The Piano Man

by Marcia Preston

The Piano Man by Marcia Preston released on Mar 28, 2006 is available now for purchase.

Genres: Fiction, Book Club

336 pages, Hardcover

First published April 1, 2006

About the author

Marcia Preston (M.K. Preston) grew up on a wheat farm in central Oklahoma. From her father she learned the art of storytelling; from her mother, a reverence for books; and from Oklahoma's red earth, a love of wildlife and the outdoors.

Reviews

[Arlene Sanders · Rating 5 out of 5]

THE PIANO MAN.....this one, you pick it up, you won't put it down until you finish. It's that good. At first, the premise didn't seem promising to me: Teenaged boy dies in car crash, mother donates boy's heart, mother meets man who gets heart. Farfetched, I grumbled until I got into the book -- and Preston can drop you into her stories with the speed of a greased guillotine.

No. The story is not farfetched. Not futuristic. Organ donation is a choice, for you and for me, right here and now.

Marcia Preston writes with a gracefulness you rarely see anymore. Anne Morrow Lindbergh comes to mind. Rachel Carson. Anita Shreve. Margaret Atwood. Preston writes:


Just when she thought he must be asleep, she heard another sound, something she hadn't memorized. A soft plucking, then a hum. A few thin walls, like the cry of a cat.

She held her breath.

The silvery strain of a violin slid through the dark, the music breathing, full of grace. Her mouth opened, airless.

She pictured him laying open the black case. Finding the three packs of cigarettes she had tucked around the curved edges of the violin. Frowning at the symphony brochure she'd slipped beneath the strings.

She saw him lifting the violin with two hands, like a baby. Tuning it. The polished wood gleaming gold in the lamplight. She felt its coolness beneath his chin, so familiar and right. The tautness of the strings beneath
his fingers.

Listening wide-eyed in the dark, her hair full of tears, she felt the pull of the bow across her hollow bones.


* * *


Preston's prose is lively, too, and I like the way she counterpoints with unexpected verbs:


Four cars prickled in the sun. . .

She turned away from the windows and her
slippers whispered down the carpeted stairs. . .

Chilled air curled around her feet. . .

Traffic sizzled past in four lanes and
streetlights erased the darkness.


* * *


I love the way she uses shadow and light:


There was a shimmering, transparent at first. It thickened like ice and took on color, until finally she could see his face.

~~~

. . .he'd tried to write a song of his own, sitting at the kitchen table with a score sheet improvised from notebook paper. But a gray light had fallen across the lined page and suddenly he'd seen himself as if from a distance -- the failed musician, pathetic and sad.

~~~

Lightning silvered the rooftops and trees tossed in a rising wind. Through the foggy glass, Claire saw a vision of a small lake, with sunshine and willows overhead. A man whose face she couldn't see stood beside the water. . . . She walked toward him as if she were wading through water, and reached out her hand.

~~~

Outdoors, a pristine sunlight cast crisp shadows across his path and fractured the desert colors into a dozen subtle shades.

~~~

He often went out to the deck at night when it was abandoned and sat in a wooden chair beneath the stars. From there he could see the mountains in the distance, their snow-dusted tops incandescent with moonlight.

Tonight he lit a cigarette and leaned his forearms on the deck railing, watching the lightning that flashed in the hills.


* * *


But her prose style never gets in the way of the story -- a tightrope to walk, as all of us know, and one of Preston's many fine achievements as a writer.

In The Piano Man, Preston faces head-on and, with remarkable strength, deals with I imagine to be the very worst tragedy that any human being could suffer: the death of her or his own child. And then. . .sign papers to take him off life support and donate his heart to a waiting recipient?

Could I do this? Could you?

To her great credit, Preston does not present Claire O'Neal, who has lost her 17-year-old son, as a shining example of courage and grace under pressure. (And a pox on women like that anyway.) On the contrary, Claire falls apart and nearly
gives up -- just like the rest of us would.

On the first page, I was hooked, stayed hooked to the end, and left this wonderful novel eagerly looking forward to Ms. Preston's next one.


--Arlene Sanders

[Katie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Someone recommended this to me. She obviously doesn't know what I like. This was just ok. Kind of sappy and hokey.

[Sherry · Rating 2 out of 5]

Wanted to like this but I was left feeling that there was no closure for anyone. There were many characters that seemed to be essential but just left hanging at the end or not mentioned at all.

[Heather · Rating 5 out of 5]

A sad book with many other things in it - sad at the loss of loved ones, happy at the meeting of new friends, interesting with the potential of rekindling of love.
A good book to read.

[Dianne · Rating 2 out of 5]

just too contrived for my taste.

[Bernadine Charles · Rating 3 out of 5]

I took the book to. Cambodia, and read it while travelling.
A bit too predictable.
A good read for travelling.

[Dina · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love the way all the characters in this book get to present their own perspective of a tragedy. It's like the old adage, "Every story has two sides."

Indeed, in this story, there are many sides to the same tragedy. I loved the book. The protagonist says "People create so much of their own sorrow. And for what?" It's book that reminds us that all of our actions have consequences; nothing exists in a vacuum. The characters were highly believable and the plot line was thought-provoking.

