Seven siblings, all very different, all dealing with a mystery surrounding their mother's death - though family trials - through surprise life events. Ties that bind, get broken, and are mended over and over again - the family bond repeatedly tested.

Rebecca Kauffman's Chorus follows the seven Shaw siblings (and their parents) through various time periods and events in their lives. I think this book could have been great, but it never really hits its mark.

Chorus goes back and forth through time from the early 1900s through the 1950s. There aren't really chapters, but vignettes about the family of various length. When something happens in an early time period (like their mother's death or a teenage pregnancy), it's brought up again later with a variety of recollections. Each sibling goes through a lot in their life, but the book is not really about anything. I've read many quiet stories about families, but there has to be a sense of connectedness throughout for it for it to be interesting. Chorus, to me, lacks that.

Despite its shorter length, this book took me a very long time to read. It felt disjointed, and I never felt like I got to know any of the characters well. This was a big miss for me.

MY RATING - 2

this was a well written family saga that told each person's story very well. I enjoyed the writing as well as the story! thanks to NetGalley and the publisher!

Enjoyed this book as it shifted between different points in time and various family members viewpoints. Each layer perfectly built upon previous layer and wrapped up this large family's joys and tragedies.

Many thanks to Netgalley and publishers for providing me a review copy!

It pains me to say this wasn't my favorite. Not sure if it's just the ARC version, but I felt very lost bouncing around between time and the siblings. I will definitely try it again at a later date because I LOVE REBECCA KAUFFMAN and I refuse to accept this first reading run of mine!

I've never read anything of Kauffman's before, but when I was looking at predictions for books that might be Book of the Month Club options for March, I stumbled across this title. It sounded like such an interesting read, that I knew I wanted to read it regardless and was thrilled to be approved for it on NetGalley!

In a rural and remote part of Virginia, the Shaw family consists of parents and their seven children. In vignettes spanning decades, the family's story unfolds - though traumatic events leave their marks on them all in different ways. This makes for an engaging read - obviously one very focused on the characters. There really isn't a plot, per se - but the historical aspect adds subtle dimension. I think this is the type of book that will really appeal to some book clubs to pick it apart for discussion. There's certainly a lot here to talk about!

4 stars
From the publisher, “Entangled in a family knot, each sibling encounters divorce, drama, and death, while haunted by a mother who was never truly there. Through this lens, they all seek not only to understand how her death shaped their family, but also to illuminate the insoluble nature of the many familial experiences we all encounter—the concept of home, the tenacity that is a family’s love, and the unexpected ways through which healing can occur.”

Kauffman’s writing is beautiful, dialog is strong. The story moves back and forth from 1903 to the 1950s in a rural setting and is character driven, though the plot holds surprises. Nothing big happens in most chapters, but the details stuck with me.

I would have found a different title for the book, something with the theme of home, leaving and coming back. ‘Chorus’ does not really portray the intricate and nuanced family relationships portrayed. From the publisher, “Chorus is a hopeful story of family, of loss and recovery, of complicated relationships forged between brothers and sisters as they move through life together, and of the unlikely forces that first drive them away and then ultimately back home.” “They all had their own homes to return to, their own families to care for and contend with, their own set of stories to negotiate, to tell or not tell, to remember or forget, to honor or to dispense with, their own private collections of darkness and light truths and lies. Our little hearts can carry only so much in one lifetime…. it is so much, it is so much.” The book left me wanting much more, but it also felt enough.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I finished Chorus a little while ago and I’ve been processing it since. Sometimes I close a book and that’s the last time I think about it, but Chorus is a short novel that packed a lot into it.
Spanning the first half of the twentieth century, Chorus weaves through time offering glimpses into the lives of the Shaw family. Each chapter is a vignette told from the perspective of the seven Shaw children and is a story unto itself, but the plotting is cleverly paced to share information about the mystery of their mother’s death.
As one of six children, I understand one child’s voice getting lost in the crowd, so I loved this storytelling and giving each one their own voice, but in the end it’s the chorus of all seven making the family what it is. It was a lovely, beautifully written novel.
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⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

I did not finish the work (got through half); the plot is a bit too jumpy for me to move forward with it. I am quite confused, to be honest.

