A Lesson From Molly

If you’ve known me for any length of time, you know me as a strictly classical literature type of person. For about two years now, I’ve been broadening my horizons and reading novels from this century (gasp). While I was probably secretly ready for a change, there is one person who I credit with provoking the action, and that is YA author Joëlle Anthony. I “interviewed” her for a research paper I wrote Sophomore year and not once have I regretted that decision. As a YA writer, Joëlle primarily reads YA fiction and recommended good reads through her blog, www.joelleanthony.com. The more we emailed, the more I began to realize that classical literature did not have a copyright on great stories. I began to explore. While I still have a great deal of ground to cover, I’m thankful to Joëlle Anthony for lightly shoving me in a new direction.

A few months ago, Joëlle offered me the opportunity to read an ARC (advanced reader copy) of her début YA novel, Restoring Harmony. I had to force myself to draw the book out over three days! It was fantastic. One aspect of the book impressed me beyond words. I expressed this to the author herself a few days ago, and simply must express it to you today!

The protagonist of Restoring Harmony, is Molly McClure, a teenager from a small island in B.C and a fiddler. She is stubborn, motivated, resourceful and loving, all the makings of an attractive heroine. As a violinist, I overlooked these virtues and went straight to the music! Joëlle Anthony, although only having played violin as a child, writes as though she herself is a fiddler. The great attachment which Molly feels both toward music and the instrument she makes it with, is so real, so legitimate that one can feel both the joy and the pain that come with it.

Molly was never afraid of playing her instrument. Playing before strangers was not intimidating or frightening to Molly, as it is to me. I’m afraid of practicing while family friends are in the house. “What if they don’t like fiddle?” or “What if I play out of tune?” were never in Molly’s thoughts. Music should be shared, not hidden. In one of the early scenes in the book, Molly is waiting to catch a train when she confidently walks into the bathroom, gets out her fiddle and begins to play in one of the stalls! She doesn’t worry about people hearing, she doesn’t stop for a moment to wonder what people might think! In this way, and in many other ways, Molly is a character that I can fully admire and aspire to become like.

My prayer since I read Restoring Harmony, was “Lord, take away my spirit of timidity and grant me a spirit of confidence in the gift which you have given me!” I don’t want to hide this any more. I love talking about music and playing, but how many people who know I play have actually heard the music? Very few.

So, if I were to write Molly McClure a letter, I would simply say, thank you for inspiring me to walk in confidence. Thank you for helping me understand that talent cannot be kept secret, but must be shared. Thank you for showing me what true love of music is: unashamed.

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I don’t mean to form a habit of blogging this way, it’s just so happened that the last three books I’ve read have warranted a main blog post as well as the customary Bookshelf review! So, you can read my official review HERE.