The Sandy Bottom Orchestra

by Garrison Keillor, Jenny Lind Nilsson

Fourteen-year-old Rachel comes to terms with her eccentric family while taking refuge in her violin playing.

Genres: Fiction, Music, Young Adult, Juvenile, Middle Grade, Realistic Fiction, Humor

160 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1996

About the author

Gary Edward "Garrison" Keillor is an American author, singer, humorist, voice actor, and radio personality. He created the Minnesota Public Radio (MPR) show A Prairie Home Companion (called Garrison Keillor's Radio Show in some international syndication), which he hosted from 1974 to 2016. Keillor created the fictional Minnesota town Lake Wobegon, the setting of many of his books, including Lake Wobegon Days and Leaving Home: A Collection of Lake Wobegon Stories. Other creations include Guy Noir, a detective voiced by Keillor who appeared in A Prairie Home Companion comic skits. Keillor is also the creator of the five-minute daily radio/podcast program The Writer's Almanac, which pairs poems of his choice with a script about important literary, historical, and scientific events that coincided with that date in history.
In November 2017, Minnesota Public Radio cut all business ties with Keillor after an allegation of inappropriate behavior with a freelance writer for A Prairie Home Companion. On April 13, 2018, MPR and Keillor announced a settlement that allows archives of A Prairie Home Companion and The Writer's Almanac to be publicly available again, and soon thereafter, Keillor began publishing new episodes of The Writer's Almanac on his website. He also continues to tour a stage version of A Prairie Home Companion, although these shows are not broadcast by MPR or American Public Media.

Reviews

[Brynn · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book reminded me a lot of my own life, in what I do involved in the music world, with parents that aren't quite like others, and on a small town scale. I loved the multiple mentions of classical pieces of music by such musicians as Rachmaninoff, Paganini, Stravinsky, and Mendelssohn, along with many others.

The main character was a teenage girl (violin player) who, like all teenagers, had her moments of drama - including cheesy bits of first romance and friendship turmoil. The only gripe that I had with the main character was that was always pretending to think what people around her were thinking. Confusing to imagine, but true enough, most of imagined thoughts were about how weird and outlandish her and her family were, causing her to be constantly be self-conscious wherever she went. The annoying side to this "thought commentary" was that the author never did actually say what the other characters were thinking.

My absolute favorite part about the book was how musicians were described; everything from the trumpets to the violas, and the general moods and habits that people who play those instruments. Having played in several orchestras and bands outside of school, one notices quirks that musicians have, and that seem to be attributed to the instrument they play.

I have read many fictional books about music, but none that hit home or were quite as wonderfully realistic as this one.

[Marie Sorensen · Rating 4 out of 5]

A little slow for awhile, but my arms actually ached with the anticipation leading up to the concert. Quite a trick for a book to bring back that feeling. From 4th through 12th grades, I loved band, so I naturally felt a kinship with this book. I wonder if a non-music person would find it to be as good a read.

[Taylor]

I wish I had discovered this book when I was in middle school. It is exactly the kind of book I loved back then, the kind of book, it feels like, doesn't get written often anymore.

[Ashirley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really cute book. I have been on a quest to read stories that give me a fun summer vibe, and this little YA book hit the mark perfectly. About a young girl named Rachel who plays the violin and her eccentric family. Her father is a lovable man who runs the local dairy and is obsessed with classical music, and her mother is a know-it-all pianist/ community activist. They live in the small town of Sandy Bottom and are preparing to stage a concert on the 4th of July. The story has tons of details about small town life, family dynamics, friendship and of course music. I am not really familiar with the author who is the host of The Prairie Home Companion, but it is obvious that he has an extensive knowledge of music and a funny tongue-in-cheek sense of humor. I'm sure anyone who plays an instrument can relate to these odd and amusing anecdotes. On the whole, I really did enjoy this book. Nothing super exciting really happened, but after awhile I started to feel like I knew these people and that they would be fun to hang out with.

[Debdanz · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a very sweet book- I loved every moment of it. It was full of the nostalgic gentleness Keillor is know for, but in partnering with his wife, he was able to write a teen girl protagonist that rang true. And his writing about music lessons, musicians as “oddman out,” concert rehearsals, and symphony performances brought back a world of memories of my son’s youth (a cellist)- I treasured that time and those performances. Nice memories.

[Soffi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mein absoluter Jugendbuch-Favorit!
Eine wunderbare Liebesgeschichte wenn man Lust hat auf aus dem Leben gegriffene, liebenswerte Charaktere, den Trubel und die Spannung vor einem großen Konzert hinter den Kulissen, das Geben & Nehmen in freundschaftlichen und familiären Beziehungen und einfach beschwingt-leichte Sommer ‚vibes‘, die Lust am Lesen machen!

[Hermione Granger · Rating 5 out of 5]

Could read this book again and again. The main character and I have so much in common. Especially our love to music.
The only point of critisism is, that everything is little more perfect and easy than it usually is in real life.

[Lydia Hess · Rating 5 out of 5]

A+. Would reccommend.

[Matt · Rating 5 out of 5]

As nice easy read. Ups and downs with good character development. Did a good job with musicians and kid relationships. I got a little weepy at the end.

[Jenn Malzone · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was a cute story but the ending felt unresolved, and not in an intentional way. What happened with the pen pal in Italy? Was that just meant to drop off?

[Zineb · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another book which I’ve been meaning to read for a long while now but finally picked up thanks to the BookTube-A-Thon.

The story revolves around Rachel Green, her parents, her best friend, the town she lives in, some guy named Scott and the orchestral concerto. To begin with, I felt bored reading through the first 50 pages and a few more. I felt like nothing was happening, which is true actually because nothing mind blowing happens throughout the whole book. It’s one of those books in which not much happens yet you still enjoy what you read. I guess once I realized that this book was just one of those, I felt less bored and started connecting with Rachel and the characters.

