A song I knew by heart : a novel Cover Image

A song I knew by heart : a novel / Bret Lott.

ISBN: 0375503773
Physical Description: 303 pages ; 25 cm
Edition: First edition.
Publisher: New York : Random House, [2004]
Copyright: &copy;2004

Summary:

Naomi, a widow forced to confront death once again when her son, Mahlon, is killed in a car accident. As Naomi and her daughter-in-law, Ruth, stumble through the weeks following the funeral in a haze of grief and sadness, Naomi keeps returning to an image from her South Carolina childhood--a slant of light scattered on pine straw. This memory inspires her to move back to her hometown, and her daughter-in-law goes with her: "Where you go, I will go." Lott's great gift here is the way he elevates the small rituals of everyday life--a child's Thanksgiving drawing, homemade biscuits for breakfast--into transcendent moments of human connection. Although the relationships presented are idealized, with nary a cross word exchanged, they are never less than persuasive. Lott's rhythmic and repetitive phrasing, revealing the source of his inspiration--the Book of Ruth--is both artful and soothing. This is a radiant, achingly tender portrait of the grieving process.