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Title: A Song for Issy Bradley

Subtitle: A Novel

Author: Carys Bray

Narrator: Emma Gregory

Format: Unabridged

Length: 10 hrs and 50 mins

Language: English

Release date: 12-12-14

Publisher: Recorded Books

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 4 votes

Genres: Fiction, Contemporary

Publisher's Summary:

A mesmerizing literary debut novel of doubt, faith, and perseverance in the aftermath of a family tragedy - for fans of Me Before You, Little Bee, and Tell the Wolves I'm Home.

The Bradleys see the world as a place where miracles are possible, and where nothing is more important than family. This is their story. It is the story of Ian Bradley - husband, father, math teacher, and Mormon bishop - and his unshakeable belief that everything will turn out all right if he can only endure to the end, like the pioneers did. It is the story of his wife Claire, her lonely wait for a sign from God, and her desperate need for life to pause while she comes to terms with tragedy. And it is the story of their children: 16-year-old Zippy, experiencing the throes of first love; cynical 14-year-old Al, who would rather play soccer than read the Book of Mormon; and seven-year-old Jacob, whose faith is bigger than a mustard seed - probably bigger than a toffee candy, he thinks - and which he's planning to use to mend his broken family with a miracle.

Intensely moving, unexpectedly funny, and deeply observed, A Song for Issy Bradley explores the outer reaches of doubt and faith, and of a family trying to figure out how to carry on when the innermost workings of their world have broken apart.

Members Reviews:

Life as a Mormon

I learned a lot about the Mormon faith in reading this book. The lives of these people seem controlled in a very unhappy way. The book is very sad and especially as it relates to the role of women. I found the book fascinating.

An interesting look at how different family members cope with ...

An interesting look at how different family members cope with loss and grief. The family's membership of the Mormon Church adds another interesting dimension to the story. I did, however, find the ending a bit unsatisfactory -- left too many unanswered questions.

Good to read a book about the impact of grief ...

Good to read a book about the impact of grief and I think the setting shows how faith doesn't make us immune to grief in any form ... reading about my own faith community is always a challenge ... it's difficult not to feel the characters are cliched or stereotyped to appeal to those who like to see the wackyness of religion. Not because the stories of things like dressing up in wedding dresses never happen but more because they feel unusual rather than the norm ... certainly entertaining though. Having said that i l loved al's 'stupid stupid twat' answer to prayer ... that had me laughing myself to sleep .... I think the young folks were more real somehow.

I loved this book

I loved this book. The writing evoked tender memories of my childhood as a Mormon girl.

The author wrote so eloquently of this mother's grief, I found myself crying and mourning with her.

I highly recommend this book. I also recommend having a box of Kleenex handy while reading it.

The beauty of Carys's prose poem is that Love never ends

This deeply felt narrative, elegiac in some ways, should not be construed as an indictment of religious faith, but instead a meditation on the intricacies and intimacies of faith. It has been said that God has his secret stairway into every human heart. All members of the Bradley family are lacerated by Issy's death, and because they are human, each laments in her/his own unique way; none is more sincere or hurt than any other.