arriving home I still had a very strong intuition to go back to the library for "The Songcatcher" which I'm extremely grateful for doing! It is a must read for any historical fiction lover. I will definately try more of Sharyn McCrumb's fiction.
Rating: 
Summary: Walk in the Shoes of the Appalachian People
Review: Being an avid genealogy hobbyist and lover of Appalachian, I feel that Ms. McCrumbs has really the nail on the head in her feel of the Appalachian people and their history and genealogy. She has the ability to make the reader feel as if they were in the shoes of the Appalachian people even giving them lessons, as in how to pronounce the word, "Appalachian" correctly. I liked the story of the history of the song better than Lark's story. Lark was written as more of a shallow person than those left up on the mountains, but maybe Ms. McCrumb meant to do this. Also, the LeDonne chapters could have been incorporated into other parts of the book than being in separate chapters--leaving the reader to wonder, "why tell the story of this person, if only to tell of the old wrecked plane."
I hope Ms. McCrumb writes more of the Ballad series. She has a permanent fan here.
Rating:
Summary: McCrumb weaves music and mystery in a haunting tale
Review: Continuing in her successful ballad series, Sharyn McCrumb reaches back to her own family tree for the source of this satisfying tale. The reader is immediately captivated by the story of young Malcolm McCourry, kidnapped in the 1700's, by sailors from his native Scotland and brought to the colonies. On board the ship, the young boy hears a haunting ballad which stays with him his entire life. The focus of the novel is the search for this ballad by a contemporary folk singer, McCourry's descendent. She is the "songcatcher" of the title. Along the way, the author gives us an informal tutorial in how the classic appalachian ballads were "found" by musicologists. The author's love of her heritage is felt in every page. Its also great to see some of the familiar characters from the earlier ballad novels here as well. Altogether, this is one of her very best. Couldn't put it down.
Rating:
Summary: Another winning entry in this McCrumb series.
Review: Enjoyed all of the stories and how they were pulled together in "The Songcatcher." I was particularly intrigued by the hunt for the song, and whether it would be "found" or not. And since I like both the Nore Bonesteel and Spencer Arrowood characters, I enjoyed the fact they they both took part in the song.
Rating:
Summary: Try the audio version to hear the song "Rowan Stave"
Review: Firstly, readers should know that this is NOT the book that the recent movie "Songcatcher" is based on. That's what I thought when I picked up the audio version, and boy was I confused for the first couple hours. Secondly, the audio version contains lovely sung versions of the pivotal song "The Rowan Stave", which is not a real vintage song but instead a facsimile created by the author and some musician friends. (It's available along with other period music from the book on CD.) However, it's so beautifully done that it is very convincing as a genuine 18th century folk ballad. The audio version also includes an afterword by Sharyn McCrumb that explains that the story of Malcolm McQuarry is an actual history of her own distant relative coming to the Appalachians in the mid-1800s. It's such an incredible story that during the reading, I had dismissed it as somewhat fantastic, which shows you that truth is often stranger than fiction. I had the priviledge of hearing this tape during a long drive through W. Virginia and Virginia's Blue Ridge Mountains. A perfect setting! Although somewhat overlong and possibly 2-3 too many characters and plot strings to be a real classic, it's still a "good read" and the music very haunting. A part of our history and cultural heritage that is much overlooked by those of us who live in other parts of the US. It definitely made me want to know more about this area and it's history, and I was sorry when it ended.
Rating:
Summary: Try the audio version to hear the song "Rowan Stave"
Review: Firstly, readers should know that this is NOT the book that the recent movie "Songcatcher" is based on. That's what I thought when I picked up the audio version, and boy was I confused for the first couple hours. Secondly, the audio version contains lovely sung versions of the pivotal song "The Rowan Stave", which is not a real vintage song but instead a facsimile created by the author and some musician friends. (It's available along with other period music from the book on CD.) However, it's so beautifully done that it is very convincing as a genuine 18th century folk ballad. The audio version also includes an afterword by Sharyn McCrumb that explains that the story of Malcolm McQuarry is an actual history of her own distant relative coming to the Appalachians in the mid-1800s. It's such an incredible story that during the reading, I had dismissed it as somewhat fantastic, which shows you that truth is often stranger than fiction. I had the priviledge of hearing this tape during a long drive through W. Virginia and Virginia's Blue Ridge Mountains. A perfect setting! Although somewhat overlong and possibly 2-3 too many characters and plot strings to be a real classic, it's still a "good read" and the music very haunting. A part of our history and cultural heritage that is much overlooked by those of us who live in other parts of the US. It definitely made me want to know more about this area and it's history, and I was sorry when it ended.
Rating: 
Summary: Enjoyable, but not the best of series
Review: For some reason, this one doesn't move me as much as others in this series. A little too much paralellism, perhaps, a little too much of the past and not enough of the presence? And it DOES annoy me when a novel about ballads gets details of a ballad wrong. McCrumb tells us that the demon in the House Carpenter is the carpenter himself, when it's the long-lost lover.
Rating:
Summary: Enjoyable, but not the best of series
Review: For some reason, this one doesn't move me as much as others in this series. A little too much paralellism, perhaps, a little too much of the past and not enough of the presence? And it DOES annoy me when a novel about ballads gets details of a ballad wrong. McCrumb tells us that the demon in the House Carpenter is the carpenter himself, when it's the long-lost lover.
Rating:
Summary: Haunting, lyrical
Review: From the first page of this book Sharyn McCrumb gets her hooks into the reader and doesn't let you go. There are many reasons why I shouldn't have liked this book, and yet I did. Normally I won't read a book that has more than two or three viewpoint characters. This book had more than a dozen narrators, but such is McCrumb's talent that each character has a unique voice and point of view so you aren't jarred by the transitions. There is no mystery in here per se, though the book is shelved in the mystery section. And the action switches between past and present, tracing one family through the generations while events in the present unfold over the course of a few days. The real star of this book is the Appalachin setting, which McCrumb writes about lovingly but without sentimentality. Every time I read one of her books I feel as if I had spent that time in her beloved mountains, meeting some of the wonderful and quirky characters who fill her stories. A great read. It's a treat to watch how McCrumb continues to grow as a writer in each of her books.
Rating:
Summary: Haunting, lyrical
Review: From the first page of this book Sharyn McCrumb gets her hooks into the reader and doesn't let you go. There are many reasons why I shouldn't have liked this book, and yet I did. Normally I won't read a book that has more than two or three viewpoint characters. This book had more than a dozen narrators, but such is McCrumb's talent that each character has a unique voice and point of view so you aren't jarred by the transitions. There is no mystery in here per se, though the book is shelved in the mystery section. And the action switches between past and present, tracing one family through the generations while events in the present unfold over the course of a few days. The real star of this book is the Appalachin setting, which McCrumb writes about lovingly but without sentimentality. Every time I read one of her books I feel as if I had spent that time in her beloved mountains, meeting some of the wonderful and quirky characters who fill her stories. A great read. It's a treat to watch how McCrumb continues to grow as a writer in each of her books.
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