Oh how I love this book. CHORUS is currently in first place for my favorite read of 2022. Of course, it's early in the year, but I can't see this one being displaced out of my top three. Put simply, the Shaw family feels real. I enjoyed every moment I spent with them, the good and the bad. Kauffman has crafted a narrative that manages to be both literary and uplifting. The back and forth in time wasn't jarring; it seemed of an intentional design. And I appreciate how the narrative examines hard truths, particularly with Lane and Mrs. Shaw, without coming across as depressing or bleak. The scenery is also vividly depicted.
This is admittedly not a rip-roaring plot, but that's not why I pick up literary fiction.
Highly recommended for fans of Ann Patchett and Elizabeth Strout.

The synopsis of this one really intrigued me : 7 siblings "entangled in a family knot, each sibling encounters divorce, drama, and death, while haunted by a mother who was never truly there. Through this lens, they all seek not only to understand how her death shaped their family, but also to illuminate the insoluble nature of the many familial experiences we all encounter—the concept of home, the tenacity that is a family’s love, and the unexpected ways through which healing can occur."

I love family dramas, especially big family dramas, but this one was not for me. Each chapter felt like a different story and it didn't flow for me. I was never engaged with any of the siblings and ultimately didn't care what happened to any of them.

I'm sure many people will still resonate with this one.

Thanks so much to Netgalley, Catapult, Counterpoint Press, and Soft Skull Press, Counterpoint for a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This book is out now!

It is important to note that the majority of the themes explored in this book deal with sensitive subject matters. My review, therefore, touches on these topics as well. Many people might find the subject matters of the book as well as those detailed in my review overwhelming. I would suggest you steer clear of both if this is the case. Please note that from this point forward I will be writing about matters which contain reflections on parental neglect, sexual assault of a minor, substance abuse, mental illness, suicide, & others. 

It is very rare that one finds oneself reading a book that could be deemed a classic piece of literature. I wonder how often readers of Hemingway, Hugo, Proust, Steinbeck et alt. knew that the books they held in hand would find themselves as highly praised works of classic literature. Without seeking to prevaricate the core of this review I want to highlight that the story that Kauffman has written is most certainly one that will transcend ages & see itself diligently succeeding through the test of time.

Down a rural road, nestled in a vast farmland, sits the house of the Shaw family. The seven (7) Shaw children lead the chapters in this book by way of transitions which jump through time & categorically significant events until the reader finds themselves utterly devoted to the well-being of each member of the family. This is not a book for the faint of heart. Comparing Kauffman’s writing to that of Steinbeck, specifically, was not done in earnest. The plot situates itself in the heart of a book that requires stints to ease the flow of the burden, in this case; the ways in which trauma & the development of life hurdles itself at each an individual person. Every character in this story was flawed; everyone held secrets which ate at their essence. Relationships were strained & afflicted by the malevolence of misunderstandings & words left unsaid.

This is a short book, one which you might see yourself reading in a single sitting. I had to actively pace myself because I wanted the weight of what was being said to truly seep into my subconscious. The prose in this book was exquisite, morose, elegant, aerial & profound. There is no way for me to render into words the orphic text.

In the opening chapter we read about Jim, the patriarch, as he holds his youngest son in a race to ensure that his wife has not been found hanging from a tree in their garden. We learn that Marie, the matriarch, is dealing with something which might later become known as a Bipolar Disorder. Though I am not in a position to comment on the authentic representation of Bipolar Disorders (Bipolar I Disorder, Bipolar II Disorder & Cyclothymic Disorder), I think it is important to highlight that the author does not necessarily explore the complications that the disorder causes on the person in question. The main protagonists of this story are the children. When we read chapters through the points of view of the parents it is not to reinforce some third party agenda but to complete our understanding of who these children grow to be as individual people. The inclusion of emotional mania within the story in no way seeks to reinforce any particular subjective understanding of the illness nor was it superficially riddled into the plot as a character arch. Marie is a three-dimensional person, as are all the characters; her illness is not detailed at length because the majority of the story sees the repercussions of the changes she experiences to her mood, energy & overall ability to function through the eyes of a child.

