It has been a few years since I read one of the Ballad mysteries; I had forgotten how complicated her stories could be -- or maybe this one was more so than usual. Partly based on McCrumb's own family history, the story line follows one family from the 1700's with a chapter from each generation interspersed with modern day chapters involving some of her usual characters, Nora Bonesteel et al. ( )

not much mystery element in this tale of a song that has become a family heritage, together with the curse

As usual with Sharyn McCrumb's Applachian novels, an ancient song is at the heart of this story. Lark McCourry, a famous folksinger who has left the mountains and her difficult relationship with her father behind, takes a notion that there was a song she heard sung as a child that would be quite perfect for her next album...a song she does not fully remember, and which she thinks she might introduce to the world. In order to track the song down, and reluctantly to visit her dying father, she plans a trip back home. There are multiple stories intertwined in this novel, as it follows generations of Lark's family, and that elusive song, through the centuries from the time her ancestor Malcolm was kidnapped from a Hebrides beach at the age of 10 and pressed into service at sea in the 18th century, through the American Revolution, and the Civil War, to the recent past. Every time I put the book down I was amazed at how much Story was contained in the relatively short segment I had finished. It's a compressed generational saga that doesn't feel rushed or hurried, a sprawling historical novel that's somehow perfectly told in under 300 pages. I am in awe of the amount of research that goes into all of McCrumb's novels, but here she has outdone herself, and it all fits seamlessly into the narrative without ever feeling like a lesson. (In an author's note she explains how much of this story is based on her own family history, and also how she learned some of the historical details included in it--for instance, she found someone who could teach her how to load and fire a Springfield muzzle-loader such as her Civil War ancestor would have used. "That experience gave me an entirely new perspective on war.' I'll bet it did.) Naturally, Sheriff Arrowood and Nora Bonesteel play significant roles in the modern framework of the story, and Deputy Joe LeDonne has some interesting experiences that help him put his own past to rest. I don't often give this type of work 5 stars, but this one deserves every one of them. ( )

An historical novel of the Appalachian Mountains based upon the author's real life ancestors. ( )

It has been a few years since I read one of the Ballad mysteries; I had forgotten how complicated her stories could be -- or maybe this one was more so than usual. Partly based on McCrumb's own family history, the story line follows one family from the 1700's with a chapter from each generation interspersed with modern day chapters involving some of her usual characters, Nora Bonesteel et al. ( )

This was a wonderful book, but I had trouble keeping live people and dead ones straight. ( )

The Song Catcher – Mc Crumb
4 stars
This is another of the books in McCrumb's Ballad series. It also features Spencer Arrowood and his deputy, as well as Nora Bonesteel, the old lady who sees dead people. In fact, in this book several of the characters see dead people. The story is tied to the history of a particular ballad and how it came from Scotland to America. The narrative bounces back and forth between the contemporary story and the historical trail of the song.
I've read most of the other books in this series. It didn't seem to matter with the other ones if they were read out of order, but this one would have been more difficult to follow without some previous knowledge of the ongoing characters.
( )

It's been a while, so I might be wrong here. The way I remember it, there was stuff going in the book that never did make sense to me. ( )

Not a traditional mystery, more of a suspense story involving history, family dynamics, folk music and a touch of the supernatural, all set in east Tennessee and western North Carolina. Hard to put down. ( )

This novel begins with a ballad, but does not tell the story behind the ballad. While we may not know at first how it fits into each of the multiple story threads, the chorus phrase keeps appearing as meaningful in the various character's lives,, along with another family phrase. McCrumb does a fantastic job of keeping us interested in the different characters in different times and locations, and tying them all together. The first McCourry to immigrate had a prophecy given him by the midwife using a magic stone--take note! the ballad mentions a stone, but that is not the storyline developed here (tho I'd be curious to hear about Nora's background)--and is conscious of its effects throughout his long life. Judge John Walker (born to a McCourry mother) & his housekeeper, Becky, may not be folks you'd have as best friends, but you can see why they act as they do, based on their life experiences. Folk singer Lark McCourry's experiences are linked to a Patsy Cline-like character, leaving us wondering at the outcome of her situation. Even the dead are characters in this book. Baird Christopher brings a humorous side story on the new rich coming to Appalachia, which also ties in well with Zeb's 1882 experiences with rich vacationers.
Real history is tied in to this story, which passes through both the Revolutionary War and the Civil War, history that is much more meaningful when we see it's effects on individual's lives.

