A dreamlike quality flows through this novel set during the influenza pandemic of 1918, and it's a style that will hinder some readers even as it enthralls others. These poetic attributes also lend a timelessness; even though the story takes place nearly a century ago, it feels easily transferable to modern times. The plot follows 14-year-old Lyza, the daughter of two eccentrics living on the borders of a small Maine town. When her beloved Mater is suddenly struck down with influenza, Lyza is left with a difficult decision: head to the big city of Portland to take a college entrance exam (like Mater would've wanted), or stay behind to help Pater, an artist seemingly incapable of rudimentary tasks such as eating and paying bills. He's also "a man who saw angels in meteors"-what seems like just another example of his detachment before the plot makes a surprising supernatural swerve. This mature, challenging work is bleak, but haunting in its careful use of suggestion and nuance
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
By TeensReadToo
TOP 100 REVIEWER
Format:Paperback
Lyza's father, an eccentric, artistic man, is slowly losing his sanity.
Lyza always relied on the stability of her mother to help keep him from completely going over the edge. Now, Lyza is left to pick up the pieces after her mother succumbs to the influenza epidemic. Pater struggles to maintain a sense of normalcy, but he is convinced that his wife's spirit will eventually pay him a visit.
Lyza's father is hiding an incredible secret, one that may take him away from Lyza forever. It is a secret that Lyza shares with her father - a family trait that she has inherited and can no longer ignore.
THE KEENING was a fast read. I enjoyed how LaFaye set the story in Maine around the time of the flu epidemic, as it gave the story some historical context. I also enjoyed her descriptions of the sea. The water seemed to be very important to both Lyza and her father. I was also surprised when Pater's secret was revealed - I had not seen that coming.
The story is not complex and the characters are simple, but that is what makes this novel a delightful read. It is the story of a girl and the bond she shares with her father. Read it - you won't be disappointed.
Reviewed by: LadyJay
Lyza always relied on the stability of her mother to help keep him from completely going over the edge. Now, Lyza is left to pick up the pieces after her mother succumbs to the influenza epidemic. Pater struggles to maintain a sense of normalcy, but he is convinced that his wife's spirit will eventually pay him a visit.
Lyza's father is hiding an incredible secret, one that may take him away from Lyza forever. It is a secret that Lyza shares with her father - a family trait that she has inherited and can no longer ignore.
THE KEENING was a fast read. I enjoyed how LaFaye set the story in Maine around the time of the flu epidemic, as it gave the story some historical context. I also enjoyed her descriptions of the sea. The water seemed to be very important to both Lyza and her father. I was also surprised when Pater's secret was revealed - I had not seen that coming.
The story is not complex and the characters are simple, but that is what makes this novel a delightful read. It is the story of a girl and the bond she shares with her father. Read it - you won't be disappointed.
Reviewed by: LadyJay
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
3.6 out of 5 stars
11 reviews
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
1.0 out of 5 stars
Not For Me
3 July 2011
By A Book Vacation
- Published on Amazon.com
Format:Hardcover
I am sorry to say that I really didn't care for this book. The synopsis quickly attracted my attention, but upon reading the story, I found myself often confused and uninterested in the life of the characters. I think my confusion added to my dislike of the novel because it held me back in terms of getting to know the characters and understanding the true plotline of the story. I had a hard time following Lyza's train of thought, as she seems to go from one subject to the next, and I felt like an outsider as I read--it was difficult for me to make connections between the different topics Lyza brought to light, such as her father, her family, her schooling, etc. I think the choppy style of the narrative is one of the main aspects that I struggled with, though the amount of description in the beginning of the novel was also daunting to me, as I live for action, and felt like the story thrived more on description than actual events. Although the paranormal is present in this novel, and it is usually my forte, I have to say that overall, this novel just isn't for me. One star.
3.0 out of 5 stars
Fog and mist and the dead
5 Aug 2011
By W. Martin
- Published on Amazon.com
Format:Hardcover
15 year old Lyza loves her small reclusive family. Her mother is estranged from her family and her father is thought to be insane. Lyza does what any girl does, she studies, she has a part time job and she wonders about her future.
