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Singing With the Top Down
In 1950s America, two young children and their flamboyant, irrepressible aunt Nora embark on a fun-filled, adventurous, and poignant odyssey that takes them to California in a Buick Skylark convertible. Reader's Guide included. Original. 50,000 first printing.
300 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2006
5 people are currently reading
300 people want to read
About the author
Debrah Williamson
2 books9 followersA native Oklahoman, Debrah Morris was born near Will Rogers's birthplace. She grew up in Claremore, Oklahoma. She comes to storytelling naturally. As a child, she was a wide-eyed and appreciative audience when her grandparents told colorful tales of their Cherokee and Irish ancestors in the old Indian Territory. Her love of the past was sparked by accounts of the Trail of Tears, outlaws and lawmen, cowboys and cattle, and the Oklahoma Land Run. A member of the Cherokee Tribe of Oklahoma today, she is still learning about tribal history and culture.
Debrah has always been a reader. In fact, she can't recall ever learning how. The summer she was 12, she vowed to read every book in the local library. Starting with the A's, she plowed through the shelves, reading such varied volumes as Alcott's Little Women, Brontë's Wuthering Heights, Jackson's We Have Always Lived in the Castle, Le May's The Searchers, and Mitchell's Gone with the Wind. It was a small library, yet it took her years to make it all the way to Frank Yerby. That early alphabetical exploration cemented her eclectic reading habits.
Debrah began writing fiction in third grade. Once she cracked the penmanship code, she discovered she could actually put all those words on her spelling list to good use by stringing them together to express her own ideas. She wrote new chapters for all of Laura Ingalls Wilder's Little House series of books and strong-armed her two younger sisters into acting out her stories. She's been writing, and some say strong-arming, ever since. Growing up in a rural farming community gives her the background she needs to write effectively about hometown America. Her country school was small — 12 of the 17 graduates in her class began first grade together — but it gave her a strong academic education and instilled a lifelong love of learning that prompted her to eventually earn a graduate degree.
After earned a bachelor's degree in communications, Debrah got married, and had three children in five years. While taking an adult writing class, she collaborated with Pat Shaver and they sold their first novel to Silhouette Romance in 1983. This collaboration produced more than twenty contemporary and historical romances under four pseudonyms: Dianne Thomas, Joanna Jordan, Pepper Adams, and JoAnn Stacey. Careerwise, she has reinvented herself several times over the years, working at a variety of jobs ranging from bookkeeper to teacher to clinical therapist. But she's never found anything she likes to do more than write down daydreams for other people to read.
Before staring her solo writing career, Debrah earned a post-graduate degree in speech language pathology and worked in an adult neurological rehabilitation center. Her novels have been nominated for Booksellers Best, National Readers' Choice Awards, and Romantic Times Reviewer's Choice Award for Best Silhouette Romance 2002. Now, she signed her novels as Debrah Williamson. She also speaks at writing workshops and teaches writing in a university program at University of Oklahoma and to adults.
Debrah lives in Norman, Oklahoma with her husband. She has three children, two married stepdaughters, and four stepgrandchildren. Her pets include three cats, one dog, and five fat lily-pond goldfish. She doesn't have much spare time, but when she isn't working or writing, she enjoys gardening, counted cross-stit
Debrah has always been a reader. In fact, she can't recall ever learning how. The summer she was 12, she vowed to read every book in the local library. Starting with the A's, she plowed through the shelves, reading such varied volumes as Alcott's Little Women, Brontë's Wuthering Heights, Jackson's We Have Always Lived in the Castle, Le May's The Searchers, and Mitchell's Gone with the Wind. It was a small library, yet it took her years to make it all the way to Frank Yerby. That early alphabetical exploration cemented her eclectic reading habits.
Debrah began writing fiction in third grade. Once she cracked the penmanship code, she discovered she could actually put all those words on her spelling list to good use by stringing them together to express her own ideas. She wrote new chapters for all of Laura Ingalls Wilder's Little House series of books and strong-armed her two younger sisters into acting out her stories. She's been writing, and some say strong-arming, ever since. Growing up in a rural farming community gives her the background she needs to write effectively about hometown America. Her country school was small — 12 of the 17 graduates in her class began first grade together — but it gave her a strong academic education and instilled a lifelong love of learning that prompted her to eventually earn a graduate degree.
