Plainsong

Rating:
Summary: Are you kidding???????
Review: This is one of the most bleak and depressing books I've ever had the misfortune to read. Although I can see why people applaud the style of the writing, how can they get past the horrible story? I will not be looking forward to reading any more selections by the National Book Award committee.

Rating:
Summary: Far from plain
Review: Plain is a word with many synonyms. Candid. Artless. Clear. Humble. Ordinary. Simple. All of these adjectives describe this book only on the suface. I was engaged from the very beginning of this book. At first I was fooled into thinking that this book was mostly about small issues, really not much more than brief glimpses into the lives of a few characters. Fortunately, I was pleasantly surprised to find the novel encompassed more examination into the lives of the characters.

Rating:
Summary: Laudable...
Review: Complex novel of quirky, mostly-believable characters, the central trio being 2 quirky old bachelor brothers who take in a 17yo town girl who's been kicked out my her mother when her pregnancy is discovered. Deceptively plain language masks a complex view of the inter-relationships of the characters.

Rating:
Summary: Simplicity of Style
Review: From the age of five when we learn to read, to the age of six when we learn to write, to the age of eight when we learn to write with plots, we know to use quotation marks when someone speaks. "Yes," said the cat.
"No," said the dog.
Moreover, we are taught vocabulary, and encouraged to use "big words" in our writing. The lethargic woman opted to reside in her domicile while her vigorous spouse desired to trek throughout the globe. However, Kent Haruf, author of Plainsong follows the message of the title: describing the intricacy of human nature by illustrating its simplicity. He does this by abandoning quotation marks and using vocabulary a fourth-grader could follow. Haruf uses style in order to show the theme of Plainsong, because he shows complexity masked by simplicity.
I logged on to amazon.com in order to find out what my fellow readers thought about Haruf's unsophisticated style. October 23, 2000, someone named janmcalex said, "[Plainsong's] simplicity of style gives the reader the opportunity to emotionally participate in the lives of the characters." However, I do not think that Haruf's style has to do with emotion; it has more to do with the theme, which is how it is human nature to hold a careful, straightforward façade while deep, complex needs are hurting inside. This façade can even fool the one hiding behind it. Haruf's easygoing writing style masks the complex needs of the characters inside it. True, there is no excess of punctuation or verbiage to get in the way of one's understanding of the characters. Another reviewer, skoneill, wrote, "... my heart aches for his protagonists..." I felt this way as well, but I think this simplicity of style is a kind of metaphor for the human ability to seem simple and carefree while unknown intricacies are brewing inside.
Later in the review, however, janmcalex touches on the theme. "Such simple gifts to salve over deep needs." Simple gifts, in this story, are the influence of other people. Old bachelors, the MacPheron brothers, need the touch of a young lady in their neglected home and graceful teenager Victoria Roubideaux comes to stay with them. Tom Guthrie and his two sons need a mother figure in their lives and then they meet Maggie Jones, a lovable and strong woman. They live in a small town called Holt, where nothing puts it on a map. Even the town they live in seems like what some might call a "hick town," but the relationships of the characters are so complex that as I was reading the book, I forgot the setting was in a place where the population was no more than 5,000 people. By omitting quotation marks that the most elegant of authors would use, Kent Haruf conveys a sense of simplicity in the beginning. I found, though, that I forgot about the simple vocabulary and punctuation; I concentrated on the far-reaching needs of the plausible characters in which everyone can find characteristics of him or herself. Both skoneill and janmcalex agree, saying, "... [the characters] are human and recognizable archetypes who might well live next door" and "...in these misfits, we find elements of ourselves."
On the other hand, a person called rhymeswithorange wrote a review on June 11, 2003, and said, "While I did enjoy some aspects of the plot, other storylines annoyed and distracted me from my overall satisfaction." However, I completely disagree. Haruf hid the true intricacy of the plot and characters behind his simplistic style. Perhaps he hid this intention too well for rhymeswithorange. Having multiple storylines shows that even in an uncomplicated town with uncomplicated dialogue, unbelievably complicated things could be happening. rhymeswithorange also stated that, "Overall, I believe that if Plainsong lacked the storyline of Victoria it would have been much better." Then again, Victoria's story was the most telling plotline in this book. She acted strong even though she was pregnant, homeless, and unemployed. Maggie Jones healed her needs by giving her a mother figure to look up to and by delivering her to the door of the MacPheron brothers, who seemed like typical old ranchers. On the contrary, as Victoria's story developed, they turn out to be generous, wise, and almost saintly. They give Victoria everything she wants, material to the simplest gift, rebuilding her trust in men, when in the past the men she knew had practically no redeeming qualities.
Haruf's simple style puts up its own façade around the intricacy of the characters and plot beyond. It is similar to human nature, the nature of those characters with which we can identify. A reviewer called spencer625 said, "...I'd like to read it again some day." I agree, and I cannot wait for what reviewer nashvillebear said on July 31, 2003: "CBS plans to present Plainsong as a Hallmark Hall of Fame film."

