Book Blurb:
On a trip to Paris as children, my subjects would meet Camille Saint-Saëns and become friends, and again on the eve of an adulthood brimming with promise. Europe was swept up in Romantic Era with music that would enlighten the world. At the same time in America a different kind of passion was growing, one of patriotism and idealism and war and hatred. This is the world the beautiful young people in this story must navigate.
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Editorial Review:
The book you are about to read is set in the 19th century, spans three generations over two continents, and has a cast of characters that would arise envy from the longest TV soap opera. It may resemble many other families' stories if not for the connection with the present, kept alive through the narrator.
It takes a patient and alert reader to navigate through the hills and valleys of the storyline. But telling many people's lives over so many decades is not easy to accomplish when you throw in a modern acquaintance that happens to stumble upon a treasure of century-old memories.
That is Phyllis, a caretaker in the nursing home where Emily is living the winter of her life and her last days. She is the keeper of precious moments of the past, and she cannot let go. Tangled in the affairs of the people she loved a long time ago, it seems that Emily had only lived to tell their stories, as seen through her own experience. Unable to write it down herself, she entrusted Phyllis with the tales she held in her heart.
As a "once upon a time" would have it, a handsome young man of an unknown origin arrives on the shores of North America, where he immediately set up to acquire friends, family, and fortunes. This book's core is his legacy, his offspring, until death and beyond.
The fast and often confusing start leaves readers wondering if the first chapters are a short description of the book or if the novel has already started without their knowledge. We are introduced to a pallet of characters whose names are often mentioned in relations that escaped my understanding, and one may find themselves often going back a page or two to make sure they know who's who.
The first few chapters are staggering: the parade of people and events barely contained in a small paragraph doesn't give the reader any respite. Just as you thought you got settled in a story, another one requires your full attention, to the conclusion that the book has, perhaps, no plot and no main characters. After a while, it seems that the author has exhausted her well, and some individuals emerged from the creation soup, along with the court of parents, siblings, aunts and uncles, relatives, and downright strangers. If followed correctly and with full awareness, this thread may lead us to the true narrative of this work.
The book takes place over two continents: North America and Europe. Canada is the country of choice for Ted and Sarah, hiding away from a cruel slave owner in the South, and France is the vacation spot for their family, linked to the old continent through their Austrian relatives.
At its core, this book is a love story between a young man who dreams of being a soldier, Joseph, and a girl born to a formerly enslaved person forced to run away and a Jewish doctor from Austria, Olivia. As with all love stories, the boy gets the girl in the end, which should be enough to satisfy the reader. But what is missing from this picture is the tension of growing love, the dangers of competition, the ever-changing nature of the feelings, the influence of other people, the waiting, and the doubts.
Entering the story from time to time, the narrator, the contemporary caretaker, reminds the reader that these people are long gone, contributing to the sense of temporality. The last part of the book explains the connection between these people's fates, answering any question the reader may have and tying all the loose ends.
Reading "Joy Is Not Complicated", I felt like watching the pilot of a television show where they try to give you an overview of the story/stories yet to come; or the stories and characters no more than a drawing in a sketchbook.
Mr. Brenham and his two boys, Frank and Charlie, along with their adopted sisters, Molly and Kathleen, the last being the mother of the memory keeper, Emily; the Strauss family, Sarah and her slave mother Ruth, or her white master, all these people are no more than name holders throughout the story. You know their role in the book but little about them. What remains unknown is precisely what makes readers fall in love with a character: their feelings, strengths, motivation, or faults, told through their daily life.
One may become attached to Joseph and Olivia, tied up in a romantic interest, the only developed characters in the book. Growing up like brother and sister, the two youngsters find that they cannot live without each other's company. The faith hasn't reserved any twists and turns for them, and they will end up together, to the (short) satisfaction of the reader. But even if we cheer up for those two, aside from their physical appearance and some intimate thoughts told by the narrator, their personalities are far from completely understood.
