A Secret Music
CBC Books | CBC | Posted: May 11, 2017 7:57 PM | Last Updated: May 11, 2017
Susan Doherty Hannaford
Set in 1936 Montreal, A Secret Music is the story of Lawrence Nolan, a sensitive 15-year-old piano prodigy who grows up in the shadow of his mother's mental illness. Forced to keep this shameful secret, he attempts to raise himself and his 10-year-old brother. He counteracts the deep ache and creeping mistrust caused by his mother's emotional absence by escaping into the intense realm of Chopin and Schubert, the only language he understands. When his brother becomes ill, he is left with enormous responsibilities. At a piano competition in Montreal, Lawrence makes a climactic decision that puts his future on hold in order to salvage his family life. (From Cormorant Books)
From the book
Lawrence Nolan decided to become a famous pianist on a bright cold Saturday in March when his fingers ached with pain. He was about to turn six. He had been rehearsing for hours, had memorized an entire book of piano songs, more than a dozen in all, to make his mother smile. Her stomach had grown huge and showed through the filmy dress she wore. She was so surprised by her son's achievement that instead of vomiting or lying in bed, she heaved herself to her feet and took him to the Archambault Music Company to buy him new sheet music. In the seven-storey shop on Saint Catherine Street at the corner of Berri, she proudly introduced her son to M. Edmond Archambault, who shook hands with the young Lawrence.
From A Secret Music by Susan Doherty Hannaford ©2015. Published by Cormorant Books.