After earned a bachelor's degree in communications, Debrah got married, and had three children in five years. While taking an adult writing class, she collaborated with Pat Shaver and they sold their first novel to Silhouette Romance in 1983. This collaboration produced more than twenty contemporary and historical romances under four pseudonyms: Dianne Thomas, Joanna Jordan, Pepper Adams, and JoAnn Stacey. Careerwise, she has reinvented herself several times over the years, working at a variety of jobs ranging from bookkeeper to teacher to clinical therapist. But she's never found anything she likes to do more than write down daydreams for other people to read.
Before staring her solo writing career, Debrah earned a post-graduate degree in speech language pathology and worked in an adult neurological rehabilitation center. Her novels have been nominated for Booksellers Best, National Readers' Choice Awards, and Romantic Times Reviewer's Choice Award for Best Silhouette Romance 2002. Now, she signed her novels as Debrah Williamson. She also speaks at writing workshops and teaches writing in a university program at University of Oklahoma and to adults.
Debrah lives in Norman, Oklahoma with her husband. She has three children, two married stepdaughters, and four stepgrandchildren. Her pets include three cats, one dog, and five fat lily-pond goldfish. She doesn't have much spare time, but when she isn't working or writing, she enjoys gardening, counted cross-stit
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 47 reviews
October 27, 2021
This book is really great! It’s about adventure, and finding yourself amidst tragedy and change. I would definitely recommend it!!
August 9, 2011
Loved, loved, loved this book!
After a freak carnival accident, two children are orphaned and embark on the journey of a lifetime. In this book, you can choose your family, and that's exactly what these kids did. At times I felt like I was reading Steinbeck, and at other times, I felt like I was reading Harper Lee, and yet at other times, I was reading Debrah Williamson, an author with a style all her own.
After a freak carnival accident, two children are orphaned and embark on the journey of a lifetime. In this book, you can choose your family, and that's exactly what these kids did. At times I felt like I was reading Steinbeck, and at other times, I felt like I was reading Harper Lee, and yet at other times, I was reading Debrah Williamson, an author with a style all her own.
October 30, 2016
One of the things I love about reading through the library (from Z to A, at least one book by every author), besides my husband thinking at times I'm insane, is unexpected finds like "Singing with the Top Down". In previous days when I browsed jackets, and decided from reviews/word of mouth/cover art whether a book was worth my time, I might have passed this up as a fluffy "chick-lit" book. And honestly, 10 pages in I thought my first impression was justified.
But then I got to know Pauly, and beneath the lighthearted tone of Williamson I found a hurt, prickly 13 year old girl who is used to being strong, but wants more than anything to have someone she can depend on. Don't let the gushing reviews jade you. Ree (from "Winter's Bone") or Scout Finch she may not be, but Williamson has given her a unique voice with surprising insight, and passages that are literally laugh out loud funny. Made an overnight orphan by a tragic accident, Pauly and her brother Buddy are adopted by their Aunt Nora, and begin a journey across the United States visiting National Parks as they travel to their new home.
Williamson does a great job of giving each of the characters unique personalities. The dialogue is well done, the pacing excellent, and the ending felt "right". In many ways the book felt similar to "Good Grief" by Lolly Winston to me in the way the protagonist dealt with death, the use of humor, and the occasional great insights.
Definitely recommended. Given 4 stars or "Excellent".
Favorite quotes:
" No matter how old you are, you quit being a child when you stop counting on other people and start counting on yourself. For some, the passage came early. For others, like my second cousin Theodore, who was born with an extra chromosome, it never came at all."
"What happened to your folks is might sad, little sis," he said. "Reckon you'll have a long row to hoe. Jest don't let bein' an orphan be your excuse."
"My excuse for what?"
"For anything. Remember, wrapped up in yourself, you make a mighty small package."
"Why did you get divorced?"
She laughed again. "We had a little disagreement. I thought he was married and he didn't."
But a family was different. You *could* pick who you lived with, who you counted on, who you loved. Family was not the people connected to you by marriage or blood. Family was the door that never closed. The light that never went out. Family rescued you in your darkest hour.