Rating:
Summary: A quiet and graceful tale of a small prairie town
Review: PLAINSONG is one of those novels that sneaks up on a reader, beginning with understated prose and culminating with such authorial affection that the reader does not want to leave the fictional world. Haruf follows the lives of several characters in rural Holt, Colorado - Guthrie, an honest school teacher whose wife has suffered a nervous breakdown; his two sons, Ike and Bobby, who find themselves facing death, independence, and growing up; Victoria Roubideaux, a pregnant teenager thrown out of her mother's house; the McPherons, Harold and Raymond, bachelor brothers who know more about cattle prices and corn cribs than they do about people; and Maggie Jones, the woman who connects them.

I did not fall in love with this novel until the hundredth page or so, and then I could not put it down. The narrative flows like a meandering river - steadily but without visible ripples on the surface - and so it takes time to become fully invested in Haruf's characters. Fortunately, the characterizations, fictional details and the quality of the prose are strong enough from the start to keep one reading. The rhythms of life in Holt and the honest, almost innocent, way its citizens face their trials give this novel a graceful elegiac quality.

PLAINSONG is a quiet character-driven novel that evokes small town life on the American Plains. I heartily recommend it to readers who like this kind of fiction.

Rating:
Summary: Wise and humane
Review: An enjoyable read, "Plainsong" compassionately looks at the verities of life - the good and the bad. Haruf write with a realistic, yet kind and graceful, style that ultimately leaves one with hope.

Interesting to hear that this will be a Hallmark movie in November. This book isn't sentimental and I hope that will be true of the "Hall of Fame" special on CBS. The casting of Aidan Quinn and Rachel Griffiths is promising.

Rating:
Summary: Wise and humane
Review: An enjoyable read, "Plainsong" compassionately looks at the verities of life - the good and the bad. Haruf writes with a directness that is also graceful, displaying a kind understanding of "everyday" life's sometimes harsh realities.

This book has been adapted into a movie. I just saw a commercial: "Plainsong" airs Sunday, April 25th on CBS. This book isn't treacly/sentimental and I hope that will be true of the "Hallmark Hall of Fame" special on CBS. The casting of Aidan Quinn and Rachel Griffiths is promising.

Rating:
Summary: "Plainsong" will be a Hallmark Hall of Fame in November
Review: If you love "Plainsong", mark your calendars for November. CBS plans to present "Plainsong" as a Hallmark Hall of Fame film. Aidan Quinn will play Tom Guthrie and Rachel Griffiths ("Six Feet Under") will play Maggie Jones.

Rating:
Summary: MILDLY ENTERTAINING
Review: I've heard praises of PLAINSONG for a long time thus far but have only recently picked it up to see what everyone's been talking about. Unfortunately this book has failed to capture me as it did others. While I did enjoy some aspects of the plot, other storylines annoyed and distracted me from my overall satisfaction. The plight of Victoria, a pregnant teenager kicked out of her mother's house and subsequently taken in by the generous townspeople, bordered on the sentimentalism of a Lifetime movie. [Amazingly, Billie Letts' WHERE THE HEART IS kept popping into my mind, as there are many parallels between the pregnant teenagers in these two books]. I also was frustrated several times as I doubted the authenticity of Victoria's actions. Regardless of my annoyance of Victoria, there are some redeeming qualities in PLAINSONG. I believe the characters with the rough edges around their corners were the best developed and most interesting (i.e., the McPheron brothers, Maggie Jones' senile father, Guthrie's estranged wife, and the old woman on the paper route.) I also enjoyed the setting of Holt, a small town in the high plains of Colorado. Kent Haruf should be commended for his portrayal of a small town as I could easily envision it in my mind.

Overall, I believe that if PLAINSONG lacked the storyline of Victoria it would have been much better. Evaluating the good and bad aspects I come to the conclusion that PLAINSONG is an average book that has potential for more.

Rating:
Summary: To the point, no verbiage
Review: My wife praised this book for a long time, then I read it. I don't read many books, don't have the time, and when I do, it has to be good by the end of page one, or I abandon it. This is a good story, and the author keeps himself out of the way and lets the story, the people, and the land speak for themselves. How the land speaks for itself--minute details like the items sliding back and forth on top of the dash of an old pickup--this author knows his subject. I had a real affection for his characters by the end of the book, and a real antagonism for the antagonists. I read the book in an afternoon, and I'm glad I did, and I'd like to read it again some day.