I certainly appreciated the narrative which this book sought to present which is that people who live in a ‘bad’ way (i.e. outside the norm of abilities to function) can still be ‘good’ loving people irregardless of the outer circumstances at which we meet them. I have put both descriptors (bad/good) in quote marks because they might leave a great deal up for interpretation. I am not saying that having a brain disorder is inherently bad. What I am saying & what the book seeks to address is that the consequences of a such a brain disorder as the one that Marie experiences, leave the children in this story feeling that the events which transpire around them, subsequently all that is out of their control, are ‘bad’. The lack of parental presence from their mother because she is unable to leave her room; the lack of facial muscle strength due to medications seeking to address the root cause of her illness; the confusion felt as a young person who knows only to trust & seek affection from a parental figure but has had to learn that violent outbursts, aggressions & fear are emotions that said person is also teetering through. The ‘good’ person is the one that they remember when Marie finds herself in a space which does not bog her down. To be good is to share love; to decorate Christmas trees; to share cookies & play games; it is writing out a final declaration of love before leaving.

It was very difficult to work through this book; the subject matters so close to home. Every single character in this story was so much themselves that I felt at times, as though I were sitting round the table listening to them share stories, rather than being a third party who lives outside of their fictional reality. Kauffman has introduced a group of people who are so profoundly well thought-out, complex, interesting, decisive, intriguing & fully fleshed-out as to make them feel familiar to the reader. I became so invested in each of the character & felt so very deeply for their experiences that I did not want this book to end. My single qualm is that I flew through this book. I was sad & I felt attached & I was moved; this is a beautiful book.

Thank you to NetGalley, Catapult, Counterpoint Press, and Soft Skull Press & Rebecca Kauffman for the free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

#Chorus #Netgalley

Chorus by Rebecca Kauffman is a novel that centers on a large family who lives in a farm between the 1920s and 1950s. The story is written in vignettes about each family member skipping throughout time. It takes a little bit to get into the story, but begins making sense and coming together. At first, it’s a little difficult to follow the character’s lives because there are so many of them, but the author gives enough background that you understand each person’s character and life. I really liked that we see how larger outside events like economic depression and war affects people. I found it fascinating to consider the scenes that make up a life and the struggles we may face, whether it be mental health, addiction, poverty, grief, etc. I would recommend this if you like Elizabeth Strout. It is a pretty short book without much extraneous detail. I listened to the audiobook which was well-narrated by Elisabeth Rodgers and kept me interested in the story.

Thank you Counterpoint + Recorded Books for providing this ebook + audiobook ARC.

𝐀𝐧𝐝 𝐡𝐞 𝐟𝐞𝐥𝐭 𝐫𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐞𝐟, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐠𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐭𝐮𝐝𝐞, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐩𝐫𝐢𝐝𝐞, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐥𝐨𝐯𝐞, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐟𝐞𝐚𝐫, 𝐚𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐩𝐞𝐨𝐩𝐥𝐞 𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐜𝐡𝐢𝐥𝐝𝐫𝐞𝐧 𝐰𝐞𝐫𝐞- 𝐛𝐨𝐭𝐡 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐲 𝐤𝐧𝐞𝐰 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐟𝐚𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐲 𝐝𝐢𝐝𝐧’𝐭- 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐩𝐞𝐨𝐩𝐥𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐲 𝐰𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐛𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐠, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐲 𝐬𝐚𝐢𝐝, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐲 𝐝𝐢𝐝𝐧’𝐭.
Chorus by Rebecca Kauffman is a quiet, intimate story of a family coping with deeply traumatic events, because what is the death of a parent if not traumatic? But there is another questionable incident that occurs and doesn’t sit well with all the siblings, a heavy rot that they carry, unable to confront. Before the loss of their mother, there is her darkness that the children can’t wrap their young minds around. Longing, as young sons and daughters do, for maternal love and comfort they instead have a mother who wants nothing more than escape from life. Remember, it was a time that wasn’t out in the open much about mental illness. Marie and Jim Shaw have seven children together: Wendy, Sam, Jack, Maeve, Lane, Henry and Bette. Neither are the same, each has their own distinct personality and dreams, futures we see unfold from 1929 to the 1950s but every single one of the siblings have been changed by their mother’s death and the things that have happened to all of them. Wendy, the eldest, was the character I felt the closest with, the one who has been more mother to her siblings than their own. The eldest, she has shouldered adult responsibilities, loved her brothers and sisters, making quick decisions and never wanting much for herself. Both loving and resenting her often cruel, illogical, emotionally absent mother and bringing light to her family with her nurturing, where there is shadow. The youngest are at a loss to comprehend what troubles Marie, and ache the most for bonds. When she is gone, it is a wound they carry into adulthood. Jim adores his family, and has always loved his wife, trying to protect her from the mental disturbances that haunt their marriage, never once being disloyal to his partner. He is ‘mystified’ by the emotions of others, always feeling inadequate but not for lack of love. So much to worry about running their farm, protecting his brood without the help of his wife who is reliant on pills to simply survive each day. He knows how hard the world is, that only gets harder with her death.