But then I got to know Pauly, and beneath the lighthearted tone of Williamson I found a hurt, prickly 13 year old girl who is used to being strong, but wants more than anything to have someone she can depend on. Don't let the gushing reviews jade you. Ree (from "Winter's Bone") or Scout Finch she may not be, but Williamson has given her a unique voice with surprising insight, and passages that are literally laugh out loud funny. Made an overnight orphan by a tragic accident, Pauly and her brother Buddy are adopted by their Aunt Nora, and begin a journey across the United States visiting National Parks as they travel to their new home.
Williamson does a great job of giving each of the characters unique personalities. The dialogue is well done, the pacing excellent, and the ending felt "right". In many ways the book felt similar to "Good Grief" by Lolly Winston to me in the way the protagonist dealt with death, the use of humor, and the occasional great insights.
Definitely recommended. Given 4 stars or "Excellent".
Favorite quotes:
" No matter how old you are, you quit being a child when you stop counting on other people and start counting on yourself. For some, the passage came early. For others, like my second cousin Theodore, who was born with an extra chromosome, it never came at all."
"What happened to your folks is might sad, little sis," he said. "Reckon you'll have a long row to hoe. Jest don't let bein' an orphan be your excuse."
"My excuse for what?"
"For anything. Remember, wrapped up in yourself, you make a mighty small package."
"Why did you get divorced?"
She laughed again. "We had a little disagreement. I thought he was married and he didn't."
But a family was different. You *could* pick who you lived with, who you counted on, who you loved. Family was not the people connected to you by marriage or blood. Family was the door that never closed. The light that never went out. Family rescued you in your darkest hour.
September 6, 2010
Pauly and Buddy's parents died in a terrible carnival accident in 1955. Outcast Pauly, at 13, was the mature, stable person in the family. Her mother obviously suffered from depression, and her father, although he loved them all very much, wasn't responsible with having steady employment and paying the bills. When Pauly wasn't defending her younger brother (a polio survivor), she was making sure the rent was paid and tried to keep money from being squandered. Once their parents were buried, it was obvious that no one in the family wanted them. Then their Aunt Nora (an extra in Hollywood movies), who they didn't know, volunteers to take them back to California with her, but first, they would take a road trip. Along the way, they pick up a few misfits such as Pauly saw herself and Buddy. They have the time of their life and make a difference in the lives of others.
I enjoyed this story very much. It was sad yet funny and made the perfect read for the Summer.
I enjoyed this story very much. It was sad yet funny and made the perfect read for the Summer.
April 10, 2012
What a gem I happened to wander upon while perusing the library stacks. Truly a wonderful read. I highly recommend you try it. And get this - - - a happy ending!
February 4, 2018
boo
Someone called it "warm, witty, and wise." I agree.
Someone called it "warm, witty, and wise." I agree.
January 27, 2021
I loved this book! The characters were well thought out and sincere. So glad I picked this book up.
September 6, 2023
So great! Pauly is a hoot! I fell in love with the characters, story and writing!
December 16, 2023
It made it to my permanent book collection!
Read
July 28, 2008This is book was one of many checked out from the library when I was looking for some light summer reading. Although it was a quick read, some of the topics were heavy, but it was certainly reading I enjoyed.
Set in 1955, there were a few references to movie stars that I didn't quite get, but the story was really a timeless one.
Young Pauly Mahoney and her brother, Buddy, find themselves orphaned when their parents are killed in a freak accident. When nearly all of their relatives try pawning Pauly and Buddy off on each other, their Aunt Nora, a small-time actress in Hollywood, offers to take them in.
Pauly and Buddy set off on an adventure, "a vacation", across the country from their home in Oklahoma to Aunt Nora's home in California and encounter a number of people and experiences along their way. The experiences, some of them scary, ultimately help them find the meaning of family, and detail some difficult yet powerful memories that shape their lives.
Set in 1955, there were a few references to movie stars that I didn't quite get, but the story was really a timeless one.
Young Pauly Mahoney and her brother, Buddy, find themselves orphaned when their parents are killed in a freak accident. When nearly all of their relatives try pawning Pauly and Buddy off on each other, their Aunt Nora, a small-time actress in Hollywood, offers to take them in.
Pauly and Buddy set off on an adventure, "a vacation", across the country from their home in Oklahoma to Aunt Nora's home in California and encounter a number of people and experiences along their way. The experiences, some of them scary, ultimately help them find the meaning of family, and detail some difficult yet powerful memories that shape their lives.