Their story continues to be told by other family members long after the two protagonists have died as if they still have secrets. The one genuinely devoted fan, Emily, in an attempt to preserve their memory, if not their spiritual presents, passes the stories onto her nurse, Phyllis, and that's how we come to read it.
Although the author makes sure to let us know that this is a work of fiction, in a preface, she introduces the readers to Emily and Phyllis as if these people were the actual source of inspiration for the novel. The fact that everyone dies at the end is not surprising after reading this generational saga. The reader is satisfied that the story has been told and love has been fulfilled.
Aside from that, a connoisseur may appreciate a unique theme running along the story, bounding together destinies and mending broken hearts: music.
It was the height of the classical music period when so many great composers were played in worldwide orchestras and salons of well-off families in Europe and America. In this book, Chopin, Schubert, and Schumann are all present with their music and some in flesh and blood, and for a short time, we meet Chopin, old and sick, or Camille Saint-Saene, young and restless.
There is a sense of connection and thrill as the characters play good music and enjoy listening to it, music being part of their education as in 1800, there was no other way to do it, as Emily put it:
"We take for granted that we can listen to music anytime and anywhere we want. Can you imagine back then, there were no recordings of music until these guys were almost gone. I think that is why nearly everyone could play an instrument."
This passage is a testimony of the writer's maturity and wisdom, her view on the subject being both insightful and historically accurate. But her craft stops short when building dialogs, scenes tension, or inner life insights. Although Lynne Ruffino builds relatable characters, they lack the deepness that comes only from mastering the craft of writing. It is a pity as the writer has many beautiful and witty passages just like this aphorism:
"A confident person can still learn; an arrogant person cannot."
Although historically accurate, a modern reader may be disappointed by a statement like this: "When God created man, God gave man the most perfect gift. He gave man a woman," coming from Ted, a man who fought for his slave bride and listened quite often to her arguments about gender equality.
As for historical details, here is where the author could have applied the specificity of the genre. The book's settings and lifespan allow a generous use of historical details that a fan of historical fiction may have expected. Unfortunately, aside from a few events, we do not have a clear picture of that time. The settings lack color, and the speech is missing time-specific wording; there is no clothing description, no details of the houses or living arrangements, to name just a few. We also have no idea about the social and political environment in America, Canada, or Europe.
The author has delivered a team of likable characters, all dancing to the music of the 19th-century European composers, directed by a beginner. The characters then lose the rhythm. They may also lose us, the readers. If the director were a maestro, they could have had an excellent performance.
*****
“Joy is Not Complicated” by M. Lynn Roffino receives 3 stars from The Historical Fiction Company*
Author Bio:
I am a recently retired RN. My patients would tell you I always have a story to tell, and I enjoyed listening to theirs. The Story has a simple title, because the story is too complex for anything else. I could have called it, Sounds of Life the Heart Turned Into Music. That is how I described Camille Saint-Saëns fifth piano concerto to my friends.
I always wanted to be a writer, but had no story to tell. I spent my life studying people and trying to figure out what made them do what they did. That turned out to be an excellent quality for nursing. Over the years I had access to many people at the most vulnerable times of their lives and did my best to comfort what I could not help heal. Sometimes that meant just listening.
Every character had a soul, a gift, a wound and a desire to be heard, just like real people. I gave them that 40 years ago then circumstances required that I destroy my manuscript. They haunted me, but I always had an excuse for leaving them in the dark. I was in school. I had to work. I had a family that needed my time. Research that provided the Library of Congress with a significant file of historic record was my consolation prize. But it did not quiet my characters. Retirement came and with it a powerful depression. My life was done. There was nothing left to do. The characters knew I no longer had an excuse. But could I do it? Could I bring them back and would their story be relevant? Actually, I think the story is more relevant today that it would have been forty years ago. Even though my characters lived around 175 years ago.
*****
*the author approved the posting of this review on the website
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