Border Songs
by Jim Lynch
Alfred A. Knopf, New York
Sorry, I didn't like this book. I liked the idea of this book but I didn't like the book. I liked ideas in the book, but...
The border is the Canadian border and the atmosphere is one of paranoia brought on by government worries about terrorists and drug smugglers and illegal aliens crossing the border and by Canadians worried about Big Brother watching their every move.
Brandon, the main character, would rather be birdwatching, or even taking care of the cows at his father's dairy farm but instead he's on the Border Patrol. And he's really good at his job--in spite of himself. He's dyslexic, clumsy and uncomfortable around people so he tends to prefer being a loner. He'll wander off in search of more birds for his daily count and end up with the "Queen of Nowhere" or something else suspicious.
But Lynch kept me guessing sometimes about who he was talking about. I really didn't think the characters were as carefully drawn as Jodi Picoult's characters in Handle with Care. I always felt like I had to squint to see them clearly. And I never did get it straight which side of the border people lived on. Was Madeline a Canadian? I spend the whole book trying to get people straight--that drives me crazy. In fact, I almost closed it midway through. If it weren't for the blizzard we are now digging out from, I'm sure I would have stopped reading it.
The tone of the book is cold hearted. I never warmed up to anybody until the last chapter when Brandon's mother finally comes into focus and gives the book a heart. A couple more passages and the whole tone changes to almost girly-love-story. It ends happily!! My first book this year to do so. So I'll probably recommend it with a warning. After all, others just may like these characters.
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