Review: The Music Teacher, by Barbara Hall

I'm not going to sugar coat this - The Music Teacher was not for me. But, since it might be for *you*, here's a go at a discussion.

Main character Pearl Swain has achieved nothing of note in her life. Her musical career is non-existent, her marriage has failed, she lives in a trailer, and works as a music teacher / sales clerk in a pretentious music store in LA. As the only woman in the store, several of the other employees are either interested in her or hiding that they are, but in typical geek fashion, this is played out in a strange dance of insecurity and pretended indifference.

The plot of the story circles around the arrival of Hallie Bolaris, a gifted violin student who has been orphaned and now lives with her seemingly dysfunctional aunt and uncle's family. Hallie's talent and family life slowly alter Pearl's perspective on life and emotional attachment, and she begins to take interest in more than the pain and self-pity that she has wallowed in since the demise of her marriage.

I believe what makes this first-person narrative unattractive to me may make it more so to others; this is very much the kind of behavior that goes on in the small, insular cliques of art or literary geeks, and I find it unappealing. However, if you are someone who takes part in that culture, you may find Pearl's story more appealing. Personally, I found the characters to be unlikable in any real way. The story was choppy, and Hallie was too contrived. Pearl's turnaround was too abrupt. Nothing about any of the characters really grabbed me, and even at the end, not too much had changed. I was looking for more novel and less mundane real life, and I didn't find it here. I think Hall could have written a more engaging novel, or at least one that would have engaged *me* more, but didn't.

In short, this is a very tightly-focused character study on an everyday woman whose life is a realistically small part of the universe. If that's your cup of tea, this is your book. It was not mine.

Rating: one out of five stars - flat, mildly depressing, and too narrow