ŷ������

Plainsong, a simple unadorned melody, is a perfect title for this book, Haruf's style being beautifully spare and yet powerfully moving. This award winning book takes place in a small town on the high plains of Colorado and chronicles the lives of some of it's struggling residents namely a lonely school teacher and his young sons who've been abandoned by their depressed wife and mother, a forgotten inbound widow, a caretaker and her elderly father, two rough on the exterior old bachelor brothers , and an abandoned pregnant teenage girl. This is an unflinching look at how life's harshest challenges can draw unexpected people together and strengthen them. A favorite Wailing Jenny's song " One Voice" would be a perfect soundtrack here. A great song that goes from a single sweet clear A Capella voice to that of an all encompassing three part harmony. 4.5 stars