Beach Music, a novel by Pat Conroy (1945 – 2016) is an expansive contemporary story of a richly described Southern family. The story takes place in Rome, Italy and South Carolina.
Widowed Jack McCall, an American, lives in Rome with his eight-year-old daughter, Leah. Although the darkness of the tragedy of his wife’s suicide is always with him, Jack and Leah live a good life. Jack’s occupation as a travel and cookbook writer keeps his life interesting and active.
When Jack is notified that his mother is dying, he and Leah return to South Carolina. For Jack, the trip home is rife with hard feelings and dread, though he wants to bring comfort to his mother and four brothers. He has nothing but disgust for his alcoholic father, though tolerates his mother’s new husband. What he would like to avoid is seeing his wife’s parents who, distraught after their daughter’s suicide, fought desperately for custody of their granddaughter, Leah.
Throughout the story, Jack’s mother is either in the hospital, or on respite at home. The banter between the five brothers is often humorous though rough, but they always show great love for their mother and each other, and disdain for their father.
Beach Music has several lengthy flashbacks to Jack’s childhood, particularly his teen years and his group of close friends (one of whom was his deceased wife). Another flashback is of his Jewish in-laws and the terrors of their experience in the Holocaust. His mother’s abusive childhood is also told in flashback. Another covers the turmoil of the Vietnam War which took place when Jack and his friends were in college. These recollections give credence to the attitudes, dark memories, and actions of the present-day story.
Beach Music draws on a wide range of emotions: love, envy, fear, hate, regret, and deep sadness. The characters are well developed and by the end of the book, I felt I personally knew the various people in Jack McCall’s life. It’s a long story (800 pages) that covers a wide range of a large family’s life. Pat Conroy was a superb writer with several successful books to his credit. Beach Music is right up there as one of my favorites.