December 30, 2013
If there's anything I love, it's narratives of children in adult situations. Walk Two Moons, The Age of Miracles, Everything on a Waffle, all books that offer a fresh perspective of time-worn stories for adults. Singing with the Top Down is no exception. Williamson spins the been-there-seen-that story of the youthful aunt who takes in her orphan niece and nephew after a tragic accident kills their parents. First, it's set in the nostalgia of the 50's, with California dreams no less. It's a coming-of-age across the backdrop of the great West, from Oklahoma to Arizona to the Pacific. It travels a deeper emotional spectrum of a poor, sassy, cynical twelve-year-old, her crippled and coddled younger brother, a broken-down hitchhiker who serves as a surrogate grandfather, and a charming young Hollywood actress with a propensity for spending money and taking others under her wing. It's an unforgettable story that will leave you laughing and crying and wishing for the ocean.
February 4, 2014
I picked up this book and placed it back into the shelf more time that i remember. Mainly because i dont like reading placed so way back. usually when i do this too a book, its always simply amazing when i give in and read it. my favorite novels are those with young insightful protagonists. Although, that doesnt mean the protoganists are always my favourite. i just adored Buddy and Aunt Nora.
That scene in the bathroom where nora and pauly came close to being raped and aunt nora was willing to sacrifice herself for pauly made me loce her even more! Buddy overcoming his stutter and standing up for himself made my heart sway. i scribbled on two whole papers with beautiful quotes uttered by all the characters that i wanted to remember and....oh bloody hell, the book is FANTASTIC! i had my doubts by my hesitation was a sign in was worth while
That scene in the bathroom where nora and pauly came close to being raped and aunt nora was willing to sacrifice herself for pauly made me loce her even more! Buddy overcoming his stutter and standing up for himself made my heart sway. i scribbled on two whole papers with beautiful quotes uttered by all the characters that i wanted to remember and....oh bloody hell, the book is FANTASTIC! i had my doubts by my hesitation was a sign in was worth while
February 27, 2016
I picked this up because it partially takes place in Oklahoma. Judging from the cover and the overdone plot of a selfish aunt taking in her niece and nephew and presumably realizing how sad and lonely and meaningless her child free life was, I wasn't expecting much. However, I ended up enjoying this.
A lot of the plot is a bit implausible when taken together but you meet a fun cast of characters and the core characters are well developed and all grow thought the story. It's a coming of age story set in the 50s, primarily during a road trip where the aunt takes the kids from Oklahoma to California. It does a good job of showing the 50s without idealizing them too much. We have a tendency to look back at that time as a time when nothing bad ever happened and this does a good job of balancing showing both.
A lot of the plot is a bit implausible when taken together but you meet a fun cast of characters and the core characters are well developed and all grow thought the story. It's a coming of age story set in the 50s, primarily during a road trip where the aunt takes the kids from Oklahoma to California. It does a good job of showing the 50s without idealizing them too much. We have a tendency to look back at that time as a time when nothing bad ever happened and this does a good job of balancing showing both.
July 12, 2016
I truly loved this book. Pauly Mahoney is the 12 year old progtagonist and she tells her story with humor, sadness, and spunk. The story is about what family really means. Is it the family you're born with or can you make your own? Pauly's quest for "the answer" to everything is such an enduring quality to me. I like the fact that the characters have such a broad age range as well. Buddy is eight and Tyb is 70 something so you get many different points of view. It would be great to read a sequel to this to see what is going on in their lives. The characters will stay with me for awhile.
November 27, 2013
I loved this book so much, I read it in a day!(Of course, that's not terribly unusual for me, but I was in the middle of a graduate research paper at the time.)Sweet, sad and touching book about an 11-year old girl who, for a variety of reasons, has the responsible role in her family. When her parents die in a freak roller-coaster accident, life gets even more turned upside down. The majority of the book is set in a Buick Skylark convertible in which Pauly (the main character, her brother, and their new guardian set across country from Oklahoma toward California, where they just might find second chances. Join them for the ride!
April 15, 2008
I really liked this book, and I'm happy that I was able to snag it from EllyMae's shelf.
This is one of those books that you read and just enjoy. Pauly is an interesting young lady, and I'm sure that there are more of her stories to be told (and there are, according to the author interview at the end).