Each of the children recall the past and take a hard look at the current state of their lives. There are deeply flawed narratives they’ve believed, ones some have built their future on. Falling into marriages too young, or escaping their humble beginnings with loftier aspirations, military service, alcoholism, secrets kept from everyone, Wendy later left behind with her father and not much life of her own, experiencing empty nest syndrome (in a way) for all her beloved brothers and sisters. A sister (Lane) who is too shy to understand her own boundaries, a brother harboring a shame from his mother’s deathbed, even the next generation makes choices that breaks a mother’s heart. Decisions can be eruptions in the lives of those who love us, we are, in a sense, like dominoes. The Shaw Family have roles, and are each shaped by one another but as close as they are, they often commit acts or move in ways that leave each other mystified or hurt. So much began with their mentally ill mother, in a time when such things were hidden and little understood. The fear, as seen in Bette, that her mind could be broken, like her mother’s, or the resentment Sam feels all through his life over his mother’s final act, the loneliness of shy Lane that forces her to grow up too soon, the separateness youngest, sensitive son Henry copes with, Jack’s chaotic charm, the protector hiding his own insecurities, headstrong, intellectual, Maeve who prefers reality to comforting lies; there isn’t a child who isn’t altered in the Shaw family by their mother’s death. It is also about a family trying to decide on how to tell the story of events that happen to make it more palatable, naturally with good intentions for the younger siblings. Each decides what to do with tragedy and transgressions as they see best. Some marry weak partners, and must confront their own demons with the past. It’s a quiet story, sure, but the profound things that happen in so many lives don’t come with explosions. It’s truly the little things that can be our ruin or success. Jim’s feelings about his wife are written towards the end and it was a tender read. You can’t help but feel for Marie too, her own monster darkness to fight. A solid read. We have made strides in mental health (still lacking) but it was under an umbrella of shame, far worse back then. It was often unnamed, misunderstood, sadly for the person suffering but certainly loved ones were tormented too. This story breaks your heart. Well done.

Publication Date: March 1, 2022

Catapult Press

Counterpoint Press

Soft Skull Press

Chorus is a quiet, character driven novel that follows the seven Shaw siblings: Wendy, Sam, Jack, Maeve, Lane, Henry, and Bette, and their parents, Jim and Marie. Told with a nonlinear timeline that weaves between time periods from 1903 to 1958, we follow the Shaws throughout their childhoods and adult lives.

Two significant events have shaped the family. Even decades later, the family is reeling from the untimely loss of their mother, Marie. Marie’s death follows a lengthy battle with her mental health that made her a ghost in her children's lives during her lifetime. Additionally, a teenage pregnancy further shapes and fragments the family.

In Chorus, Kauffman paints grief as a continuum. Some of the siblings look for the truth while others conceal it. Some try to numb the pain, others to intellectualize it. Some flee the Shaw’s rural Virginia homestead, others never leave.

