In this Genova’s fifth book; we have Richard an accomplished concert pianist who lives to perform. While his professional life sees him on world stages his private affairs definitely take backstage. So much so that when he is diagnosed with ALS his ex-wife and daughter are the last to know.
Denial is the coping technique Richard uses when the fingers on his right hand start to lose strength and dexterity. Tendinitis is what he tells his adoring public and what he secretly hopes is the correct diagnosis. However his hopes are crushed when paralysis grips his entire right arm and he is strongly encouraged to purchase a wheelchair for when he can no longer walk and to record his voice for when he can no longer speak.
Ex-wife and mother of Grace, their only child, Karina is also a gifted pianist. Time and circumstance has seen her beloved jazz music relegated as she brings up Grace and teaches piano to reluctant and in the main uninterested children. It isn’t until Richard phones her, in a moment of panic, that it becomes clear that Richard can no longer care for himself and she makes the reluctant decision to become his caregiver.
So what is ALS? Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis is the disease that brings on paralysis, shortens lifespans by decades and is commonly associated with American baseball star Lou Gehrig and physicist Stephen Hawking.
Genova is not new to writing stories where one of the main characters has a neurological disease. She is perhaps best known for the book, later made into an Oscar award-winning movie Still Alice, the story of a women with early onset Alzheimer's.
So with a complex premise; seriously flawed characters and no happily ever after what makes Every Note Played so compelling? It is the quality of the writing; sensitive, raw and compassionate.
Reviewed by Miss Moneypenny
Catalogue link: Every Note Played
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