I’ve been listening to instrumental music for a very long while now, and although I don’t know how to play a single instrument, I still fell in love with the violin. In fact, I’d love to learn to play it (but not more than I’d love to play the piano!) A not so important fact about me but I own a guitar which I don’t know how to play!

The Sandy Bottom Orchestra is a beautiful book that warms your heart and makes you feel as though you really are listening to music when in fact all you’re doing is reading a book. I really couldn’t stop myself from listening to some symphonies while reading some chapters. A simple book in which not much happens but you still can’t stop yourself from loving its characters, especially the humour and dialogue, not to forget the relatable character, Rachel. Also, while the orchestral concerto isn’t the main focus of the story, it’s still an important event that I believe is responsible for, let’s say, most of the changes that we get to realize.

I salute the authors for not making Rachel’s story all about some guy and how she finds peace and acceptance and understanding in him, because honestly this is the case with most books that have the family issues element as the important part of the plot. I love how Rachel is a relatable 14 year old character, however if there’s anything that bothered me it’s: this is not really a spoiler since you see it coming but I sort of felt weird how she suddenly declared “I am in love!” I just couldn’t understand how could she fall for someone who she barely had a proper talk with but then again, I’m just glad that the whole book didn’t revolve around her love life.

The way the book wrapped up itself was just heart-warming and sweet, you realize the changes in every character and I for one felt like: Well, God I’d love to reread this one! And let me tell you that I’m not the sort who rereads books, so the fact that this book made me want to reread it earned it one more star! Hence the 4 stars.

And did I mention that the authors are a couple? Oh yes! In fact, Jenny Lind Nilsson is a violinist and Garrison Keillor happens to be her husband and also the author of several novels. Add to it, The Sandy Bottom Orchestra is a movie too! Yes well, I Googled so that I could find the exact beautiful cover of the book that I own (didn’t find it so settled for taking a pic of it) and that’s when I saw that it’s a 2000 release, should watch it sometime.

[April Suter · Rating 3 out of 5]

She lives in a small town in WI and her parents seem to be different than her friends. In this coming to age story she finds out all adults have their problems whether they are easy to be seen or not. Her parents are very musical thus she too has musical talent.

[Lisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a totally delightful book and one of my favorites. The characters are funny and likeable and very real, especially the main character, Rachel, a high school student who loves classical music and has interesting, intellectual, artistic parents in a small Midwestern town where most people aren't interested in (or don't know about) such things. Sandy Bottom Orchestra is a splendid book to read in the summer, but even during other times of year it will make you feel like it's summer again. If you like classical music, you especially need to read this book, since it's just full of it and will make you want to sing or play or whatever you do. The happy ending always leaves me feeling like I've just found out my crush likes me too.

[Diana · Rating 4 out of 5]

This has been one of my young adult favorites for many years now, and I recently re-read it. The action is really on quite a small scale: a small-town Fourth of July fair is not usually the pinnacle of a story's action, but that doesn't make this any less interesting or appealing. The book is really about Rachel and how this seemingly small event in her life brings about big changes in how she looks at herself and her family. I love how real and relatable Rachel is as a person, and many of the other characters are a pleasure to read about, especially her mother and all her fellow musicians in the orchestra.

[Heather · Rating 2 out of 5]

I wanted to love to this book. It was my first pick from the nearby Little Free Library. It has a lot to do with being in an orchestra, which appealed to me. It has, as one of its authors, Garrison Keillor, and I have fond memories of watching his show occasionally when I was little. It was a cozy show. But this book's pacing was so slow. It took me forever to finish it. The writing is not as funny as I expected (with the exception being the part with the pianist and his demanding mom), and it is bogged down by too many details. I really didn't care what everyone was wearing all of the time! Oh well.

G

[Jen · Rating 5 out of 5]

It took me years to finish this book when I was younger. Not because it was boring or hard, but because I enjoyed it so much and I was afraid to finish it because it would be over. Thus I would just restart the book, getting a little closer to the end every time, until one day I finally finished it. Then I went back and read it again. And again. It's that delightful of a book. Not just for music lovers but for anyone who has ever felt out of place, annoyed with their parents, or struggled to love themselves as they are. It's WONDERFUL. One of my all-time favorites, even a decade later.

[Eliana · Rating 4 out of 5]

Love how I got all the musical allusions in this book. I wonder how realistic the small-town setting is? Anyway. Love the characters. Scott :D The characters were realistic *because* of their faults. Satisfying read for people familiar with classical music, especially if you've played in an orchestra and had lessons.

[Zachary · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this awhile back... As I recall, some teenage girl in a small town fights with her parents and plays an instrument of some sort.

[Beth Starr · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book was okay, but I liked the film better!

[Margaret T. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good for a musical teen.

[Marcela · Rating 3 out of 5]

I actually didn't love the story much, but I really enjoyed all the musical and orchestral details.

[Meg · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was one of my favorites. I read it over and over.

[Colette! · Rating 4 out of 5]

Also known as: The Young Person's Guide to Becoming a Future NPR Member.

[Brett · Rating 4 out of 5]

A book written for adolescents which is pretty enjoyable for adults as well. The plot of the Sandy Bottom Orchestra involves a big Fourth of July musical performance and the young woman who is is playing her violin and her father who is conducting the orchestra. But what it's really about is how hard it is to go from being a child to being an adult, how people change as they grow, and how hard it is to live a little differently from your neighbors in a small town.

It's a good book with a good message. If, like me, you have often enjoyed Garrison Keillor's writing, you can expect to enjoy this one too. It's a little sappier than some of his adult fiction, but it's not overdone. Would make a good present for the thoughtful 12-14 year old in your life.