The story takes place in a small coastal village during the 1918 influenza epidemic. Funeral parades past Lyza's family home are a daily occurrence. When her mother falls fatally ill with the disease, Lyza begins a quest to save her father from the people who wish to place him in a work house for the mentally insane. Along the way, she discovers she is more like her parents than she ever realized.
I love a good historical novel. Learning about real events while immersed in a fictional novel adds another layer of depth to story which makes history tantalizing accessible to me as a reader. As a fictional novel, this one falls far short.
The premise of this novel is unique and unusual. I had high hopes for an action packed and suspense-filled adventure. Here, too, I was disappointed. Lyza spends a majority of the book immersed in her own thoughts. Very little actually happens, action-wise.
The author was aiming for a dream-like quality in her prose, which she was successful in achieving. However, I feel the novel suffered for it. I would have liked to see a better balance between the inner and outer Lyza as she discovers her place in the world with the advent of her beloved mother's untimely death.
The story takes place in a small coastal village during the 1918 influenza epidemic. Funeral parades past Lyza's family home are a daily occurrence. When her mother falls fatally ill with the disease, Lyza begins a quest to save her father from the people who wish to place him in a work house for the mentally insane. Along the way, she discovers she is more like her parents than she ever realized.
I love a good historical novel. Learning about real events while immersed in a fictional novel adds another layer of depth to story which makes history tantalizing accessible to me as a reader. As a fictional novel, this one falls far short.
The premise of this novel is unique and unusual. I had high hopes for an action packed and suspense-filled adventure. Here, too, I was disappointed. Lyza spends a majority of the book immersed in her own thoughts. Very little actually happens, action-wise.
The author was aiming for a dream-like quality in her prose, which she was successful in achieving. However, I feel the novel suffered for it. I would have liked to see a better balance between the inner and outer Lyza as she discovers her place in the world with the advent of her beloved mother's untimely death.
4.0 out of 5 stars
The Keening is haunting, memorable and highly recommended.
2 April 2011
By Wendy L. Hines
- Published on Amazon.com
Format:Hardcover
Lyza Layton lives in a small town in Maine and the flu epidemic has taken ahold of their town hard. She watches everyday as the funeral march passes by her cliffs after spending her days carving letters into wooden signs.
Her mom makes their money by sewing, and her dad carves faces into stone. Beautiful carvings that are very lifelike. The townsfolk call her dad crazy because he forgets to eat, clothe or clean himself unless her mom reminds him.
When the flu takes her mother's life suddenly, Lyza doesn't know what to do. The town wants to admit her father into the asylum farm but she will do anything to make sure that doesn't happen.
When she finds a notebook in her mom's keepsake box addressed to her, she finds the name of a man she must find, a man who will ensure that her dad will remain out of the asylum.
But on Lyza's journey to the big city to find him, she finds out something about herself. She does have a talent besides letter carving, and she understands her dad now in a way she never did before.
The Keening is a short and simple story, but yet it is memorable. The characters of Lyza and her dad are remarkable and complex. Set against the backdrop of the Maine coast, The Keening is haunting, memorable and highly recommended.
Her mom makes their money by sewing, and her dad carves faces into stone. Beautiful carvings that are very lifelike. The townsfolk call her dad crazy because he forgets to eat, clothe or clean himself unless her mom reminds him.
When the flu takes her mother's life suddenly, Lyza doesn't know what to do. The town wants to admit her father into the asylum farm but she will do anything to make sure that doesn't happen.
When she finds a notebook in her mom's keepsake box addressed to her, she finds the name of a man she must find, a man who will ensure that her dad will remain out of the asylum.
But on Lyza's journey to the big city to find him, she finds out something about herself. She does have a talent besides letter carving, and she understands her dad now in a way she never did before.
The Keening is a short and simple story, but yet it is memorable. The characters of Lyza and her dad are remarkable and complex. Set against the backdrop of the Maine coast, The Keening is haunting, memorable and highly recommended.
›
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3.6 out of 5 stars
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