I have to address a few things from Jason's previous post about commercial vs literary success.
Why do we assume they must be mutually exclusive? I would think most writers want readers to appreciate their skills, for critics to laud their talent and for their work to actually reach a wide audience.
And I have read Jennifer Wiener's works (In Her Shoes, Good in Bed) and really enjoyed them. She's definitely a cut above in the genre. Her characters are well developed; her writing is solid; and her topic matter speaks to a lot of women.
To their concern about male writers garnering more critical acclaim than female writers, I haven't done any kind of analysis, but I wouldn't be surprised. I wonder how far we've come since the days of George Eliot and the Brontes.

And now for something completely different...

Do you like song lyrics? Do you like reading?
Me too.
So I was drawn to "The Song Reader" by Lisa Tucker.

The premise: By knowing which song lyrics a person find themselves fixated on, this young woman can help them get to the root of their problems.

Mary Beth believes her gift is helping people, even as she involves her younger sister and adopted son in her own problems.

Gets you thinking, though, about why it is that at certain times in your life you are drawn to a particular artist or type of music.

I am a big fan of the Smiths and adore lots of their lyrics "I was happy in the haze of a drunken hour, but heaven knows I'm miserable now." "There's a club if you'd like to go; You could meet somebody who really loves you; So you go and you stand on your own, and you leave on your own." Or "Last night I dreamt that somebody loved me; No hope, no harm, just another false alarm."

But, I gotta be honest: Sometimes I'm just not in the mood for such heavy lyrics, no matter how upbeat the music.

Perhaps there's something to this song reader after all.

Get a sense of what Tucker was thinking here.

- Tricia Ambrose

I was readying a post about Evelyn Waugh’s Brideshead Revisited, but Tricia blew it up with the idea of character soundtracks.

Like it, love it, want to play.

For the characters in Rebecca:

Rebecca — "Poison" by Bell Biv Devoe. "Cold Hard Bitch" by Jet would be fun theme music, also.

Maxim — "Hurt" by Nine Inch Nails (or Johnny Cash, if you prefer); "Beast of Burden" by The Rolling Stones.

Mrs. deWinter — "Bad Romance" by Lady Gaga. Kidding, kidding... then again... eh, never mind. Let’s say "Every Rose Has Its Thorn" by Poison.

Mrs. Danvers — I appreciate Tricia’s suggestion of "Evil Woman," but I’ll take a more sympathetic tact and suggest Billie Holiday’s "Left Alone."

All right, Tricia, what would be the soundtracks for Anna Fitzgerald, Lucie Manette and Edward Rochester?

Bonus points if you can make an unnecessary Wu-Tang Clan reference.

By the way, Tricia, we now have another preferred author in common. I been loved me some Stewart O’Nan.

In my review of Snow Angels, I wrote, “O’Nan is Monet with a pen. He has the eye. He sees (and writes) little details that make every scene real. Nerdy girls do not become beauty queens when they take off their glasses. Children cry when they spill milk and cry harder when told to stop. People slowly destroy themselves and can’t change even when they realize what they are doing.”

(Yes, I know it’s overwrought. I wrote it in 2008. It was a different time.)

-Jason Lea, JLea@News-Herald.com

Another weekend of travel is a wonderful thing. Not only did I get to visit with family, I also got 10 hours of reading time in the car and a page of recommendations from my mom and sisters.

Talk about a win-win.

Some of those hours were spent with "The Space Between Before and After" (ISBN 9780061452185) by Jean Reynolds Page.

A rare book that exceeded the expectations I'd formed based on reading the jacket.

I've not read any of Page's books before (I plan to now), but I imagine she's very popular with book clubs.

In my imaginary book club, participants discuss not just the writing of the book but also weigh in on the actions of the characters and discuss their choices as if they were real people. But maybe that's just me.

So, in any case, the characters in Space are ripe for evaluation.

At the heart of the story in Holli Templeton, a divorced mom whose son has dropped out of college to move back to her native Texas with his chronically ill girlfriend. When she goes to check on him and her aging grandmother, issues surrounding her mother's death and father's remarriage surface.

Every relationship is called into question. Secrets are revealed, and the reader wonders how much would have been different for everyone if those secrets had never been held?

As Holli herself wonders, "What would I have done if my desire and love had been split between two different beings? Even understanding didn't bring any fuller forgiveness. I just knew that I was lucky. My passions never destroyed the people I loved. I never had to answer to whether or not they would have, if circumstances had been different."

What would you do?

There's lots to think about.

But what I found so intriguing was in the author's insights, extras and more.

The author has included a soundtrack for the characters. Songs she said inspired her creations.

For Holli she lists The Beatles' "The Long and Winding Road," James Taylor's "You can Close Your Eyes," Sheryl Crow's "Strong Enough" and R.E.M.'s "The Great Beyond."

Got me to thinking about soundtracks for other novels.

For example, one of my all-time favs, "Rebecca:"

For Mrs deWinter: Norah Jones' "One Flight Down." This song has always made me think of someone admitting to themselves that they've known something all along, much like I imagine she had doubts about Maxim.

For Maxim: "I Started Something" by the Smiths. Its upbeat rhythms remind me of his polish, and its pretty depressing lyrics evoke his guilt.

And for Mrs. Danvers: ELO's "Evil Woman." Need I say more.

- Tricia Ambrose