The Singing Trees
2019: Cape Elizabeth, Maine. Seventy-year-old Annalisa climbs an extension ladder to retrieve a wind chime from the snow-covered branches of an oak tree for her dying friend, Emma. The wind chimes, making the trees sing, were made by Annalisa years ago. Emma is thrilled to see the chimes hung in her hospice room. This brings back memories of their lives together and of Emma’s estranged brother, Thomas. Emma dictates one final letter of forgiveness to Thomas that makes Annalisa reflect on her past.
1969: Payton Mills, Maine. Young, orphaned Annalisa, a talented artist, lives with her humble Italian grandmother. She is determined to make a name for herself. She moves to Portland, achieves some success, and meets Thomas, an Ivy League student from an affluent family. They fall in love. While Annalisa thinks that her dreams are materializing, an indiscretion on her part, and a betrayal from another, threatens to tear her world apart.
Boo Walker’s interest in songwriting shows in the lyrical prose. The characters’ emotions in this love story are lucidly displayed. However, the storyline has numerous coincidences, and a significant misunderstanding between the main characters tends to make it somewhat melodramatic. Nevertheless, depictions of the young Annalisa’s ambition, and her resolute effort to succeed in life, overcoming the problems she encounters, delivers a heartwarming read. The images of peoples’ lives, dialogue, and songs transport us to life in Maine during the Vietnam War era of the 1970s. Readers will discover the effect of that war on the lives of soldiers and ordinary citizens. The prologue is surprising, as it covers events occurring towards the end of the story. Readers who skip it will find the novel more entertaining.
