Singing With the Top Down [Paperback]

Debrah Williamson (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 5, 2006

At a time in the 1950s when America is a little more innocent, and everyone believes in a brighter tomorrow, two children and their flamboyant aunt head toward California in a Buick Skylark convertible...and share adventures both funny and poignant that teach them the true meaning of family.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Precocious 13-year-old Pauly Mahoney heads an ensemble cast of eccentric characters in this coming-of-age charmer. Pauly and her eight-year-old polio-survivor brother, Buddy, lose their parents after a roller-coaster accident at the Fabulous Fortuno Brothers Traveling Carnival in Tulsa, Okla., one hot July 1955 night. The only family member willing to take the pair in is perky Aunt Nora, a wannabe Hollywood actress who shows up with a fat wad of cash, a "cream-puff 1953 Buick Skylark convertible" and the promise of a new life in California. During the road trip to the Golden State, they pick up nursing-home runaway Tybolt Bisbee and Puppy, his smelly dog. The entourage ebbs and flows with the appearance of a misplaced Indian woman and her small son, the 500-year-old mummified remains of a child, and Joe, an ex-navy fighter pilot on his way to L.A. and a new job flying for TWA. Graceful and witty, Pauly's courageous voice is this bighearted novel's greatest strength. (Sept.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

Thirteen-year-old Pauly Mahoney and her polio-afflicted little brother, Buddy, are orphaned when their parents are killed in a freak roller-coaster accident at the Fabulous Fortuno Brothers Traveling Carnival. Their glamorous aunt Nora, who seems to make her living working as a movie extra, agrees to take them in. During their extended road trip from Oklahoma to California, they travel in style in a cream-puff Buick Skylark convertible, experience the joys of camping, take in a nursing-home runaway, and liberate a mummified Indian child from a desert museum of "amazing anomalies." Resilient and independent Pauly, often made to shoulder adult responsibilities, finds that her aunt is a good listener with a generous heart. Veteran romance novelist Williamson invests Pauly's narrative voice with an authentic charm, and although a few readers might balk at Pauly's rapid transformation from worrywart to Pollyanna, such quibbles would appear to be curmudgeonly in the face of this novel's infectiously sunny spirit. For those who like a quirky plot delivered with relentless good cheer. Joanne Wilkinson
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

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Product Details

• Paperback: 320 pages
• Publisher: NAL Trade (September 5, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0451219260
• ISBN-13: 978-0451219268
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.3 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,477,537 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A new classic, February 17, 2007

By 

M. E. Lee "Books Rule!" (TX) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Singing With the Top Down (Paperback)

If you liked Secret Life of Bees, you'll love Singing With the Top Down. Williamson's novel is a wonderful treat, a must read for those who love Americana. It's fun, fast and substantial. You won't regret spending time with these amazing characters.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Delightful and entertaining, October 4, 2006

By 

Terri DuLong "Author of SPINNING FORWARD rele... (Cedar Key, Florida) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Singing With the Top Down (Paperback)

I dragged out reading the final few pages, because I just didn't want the story to end. I was captivated with the excellent prose and wonderful story line. It was like taking a trip back to the mid-50's and Williamson has it down perfect in bringing back memories of TV shows, food items, etc. of that time.
Finely drawn characters made me feel like they were next door neighbors. Williamson is a skilled author and this is one of the best books I've read in a long time. Uplifting, entertaining and poignant....do yourself a favor...don't miss reading this one.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars amusing 1950s coming of age tale, September 10, 2006

By 

Harriet Klausner - See all my reviews
(#1 Hall OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Singing With the Top Down (Paperback)

In the summer of 1955 at the Fabulous Fortuno Brothers Traveling Carnival in Tulsa, Oklahoma, Pop and Mama Mahoney die when the Crazy Snake roller coaster crashes. They leave behind a ton of unpaid bills and two children, thirteen years old Paulette "Pauly" in Oklahoma and eight years old polio survivor Buddy. None of their relatives from either side want to take in the kids except wealthy eccentric Aunt Nora, who arrives driving a convertible with plans to bring them to Hollywood where she has been trying to make it as an actress.

On the "The Daring Adventure of Us" trek west with the top down, Nora picks up hitchhiking nursing-home escapee Tybolt Bisbee and his reeking Puppy. Others join their traveling road show as Aunt Nora's generosity and charm begins to win over the prime cynic, Pauly "Paulette" in California who does not trust adults to care about her interests as Mama always took care of mama first and Pop did likewise taking care of mama first.

This is an amusing 1950s coming of age tale starring a precocious naive yet cynical young teen who distrusts adults. The story line is told from the perspective of Pauly as she begins to warm up towards her seemingly caring Aunt Nora, who is sort of an Auntie Mame type of character. There is no suspense even when someone tries to abduct aunt and niece as the lighthearted touch remains throughout the plot. Those readers who enjoy an amusing overly sanguine historical will want to read Debrah Williamson's fine look back to 1955 in the southwest.