Fascinated by a young woman’s performance of “The Lost Child” in Guanajuato’s central plaza, painfully shy expatriate Callie Quinn asks the woman for a trumpet lesson — and ends up confronting her longing to know her own lost child.When Callie became pregnant in 1960s rural Missouri over thirty years ago, her outraged father, with her mother’s acquiescence, insisted that no one know—and Callie … know—and Callie complied. She went away, and she gave up her baby. She did it to protect the baby’s father—a black teen—from the era’s racist violence.
When Pamela, the trumpeter whose music flows from her heart, enters Callie’s life, Callie begins to dream of opening her own heart. But instead she remains silent, hiding her longing and risking giving up everyone she dares to love in order to safeguard her secret. Callie tells herself she does so to protect her daughter, but ultimately, in order to speak, she must confront the deepest reasons for her silence—the ones she’s been concealing even from herself.
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Dianne Romain tells the story of a woman working to let go of the weight she carries from her past. Her journey takes place in a town in Mexico that comes alive as you read. Romain ignites your senses and emotions through her words. A beautiful story about relationships with friends, family and oneself.
Callie Quinn is working as a translator in Guanajuato, Mexico and enjoys her quiet contained life. One day a haunting performance of “The Lost Child” in the square sets in motion an opportunity for Callie to expand her life and deal with a long held secret about a child she gave up many years ago. The book uses music as a backdrop foe a story about love and loss. It is a beautifully written story.
This story touched on many societal issues and relationships and how they are navigated by those experiencing them first hand. Wonderfully developed characters and beautifully described locations made this a fast and good read. A big takeaway for me….when you feel overwhelmed…just stop and breathe.
Try as she might, Calie’s plan to hide from life after a fateful decision is doomed. Sequestered in Mexico with a translation career that lets her keep a low profile, she thinks she’s sufficiently isolated from feeling and connections, but can’t help attract and become tangled in the lives of a picaresque cast of similar outcasts, whose trials all mirror her own. This witty, heartwarming “lesson” in human nature navigates the complexity of guilt, regret and longing, and shows how the heart will always find a way to form family, no matter how unconventional. All you have to do is learn to breathe…and perhaps buzz your lips. Romain’s intricate, well-written tale balances serious issues with the amusing absurdities of trying to run away from them. It’s a highly satisfying read, though it begs a critical confrontation scene between two important characters and pushes some other plot points you’d like resolved into an epilogue that only teases what might happen. Perhaps there will be a sequel.
“The Trumpet Lesson” is Dianne Romain’s literary fiction debut, a story that dives into the worlds of secrets, racial inequities, different cultures and sexual orientations, and coming to terms with the past. It’s about embracing and accepting friends, family, and change, and learning to appreciate what matters most. “The Trumpet Lesson” is a fascinating story that brings all these elements together as one woman discovers how to let go and start living.
Callie Quinn’s life is safely compartmentalized by to-do lists, work commitments, and a handful of people in her inner circle. Everything and everyone occupy a specific place in her life, a life rich in routine normalcy. Even her deep dark secret is isolated, only given life on its anniversary. Yet all it takes is a simple song carried by the plaintive notes of a lone trumpet to turn her neatly constructed world upside down – but that might be just what Callie needs most.
“The Trumpet Lesson” is a beautiful story. It’s hard to believe this is a debut novel it is so well done, and my kudos go to the author right up front. Romain mesmerizes the reader with her words – eloquent, captivating, haunting. Layers of complexity are rolled out with ease, yet it’s also quirky to lighten the burden of some of the more serious topics entertained. There is a lot going on in this story. For instance, the setting is Guanajuato, Mexico, but the dialogue is English, laced with Spanish, laced with French. Where does the French language enter the picture, you might ask? Through the main characters Armando Torres, a man who wants to learn French to impress his lover, and Callie Quinn, who instructs Armando in all things French. It’s a unique and entertaining twist that livens up an already eventful story!
The author, a resident of Guanajuato, captures the essence of the town like only an insider can. From the cobblestone callejones to the yard filled with cosmos and a luscious avocado tree, the descriptions are enticing and alluring, drawing you into a world that feels like it was created just for you, the reader. The same is true for the characters, who are divine. They are all so different yet go together perfectly as if they were placed in the universe at this precise time to influence each other. It’s pure destiny and they all have something to contribute and learn from each other.
Though it may be cliché – I am confident in stating that readers will have a hard time putting this book down. But don’t rush through it – you don’t want to risk missing even one of the subtle distinctions that make the writing all the more endearing – no, simply savor the experience. I highly recommend “The Trumpet Lesson” by Dianne Romain.
Callie Quinn is a woman who has left Chicago for Guanajuato in the hopes that she can forget her past, come to terms with the pregnancy she had 15 years prior. She is a translator and she can work from home which is perfect for Callie. Until she meets Pamela Fischer, the new trumpeter in the local orchestra.
Callie wants to get a lesson from Pamela and her friend Armando convinces her that is what she should do. Along with her search for her daughter, whom she has never met, she tries to convince Armando to come out of the closet. As Callie tries to hide her past but still tries to find her daughter, she comes across some colorful characters, such as Callie’s Aunt Ida and Pamela’s mother.
At first, I didn’t think I would like the characters or even the story as a whole, but I usually give a book 100 pages before I put it aside. That said, I stuck with it I ultimately really did enjoy it. The writing was really good, enough to let the reader know the deep parts of the character but not as to get bogged down with the complexities of their pasts! I highly recommend it! Great story from a different time!
I received a free electronic copy on August 16, 2019, of this excellent modern novel from Netgalley, Dianne Romain, and SheWrites Press. Thank you all, for sharing your hard work with me. I have read The Trumpet Lesson of my own volition, and this review reflects my honest, personal opinion of this work. This is a novel I can happily recommend to friends and family and is an excellent YA or teen read. It is a novel to savor on a rainy day or as the snow fills in the hills.
Dianne Romain brings us a novel set for the most part in the small Mexican town of Guanajuato. It is the tale of young men and women evolving into the well-rounded adults they need to become to thrive in this complicated modern world we now live in. We see their lives from the perspective of Callie Quinn, an in-demand translator to and from English-Spanish-French.
Callie is a Chicago girl transplanted to Guanajuato in an effort to isolate herself in hopes she can come to terms with the secrets that have kept her single and in pain since high school. All of these young people live with the aching guilt of secrets they feel they can’t share with anyone. Pamela Fischer, the new trumpeter in the local orchestra, is the catalyst that begins bringing to the surface the hidden lives of the protagonists of this fine novel. The arrival of the mothers of Callie and Pamela and Callies’ Aunt Ida bring to a head the complexities that keep these young adults enclosed in their secrets and guilt.