There are 1 or 2 times where a good editor might have eliminated duplicating background information, but all in all, very well written. I appreciated the cliffhanger at chapter end with LeDonne trapped alone in the wilderness and hearing a voice behind him. Then we must wait through the next chapters on Malcolm's life before we find out what happens. ( )

The author weaves a genealogical tale around songs that were handed down from generation to generation. Makes for interesting reading - and be sure to read the afterword. ( )

In her usual lyrical way, Sharyn McCrumb tells two stories in one in this book. One is story that goes back to the late 18 century. A story that begins in Scotland and ends in a remote North Carolina mountain cabin. The other story is set in the late 20 century, and is about a plane crash in a remote mountain area that is also in the North Carolina mountains. Ms. McCrumb binds these two disparate stories together with an old folk song and a family thread. The book is the story of young Malcolm McCoury and his colourful and varied life. Then we are introduced to a number of his his descendants, and the lives that they led. It's a lot of ground to cover and a lot of years, but Ms. McCrumb seems to tie it all together to make a cohesive whole. We find at the end of the book that she is actually covering her own family history, and it is a fascinating insight into what life is like in this little corner of the world. ( )

NOTE: The song of the title is the author's composition, in the style of the old British ballads. See the works of Cecil Sharp, especially his "Folk Songs of the Southern Appalachias" 1917.

Substance: Lacks McCrumb's usual murder mystery, but is an interesting look at the milieu of the Appalachians past and present. The novel is held together by the similarities of the family dynamics through the generations, especially regarding the fates of the first-born children, and the variations on the story of the haunting ballad passed down the line. Lots of commentary about war, including the American Revolution and Civil War.

Style: Alternates chapters from the present and the past, tracing the original immigrant ancestor and his direct descendants through the conceit of the transmission of a favorite ballad. The mountain medicine man is very different from Nora Bonesteel.

Caveat: Compare the narrative, especially the Civil War section, to "Cold Mountain" in feeling and texture. Also reiterates that the North / South division led to blood-feuds, because atrocities were up close and personal, not among strangers far away.

NOTES: (spoiler alert)
p. 57: had to "raise the bar or quit jumping"
p. 84: all communities have rules; you just have to learn what they are to get along
p. 88: lose - lose politics.
p. 89: "Hindsight passing as foresight".
p. 106: "When you choose what name you call that city - Derry or Londonderry - you are making a political decision. You are telling the people you're talking to which side you're on, what cultural values you hold, and maybe even your religious preference. You are telling some people that they can trust you and other people that they can't. All in one word."
p. 141: Songcatchers are thieves, because they can copyright a family song so that the family can't use it any more.
p. 184: "There's nothing more provincial than city people."
p. 222: "Sometimes an enemy can be more ust to you than a friend, if he is an honorable man." ( )

Delightful book based on McCrumb's own family history. It brings together the elements of mystery, a bit of mysticism, music, and genealogy in a wonderful blend. One of her best, and the best book I've read in some time. ( )

I really enjoyed this entire series, but this particular book was probably my favorite. The concept of a "songcatcher" and the interesting traditions of rural Appalachia made for a very satisfying read. ( )

This story revolves around a song that evolves from generation to generation. The novel begins in the Appalachin Mountains, and the song begins in the Scottish Isle. Lark, the main character, is searching for a song she vaguely remembers hearing as a child. Malcom, one of Lark's ancestors, learned the song as a ship's cabin boy. The connection between the past and present foreshadows the recovery of the song for the reader. For Lark the search isn't so easy. She is lost in a plane crash, and her father dies before she is able to see him one last time. The song (The Rowan Stave) is about a girl tending sheep and the ghosts she sees in a nearby church graveyard. I tried to make a connection between the song and the story. I don't know if the lyrics have a literal relationship, but Lark, as the sheperd girl is changed when she endures the plane crash. Upon rescue, she has to face the ghost of her father to make peace. The experience definitely changes her. ( )

The Songcatcher is historical fiction based on Sharyn McCrumb's genealogy tied together by a Celtic/Gaelic ballad passed down through the generations. The mystery is really the hunt for the ballad about The Rowan Stave:

Upon the hill above the kirk at moon rise she did stand, To tend her sheep that Samhain eve, with rowan staff in hand. And where she's been and what she's seen, no living soul may know, and when she's come back home, she will be changed-oh!

