SPILL BOOK REVIEW: TARA MACLEAN – SONG OF THE SPARROW

TARA MACLEAN – SONG OF THE SPARROW

HARPER COLLINS CANADA

BOOK REVIEW BY BRYAN WILLISTON

Canadian singer-songwriter Tara MacLean rose to prominence as a solo artist in the late 1990s, and also experienced success in the mid-2000s with the group Shaye (with co-frontwomen Kim Stockwood and Damhnait Doyle). Song of the Sparrow, the newly-released memoir from Harper Collins, is her first book.

From the outset, MacLean lays the foundation of her life, beginning with her childhood on Prince Edward Island. Direct and candid, she immediately draws the reader in. With vivid, poetic description, MacLean takes us on a journey of events experienced and lessons learned. Her heart-wrenching stories depicting personal loss, poverty, child abuse, and family tragedy are balanced with ones of growth, triumph, and love. As readers, we enter MacLean’s world with curiosity, and we stay for the sad, beautiful, tragic, and uplifting journey.

The over-arching theme here is one of being natural and true to oneself, and of overcoming adversity. In presenting her story, MacLean employs the device of beginning each chapter with a quote – often a song lyric, or a piece of poetry or philosophy – to underscore that chapter’s content. Though this is a common approach, the author makes good use of it. In every experience that she describes, there is something to be learned, which is tied to that chapter’s quote. MacLean is also a master of the referential call-back, artfully reiterating a phrase within a chapter (or between chapters), to punctuate a point. She does this in a delightful fashion, which brings us closer to her, and her story.

Song of the Sparrow is interesting in the contrasting worlds that it presents. On one hand, we have the origin story of Tara MacLean growing up in rural and rustic Prince Edward Island. On the other, we see her describing her hard work as a musical artist, with the big budgets and lavish lifestyle that were hallmarks of the pre-Napster music industry. At times, it is almost as if we are reading about two different people. Despite those differences, and through all of her experiences, there is a relatable wisdom in MacLean’s words. Her perspectives on suffering and grief, and on personal and professional loss are thought-provoking and almost therapeutic.

One need not be a fan of Tara MacLean, or even need to know her music well, to enjoy Song of the Sparrow. The way that MacLean engages her reader, and the eloquence, emotion, and poetry of her words make this a wonderful read.

ISBN – 9781443465120

PURCHASE SONG OF THE SPARROW VIA HARPER COLLINS CANADA HERE OR VIA