I loved the national parks aspect of the book, because I've done a similar trip one summer and enjoyed it.
This is one of those books that you read and just enjoy. Pauly is an interesting young lady, and I'm sure that there are more of her stories to be told (and there are, according to the author interview at the end).
I loved the national parks aspect of the book, because I've done a similar trip one summer and enjoyed it.
October 6, 2008
I really like this author's books. Thank you Abbey for telling me about this!
This is another hard to put down book. Very well developed characters with realistic personalities and foibles. Interesting plot and story line. I could really relate with the main character in learning to trust others again and opening herself up to love.
I don't think I'd be comfortable having my daughter read this because of a rather graphic description of molestation in one part.
This is another hard to put down book. Very well developed characters with realistic personalities and foibles. Interesting plot and story line. I could really relate with the main character in learning to trust others again and opening herself up to love.
I don't think I'd be comfortable having my daughter read this because of a rather graphic description of molestation in one part.
October 7, 2008
I'm a bit affronted that one of the reviewers compared the heroine of the story to Scout Finch. That is a huge comparison and I'm sorry to say that she just did not live up to those expectations. It's an interesting story about how our families are not only those we're born into, but sometimes we create families with other loved ones we meet throughout our lives. It was pretty fluffy, a nice feel-good story without much depth. I enjoyed reading it at a leisurely pace as the mood struck me :)
August 12, 2010
I liked it, but it wasn't at all what I was expecting. It was a bit odd at times, but in the end it made up for it. I personally would have liked the book to continue on a little longer. I sort of felt that after I warmed up to the characters, the book was over. It was a cute read, but having her novel "paper hearts" as one of my all time favorites, this one let me down. Debrah still holds a place in my heart though.
February 29, 2008
It's totally light reading and a little fluffy but I liked it anyway. Started reading it before and finished after I finished Glass Castle so it was needed because Glass Castle was quite a bit heavier. But it has some similar themes, girl who grew up in a family that didn't have money and she's trying to be the grown up one because her parents aren't playing that role.
November 15, 2008
This is another book I just randomly picked up at the library. It was a sweet story and I liked how it was told from the point of view of a young girl. Pauly's parents are killed in a horrible accident and she is unsure what will become of her and her young brother. An aunt comes to their rescue and have a crazy adventure on their way back to California.
July 2, 2023
What happens when tragedy, laughter suspense and mystery intertwine? You get "Singing With the Top Down"- the wonderful story of Pauley and Buddy's unexpected journey from unbelievable sadness to pure happiness. After reading the last page, I felt like I had lost a friend. A fun and unique book that left me wanting more. I don't often re-read books, but this one is worth re-reading!
July 4, 2016
In a world recently encompassed by despair, this book is a nice reminder that there can be many an uplifting story. Truly a joy to read and the characters are incredibly loveable. Anyone looking for a heroin who finds the hope and love she deserves, like many young women out there, Pauly is the one for you.
October 19, 2008
Another great find at the second hand bookstore. What fun. The characters were endearing, the time period simple (the 50's) and the story moved along quickly with a few twists and turns along the way.
April 21, 2009
This is an ok book about two children whose parents die they end up living with an aunt. I had a hard time really getting into the book. I finished it but just because my OCD makes me read cover to cover.
August 6, 2012
A very sweet though improbable story, likeable well-defined characters, and amazing insights about life. I was cheering for the success of this newly formed family throughout. It was a feel good book, perfect for summer reading.
February 13, 2013
it was an okay book. my mom recommended it to me.
it starts with the 2 kids parents dying and the aunt taking the kids back with her to california. some mishaps happen along the way there...and the kids learn to trust their aunt.
happy ending.
it starts with the 2 kids parents dying and the aunt taking the kids back with her to california. some mishaps happen along the way there...and the kids learn to trust their aunt.
happy ending.
February 4, 2007
Your real family is not the one you're born into. It's the one you create.
August 18, 2007
Lightweight and overly melodramatic, but with a charming, funny, honest narrator who balances out the melodrama and make this a worthwhile beach read.
July 31, 2007
Cliche, but cute. I guess this would be good "beach reading" for your mom. The author is a seasoned romance writer, and it shows. I officially give it 2 1/2 stars for "okay."
Displaying 1 - 30 of 47 reviews