The Songcatcher takes the reader from the 18th century through 19th, 20th and 21st centuries, in no specific order. Although some find the story disjointed, with too many characters and storylines, I really enjoyed meeting the ancestors of the present-day people who begin and end the novel. McCrumb's descriptions of the 18th century sailors at sea were so vivid you could taste the salt air. Knowing that these people were the predecessors of the 21st century folk gave the story continuity.

A recurring theme in The Songcatcher and McCrumb’s other Appalachian books is mysticism, folklore, and superstition. A special white pebble becomes an amulet that protects Malcolm McCourry against the midwife’s prediction that, “The Sea will take him.” Nora Bonesteel, a 21st century Appalachian resident, has “The Sight.” When someone dies, Nora already has the cake to take to the bereaved family baking in the oven. She also sees ghosts and talks to them.

The combination of mysticism, song, family history, mountain lore makes the Songcatcher an enjoyable tale well-worth reading. ( )

The Songcatcher tells the story of one North Carolina family and the song that it passed from one generation of the family to the next, a song that famous folk singer Lark McCourry hopes to find so that she can center her next record album around it. Malcolm McCourry, kidnapped in 1751 by English sailors at age nine and taken to sea, learned the song by hearing it on evenings during which the men sang ballads to entertain themselves and their shipmates. It was the kind of ghost story that an impressionable young boy would never forget, and McCourry brought the lyrics with him to America in 1759 when he decided that he was finished with life on the ocean.

Sharyn McCrumb looked to her own family history as inspiration for The Songcatcher. She discovered ancestor Malcolm McCourry while researching another book and framed this story around his real life experiences. McCrumb uses alternating sections within each chapter of the book to recount the events of Malcolm’s life that resulted in him starting a second family in the mountains of North Carolina and the real world plight of Lark McCourry who is reluctantly returning to those same mountains to see her dying father one last time.

As the book progresses from generation to generation, it becomes obvious that Lark McCourry has much in common with her ancestors. Like them, she is basically a loner who manages to keep people at a distance and who suffers a poor relationship with her father, the kind of relationship that so many first-born McCourrys experienced over the years. But the song has survived everything that the family has experienced for more than two hundred years and it is up to Lark McCourry to make sure that her father does not take it with him to the grave.

Regular readers of Sharyn McCrumb will recognize some characters from her past “ballad novels.” Sheriff Spencer Arrowood makes a relatively brief, but important, appearance in the book, and Nora Bonesteeel, an old woman who converses with the dead as easily as she does with the living, is there to help tie the McCourry generations together. Rather strangely, the book includes a side story that adds little or nothing to the main plot, a storyline involving a sheriff’s deputy who manages to get his foot trapped beneath the wreckage of an old airplane that crashed into the mountain forests decades earlier. Because the book already alternates two distinct storylines, the addition of a third one into the mix, one that really doesn’t go anywhere, is an unnecessary distraction.

Sharyn McCrumb has an interesting family history and, although The Songcatcher is not one of her strongest books, it is worth a look.

Rated at: 3.0 ( )

This was my first introduction to Sharyn McCrumb. Nicely written. One of those 'light' reads.

Pieces of the puzzle come together as a singer waits to be rescued from a plane crash, a sheriff tries to solve an age old crime & the lost lyrics to a folk song are remembered. ( )

got in the mail this morning. getting ready to read it. had to finish the book I was reading before I started this one ( )

got in the mail this morning. getting ready to read it. had to finish the book I was reading before I started this one ( )