Customer Reviews

Songbird

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Lisa Samson has written some great books, but this is by far her best. In this books, she touches on several themes. One, Charmaine, the main character, is struggling with her mother's abandonment and her desire to find a home. Second, this book deals with mental illness, such as depression and schizophrenia.

Lisa Samson is a Christian writer. Yet, through her book, she expresses that it is OK to get help for mental illness, and that depression, etc. is not because you are weak or have a sin problem. The church has a misunderstanding on what mental illness is about, but she disposes of the myths in her book.

This book is one of the best I've read on the subject of depression (also, read Karen Kingsbury's "When Joy Came to Stay".)

Lisa has a way of creating well-developed characters with depth and who are multidimensional. Some Christian writers create "goody-goody" characters, but Lisa creates characters that are easy to relate to and who aren't perfect. You couldn't help but love Mrs. Evans, Grandma Min, Grandma Sara, Ruth, and some of Charmaine's other friends. And you can't help but hate people like Richard, Grace, and her parents. And of course, you end up feeling sorry for Charmaine's mother.

Lisa writes with such depth, and is so easygoing in her books that I feel like I hearing my best friend talk to me. She also sprinkles humor throughout the book.

this is a wonderful book. Myrtle Charmaine Whitehead Hopewell is a lady every woman should know. She's someone you could put on your houseshoes with and eat food with your hands. Her life has been hard, jagged even. Yet Charmaine still manages to love, despite being abandoned by her pretty waitress mother at age eleven or a string of other tragedies that follow every time she tries to care, to stay. Her love is preserved in part by a special gift, tied up with a bow and placed in her throat by God himself, the voice of a songbird.

Lisa Samson never ceases to amaze me with the quiet strength her characters possess as they erase the lines between secular and sacred bringing the reader to a better understanding of humanity as a whole. So many times in this book, I saw something of myself or people I know. No wonder this won a Christy Award. It's magical.

Once again Lisa Samson was unafraid to tackle a murky subject, this time depression. To medicate or not to medicate, that is the faith question. She writes so honestly and right where we live, yet does it with a lot of style.

SONGBIRD reads both like a Southern folk poem and a motor home drive on a windy, bumpy road headed for a river baptism. A skilled writer, Lisa Samson pulls the reader into a waif's world and wills you to care what happens to her. Full of fresh explosions of insight.

I picked this book up on my way out of town. Honestly, I grabbed it because it was a mass-market paperback and would fit into my purse. The Christy Award was also a plus. While reading this book on vacation, I was drawn into Lisa Samson's story. I laughed, I cried, and at times became angry. When a book can stir these kinds of emotions in me, I always have to check out this author. Since reading Songbird, I have read many more of Lisa Samson's books, and I have not been disappointed. Lisa shows the realities of the Christian walk. While we are saved by grace, we are also human, and have to continually rely on our redeemer to bring us through. I am thankful for that mad dash to the bookstore for some vacation reading material. It is just another examples of God leading me in the right direction. ;>

This book is completely unlike the usual lightweight Christian fiction I've encountered before now. Myrtle Charmaine is like a member of your family by the first page. And, in spite of the heavy subject matter, Charmaine's joy in life shines through the pages of the book in a wonderfully inspiring way. I loved this book!

Myrtle Charmaine is only 11 when her mother leaves her to fend for herself. Years of moving from state to state leave Charmaine longing for a place to call home. Yet, she marries a traveling preacher. Harlan encourages her in her gospel music, the stray children she accumulates, and the search for her mother. However, Harlan's anti-psychiatry messages prompt Charmaine to keep some secrets from him.

Jump on the RV and join Harlan and Charmaine as they travel church to church spreading the gospel, great music, and love. These are genuine characters that will linger in your thoughts long after the last page.

This book really made me think about alot of things. Ms. Samson has a great way of making her characters seem real and they are easy to come to love.

I am a big fan of Ms. Samson, and will be on the lookout for other books as they come out.

I enjoyed it greatly.

This is one of the edgiest and most riveting of the Christian fic fare I have ever read. Not since Dale Cramer's debut have I been so impressed by an author boasting faith in their novels. A highly-flawed character, Charmaine Hopewell adds a humane and relative voice to the world of derelict despair she finds throughout her Southern life.

The atmosphere and dialect read like Billie Letts meets Faulkner. The deep integration of characters into the piece reminded me somewhat of John Irving.

I was thoroughly impressed with Samson's gutsy rhetoric. This story----with its sin and long-time-in-finding redemption ---points the finger at some of the less tangible strains of evangelism: the reliance on the promise of God over medication, the scandalous surroundings of televised programs and their subsequent revivals ( mostly those in the mid-80's with the surge of retreats and resorts a la PTL).

Our focal couple, Charmaine and Harlan, remain the groundwork for a sometimes unbelievable whirlwind of hypocrisy, doubt and selfishness.


This " on the road" novel dips and dives in places I never expected it too. Though it lacks some of Cramer's subtlety, it has a much-needed literate slant that continues to evade so many in the marketplace.

I will definitely read more from her.

Songbird by Lisa Samson is hands down one of the best Christian fiction books, no I take that back, one of the best books I've ever read. Charmaine is so real she literally breathes the book into life. There are no cardboard stereotypes here, and Charmaine is quick to admit her mistakes and own them. I went in for some tests at the hospital on Friday and took the book along with me for company. I don't know that I could have had a better companion. (Jesse went too, but he was finishing up Harry Potter 6 and not much for company.) Reading Songbird was like having a sweet stranger come up and start sharing her life story with you, but in such a way that made me feel more comfortable. Charmaine was the woman in the waiting room who saw my fear and decided to put me at ease by chatting. But all the while, gently nudging my side and reminding me that God is Sovereign, He's with me, and He loves me. I read the book through lunch, the end of the tests and finished it Friday night. The subjects that Samson tackles in this book are not light: depression, honesty, psychology, and she doesn't treat them lightly. Both sides of these issues are handled from a Christian viewpoint and with love. I could see Charmaine's cycles start to run higher and lower through the chapters, but her love for her Lord stood firm. This book is like a friend you'll miss when it's over, and the reminder in it that none of us are perfect, but Jesus loves us anyway is poignant.