I was sucked into the book once I got past the first few chapters. The story began like lots of others but what Preston did with her characters is amazing. If you liked this story, be sure to read her first book The Butterfly House. It, too, is outstanding, and explores the interactions of many of characters.

[Judy Mann · Rating 2 out of 5]

How do books like this get written? I just don't know. At at least 9 points I expected God to come down with his long white beard and smile at all of us. For being so ..just so cute. This book was so sappy it literally turned my stomach. And here's the thing. I can't hate it or be angry because I got the feeling that the writer was as innocent and sweet as the main character. How can you be angry at someone like that? You can't.
Marcia Preston is a good writer. That's why I gave her the second star- but jeez- I hope she learns to write about real life. Not this smarmy gushing goop.
Maybe next time -in her next book- she'll come to life.
Not this one.
JM

[Donna · Rating 2 out of 5]

I expected more from this book after reading the synopsis. It was not very credible and read like a light romance novel, although the topical material was fairly heavy. Still, it held my attention and provided a good lead-in to some group discussion. The writing style was somewhat amateurish, but not annoyingly so. Overall, a pleasant easy read, provoking some thought about the way to live one's life to the fullest, overcoming guilt, and healing.

[Ashley · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a wonderful novel. I love how I got all the character's different perspecitves. The epilogue was different from what I am used to. Usually in an epilogue, it's what all the characters have been doing since some time has passed. In this book, the epilogue is in Lindsey's perspective and what she's been doing. Overall the book was a a great read.

[Robyn Gibson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Claire lost her teenage son in a car accident and she can't get over his death. She sees his vision and they talk. She accidentally finds the recipient of his heart; he is a musician so she decides to see what he looks like and becomes involved in his life. I loved Marcia Preston's West of the Wall and The Piano Man is as good. Loved them both.

[Rachel · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love the way the author ties all of these random people into the death of a teenage boy. The author loses her touch during the last 1/4 of the book and I didn't like the ending at all, but for the most part, it was good.

[Evelyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

After the death of her teenaged son Nathan, Clare O'Neal has lost direction in her life. When she locates the man who received Nathan's heart, she focuses on saving him to keep part of Nathan alive.

Highly recommend. Contains book discussion group questions.

[Gina · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think the book had great potential, story line, characters, etc. However, I think it fell a little short. It was an easy read and I would recommend it for book clubs as there are a lot of issues to discuss.

[Gabrielle · Rating 3 out of 5]

This poignant story about a mother's recovery from the loss of her only son is beautifully written. Preston avoids emotional manipulation and portrays characters/events/interactions as messy in ways that mirror true human existence.

[Gail]

Enjoyed this one. The plot was pretty straight forward and a bit predictable by about 1/3 of the way through. The story could have been developed a bit further with a few of the characters. Liked that it came with bookclub questions.

[Natisha · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a heartfelt novel about a mother's journey to closure with her son's death. I love that her journey was incorporated with her romantic development as well. It tells the stories of three characters while intertwining them seamlessly.

[Heidi Thomas · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved this book. Picked it up because the title intrigued me, and liked it because it is well-written and drew me right in to the story. I could identify with the characters and was rooting for them all. I want to read more of Preston's books.

[Dimity Powell · Rating 3 out of 5]

Did not find this particularly gripping. An interesting amble through the lives of separate people united by one tragedy but lacked enough heart-strangling impact and emotion for me. A little too prescriptive in parts but a gentle read none-the-less.

[Tessa · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

I loved the first half of this book but the second half was a little disappointing. There were too many character viewpoints and it felt a little cluttered. I loved the relationship between Claire and Mason but the rest of the book was a little flat.

[Karleen · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you can get over some of the cheesiness of it, and the focus on American high school and sport culture etc, which is only at the start, it's actually an interesting read with somewhat endearing characters. I am left a little wanting to know what might happen with Claire and Mason.

[Mary · Rating 3 out of 5]

loved this book so emotional!! although i did find the fact that they fall in love a little creepy but it was easy to spot it coming!! good read to tug at the heart

[Heather · Rating 3 out of 5]

somewhat predictable, but enjoyable and heartfelt nonetheless

[Anusha Atukorala · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found 'The Piano Man' a very well crafted story. Believable characters and a good plot. The ending was a happy one. The word pictures were lovely. I recommend it - an enjoyable relaxing read.

[Kayla Hannebohm · Rating 3 out of 5]

This review is meant for myself, so it may or may not be helpful to you.

It was really slow starting off, but once I reached the middle I wasn't able to put the book down!

[Corey · Rating 1 out of 5]

Ms. Preston knows her craft, she's an excellent writer. But this has to be the saddest most depressing book I've ever read. Tragedy after tragedy after tragedy don't make for a good story, sorry.

[Thy Lam · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this one a good deal; wanting more pages as I got closer to the end. If you're after a book that is realistic, this is a book to consider.

[Melanie Ryding · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great holiday read book that's easy to read, lighthearted (despite its précis) and I actually read it cover to cover while on holiday for a long weekend. It also has a lot of little quotes and thoughts to make you go 'hmmmm' and reflect on your own life.

[Tracy Doig · Rating 3 out of 5]

Slow start and slightly unresolved ending but very interesting look at survivors guilt and philosophical issues about the body and the soul.