Rating: 
Summary: Dysfunction defined
Review: I enjoyed the book very much, the 740 pages went by quickly, there were a few too many characters and some events that had no apparent explanation then never heard of again. (the judges murder) I have to agree with some that the ending was not consistent with the rest of the book. I wonder if Marie learned anything from the experience or if she's not waiting for the next flim-flam man to come around to improve her denial skills.
Rating:
Summary: The ending is very weak.
Review: I wondered if the author just couldn't figure out how to end the story or if she was trying to write a book she could make into a series. The ending was very weak.
Rating: 
Summary: One of the best books I have ever read!
Review: This book is a gem! It is a powerful compelling story that sucks you in. As I was reading it I felt like I was living it. I would find myself in the same frame of mind as Marie was or thinking about Jozia and Howard as if I knew them. Some days I would even feel like yelling at my kids the way Marie would! The family was so full of love for each other but at a complete loss as to how to express it. I thought Norm was a great older brother but sad he was so tormented. Blue Mooney was doomed to a horrible life in spite of his goodness. Life dealt many of them a horrible hand that would never change. I would have loved to find out what happened to Omar and Sam. I have read reviews that siad people were disappointed in the end. This is REAL life. There are not always happy endings.
Rating:
Summary: Songs is messy, hard, and worth the fight to find the light.
Review: Giving birth breaks your heart. Life is so very hard and wonderful and messy. I held on tight as I read Songs and fought my own emotions. Yes, it's hard to read, hard to live with and hard to enjoy. It has a real-life beauty. The characters annoy and anger and inspire and aggravate. But then, if the book was not written as well, none of these feelings could be possible from a written page. I loved the journey. I hated the journey. I needed to find the end. This is not a book for the callous, or the shallow. It's a get down and dig through the muck kind of book. I'm glad it's there. I wish I had such talent to write life so real and so fine. We are not the Cleavers no matter how much we think we should be. Most of us are also not the Fermoyles, thank God. I am amazed at the reactions to this book. People either hate it or love it. I think the swing in passion illustrates the power of literature. Life is hard and worth the fight.
Rating:
Summary: Number one Oprah book yet
Review: I cannot say enough about this tremendous novel. Heart-stopping, heart-wrenching, heart-breaking. I could not put Morris' book down, nor did I want it to end. I am a child of the 50's and 60's and I felt as if I'd been transported back to 1960 and was living it all over again. I could feel the heat of that summer. I could feel the anguish and joy of the characters. Atkinson was a microcosm of Anysmalltown, USA. This book makes me want to read Morris' other two novels (VANISHED and A DANGEROUS WOMAN). I can't get enough of Morris' searing prose. BUY THIS BOOK!
Rating: 
Summary: A VERY LONG AND SLOW READ!
Review: I'm glad to see that so many readers find this book as slow and unmoving as I do. I can honestly say that I don't like one character in the story. I have been reading this book for almost six weeks now and I am on the verge of putting it down once and for all! I hate not finishing a book, but based on the other reviews that I have read, it sounds as if it might not be worth it. Every time I read it, I find myself disgusted with at least one of them: Marie, Sam, Father Gannon, Omar. I feel sorry for the other half; I can't decide who is most pathetic: Renie, Alice, Benjy, Haddad.The list goes on. I wish I could understand why the author felt this was a story worth writing. I have yet to feel close to or empathize with any of the characters. I cannot wait to be finished and move on to a more satisfying read.
Rating: 
Summary: Who could possibly care about these characters?
Review: I have never been so disappointed in a book. Never! The characters evoked no interest -- I didn't like them or hate them. They were just there. I read through the first few chapters, became exceedingly bored, and then read the last few chapters. After doing so, I was extremely grateful I did not waste any time reading the hundreds of pages in between.
Rating:
Summary: The Book of 100 Character Sketches
Review: My disappointment with "Songs In Ordinary Time" began with the first chapter. Though the initial prose was beautifully executed, it offered no clue to its purpose or eventual meaning. After several chapters, the loose ends were twisted together a bit, but I had an irritating feeling that I must have missed something in the first reading; that feeling wasn't compelling enough for me to read the first chapters over. Every time I set down the book, I vowed not to return to it. I eventually picked it up, each time hoping to discover why this book received any acclaim what-so-ever. And each time, I struggled for the next page and a half to piece together the new chapter and new character. Mary McGarry Morris has a gift for creating believable characters with accurate, realistic psychological profiles. She has an potent precision of perception in regards to human motivations and justifications. But, I didn't feel as if she created a story set in a small town. She created a metropolis of character sketches with no plot, no significant purpose and no emotion. I felt no positive or negative emotional attachment to any of the characters while reading the book. I was given no reason to care for the Fermoyle family nor did I particularly fear or dislike the antagonist, Duvall. I felt the characters were trapped in a static but realistic photograph while I longed to behold a moving, breathing body that could whisper in my ear. For those who believe that the jumbled, dragging and confusing construction of the plot is a sign of "heavy and deep" literary material, I thoroughly disagree. Readers should not have to suffer to find meaning in a book. I have read a great deal of literature lately dealing with poverty, destitution, and unfortunate family situations. When I compare "Songs" to the exquisite clarity of books like "The Big Rock Candy Mountain" by Wallace Stegner and "Angela's Ashes" by Frank McCourt, I can't help but feel I was cheated in wasting my time on the book's 740 pages. Classics in literature like "Mountain" and "Ashes" enlighten, illuminate or edify the reader. "Songs in Ordinary Times" is far from a literary classic. It led me down a path of detached scenery and disappointing turns with too many detours that led nowhere.
Rating:
Summary: Great book!! (sometimes)
Review: I decided to read this book and bought it because of all the great reviews and comments on it. Well, it is a wonderfully written book, sometimes. I realize that people back then and now use bad language but it seemed like every page had at least one dirty word. In one part of the book there are seven short dialogue sentences. In those 7 sentences there are 8 "f" words. I also realize that the author was trying to portray how teen-age boys talked with each other in the sixties, but I feel that it was overdone. I believe there are other ways that the author could have achieved the same goal without the bad language. The other thing that I was very disappointed with was the ending. Benjy and Norm were so far from home. How did they get home? Did they walk or hitch a ride? What did they talk about on their way home? How did Benjy feel about facing his fear of water to save his brother? Did Benjy tell Norm everything he knew and saw regarding Omar? When they got home how did they tell their mother that the man she loved and was to marry was a murderer and a crook? How did she take it? The author missed a needed opportunity to finish the story and answer these questions. Instead, she skipped to Howard Menka then Alice going to college. Don't misunderstand me, I thought that this was a fantastic book. I could hardly put it down. But I just felt so let down at the end. The song was incomplete.
Rating:
Summary: YIKES!
Review: I started reading this book two months ago...and I am not a slow reader. Disgusted, I would put it down and not be able to return to it for weeks at a time. The characters are remarkably uninteresting and truly pathetic at the same time. I finished it yesterday because I am so compulsive that I couldn't just throw it in the trash can, but I will have to rethink that now!!!! This was 740 pages of good reading wasted.
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