Kauffman manages to weave a vivid tapestry of this family. For such a short novel (this one clocks in at 248 pages) with so many characters, I still felt like I got to know each and every one of them, and was able to see how their individual stories all impacted the others. The way that the storyline jumped between periods gave me the sense that I was slowly uncovering and piecing together the truth.I initially struggled to keep track of who was who and found myself frequently referring to a chart at the front of the book listing the siblings in birth order, and recommend reading this in print as a result.

Though this book is steeped in themes about mental health, addiction, trauma, and grief, the discussion about these topics rings true to the era in which the book is set, which some readers may find frustrating. Though Chorus is about the bonds of family and the family relationships presented here are ultimately hopeful, the tone of this book is somber. This book is quiet and meandering, but I still couldn’t put it down.

I loved the Gunners, and I loved how this book felt even more restrained and intentional. I realized that I’ve missed some of Kauffman’s backlist, and I’m looking forward to picking them up. This was a highly anticipated release for me, and it didn’t disappoint. Check CWs.

Thanks so much to Counterpoint for a finished copy and ARC and RB Media for an ALC to review. All opinions are my own.

This is a peak into the relationships of the seven Shaw children as they navigate life after the death of their mother. Jumping in timeline and told from multiple points of view, this book is a beautiful look at family roles, relationships, and ideas of home.

This book is suggested for fans of Elizabeth Strout and I think that’s a perfect comparison. The writing is concise yet beautiful and packs a punch. Completely character driven, I loved watching the relationships between the siblings come to life.

The bulk of the book is about how their lives unfold as a result of their mother’s illness and death. However, there is one moment shared between the parents that pushed this book into five star territory for me. The mother is describing to the father the darkness she feels within herself and he simply holds her hand. The love shared in that silent exchange was one of the most tender moments I’ve ever read. In that same passage, the dad explains his relationship with words. He’s a quiet man. He works his farm. Loves his family. I think some might reduce him to being simple but he describes his love of words, his inability to overuse or misuse them that forces him to choose them carefully and as a result often remains quiet. This is especially beautiful given the chorus of voices coming from his large family. There were so many special, unexpected moments of beauty sprinkled throughout this novel. This will surely be a favorite of the year.

This took awhile to get into but then I really enjoyed it. Each chapter is a different year and time in the life of this sprawling family and told from a different family member's POV. Once you connect the dots, I found telling the story this way to be very enjoyable and also incredibly revealing. Definitely recommend this one!

Chorus comes out TOMORROW on March 1, 2022, and you can purchase HERE! I also enjoyed the narrator. You can read my review of The Gunners by this author HERE.

Henry Shaw, second youngest of the Shaw siblings, was enjoying coffee on the deck of a hotel room with his wife, Anne. The early morning sea breeze was pleasant on their faces, which were stiff with sunburn. They ordered room service for breakfast when their daughter, Mimi, woke. Mimi watched her mother closely as she ate. She said, "Your hair is better than usual."

In Chorus Rebecca Kauffman brings to life the stories of one family. Many of these stories are related to the death of the mother of seven siblings. Was it suicide or an accident? All is presented in an Interesting, non chronological way. Love is central is all its glory and difficulties. As one would hope, Chorus sings.

I'm a complete sucker for a family drama and this was no exception. I loved seeing how differently members of the Shaw family were affected by landmark events in their shared history. I will say, a lot happens over the course of the book (to be expected when you've got nine main characters), and the nonlinear style was occasionally confusing, though Kauffman included references back to important events early on in each chapter that quickly cleared it up.
I do wish it was longer! I would have loved to hear more about the characters' individual storylines, though obviously the book is about their shared family history and relationships.

There is a LOT that happens in this short and quiet novel. The seven Shaw siblings endure their mother's death as children and multiple tragedies throughout their adults lives but the theme running throughout the book is that they remained a close family no matter what happened to them. They go through periods of closeness with different siblings, and at times some of them do not get along well with some others of them, but ultimately this is a story about a family that sticks together through it all. I liked the book but felt the description was misleading because this really is more like a novel in stories rather than just a novel. It is a short story collection that together makes up the story of this family and their experiences. I had a difficult time with the non linear aspect of the book, and I wished to get to know some of the characters more, but other than those elements I did think the book was very good. I like Kauffman's writing style and will look into her backlist.