The searing and haunting debut novel from PEN finalist and New York Times bestelling author Andrea J. Buchanan
Spanning five generations of women, Five-Part Invention wrestles with the question—if trauma echoes through generations, can love echo, too? Is the love we transmit enough to undo the trauma of the past that we unwittingly carry with us and often re-enact in the present?
When Lise, a pianist, suffers a nervous breakdown early in her marriage, her husband, in a warped act of protection and jealousy, has her piano taken away. With prose that is precise and emotionally affecting, Buchanan vividly renders how Lise's separation from her one source of expression and fulfilment cascades into her relationship with her daughter, leaving a legacy of trauma that echoes through the generations to come. Characters emerge broken and passionate, jagged, and yet hopeful and emotionally resonant, written in a way that only Buchanan, herself a conservatory-trained pianist, could achieve.
Five-Part Invention is by turns frightening and exquisitely observed, and establishes Buchanan as a literary force.
Genre: Literary Fiction
Spanning five generations of women, Five-Part Invention wrestles with the question—if trauma echoes through generations, can love echo, too? Is the love we transmit enough to undo the trauma of the past that we unwittingly carry with us and often re-enact in the present?
When Lise, a pianist, suffers a nervous breakdown early in her marriage, her husband, in a warped act of protection and jealousy, has her piano taken away. With prose that is precise and emotionally affecting, Buchanan vividly renders how Lise's separation from her one source of expression and fulfilment cascades into her relationship with her daughter, leaving a legacy of trauma that echoes through the generations to come. Characters emerge broken and passionate, jagged, and yet hopeful and emotionally resonant, written in a way that only Buchanan, herself a conservatory-trained pianist, could achieve.
Five-Part Invention is by turns frightening and exquisitely observed, and establishes Buchanan as a literary force.
Genre: Literary Fiction
Praise for this book
"As its title suggests, Five-Part Invention is both complex and inventive, a symphonic exploration of identity, family, secrets, and art, a novel that crescendos like the most soul-stirring music. A piano teacher tells one of the characters, 'You must have both intention and technique, ' and Andrea J. Buchanan displays both in abundance here. This novel is an epic, ambitious composition, crafted with tremendous beauty and dexterity and heart. A masterpiece." - Gayle Brandeis
"Original, startling and gorgeous. Five generations of extraordinary women grapple with the mystery of inherited trauma in Andrea J. Buchanan's stunningly original new novel. As gorgeously written as a master's symphony, the story is also so immersive that I became fiercely invested in each indelible character's changing lives and their struggles with secrets, loves, losses, until love begins to trump calamity. This isn't just a novel you read: it's a miracle you live. I loved it." - Caroline Leavitt
"Five-Part Invention is a sweeping yet intimate story that follows several generations of exceptional women coping with trauma and persevering despite the odds stacked against them. This debut novel by Andrea Buchanan is absolutely immersive, moving, and captivating from the first page to the last." - Laura Sims
"Original, startling and gorgeous. Five generations of extraordinary women grapple with the mystery of inherited trauma in Andrea J. Buchanan's stunningly original new novel. As gorgeously written as a master's symphony, the story is also so immersive that I became fiercely invested in each indelible character's changing lives and their struggles with secrets, loves, losses, until love begins to trump calamity. This isn't just a novel you read: it's a miracle you live. I loved it." - Caroline Leavitt
"Five-Part Invention is a sweeping yet intimate story that follows several generations of exceptional women coping with trauma and persevering despite the odds stacked against them. This debut novel by Andrea Buchanan is absolutely immersive, moving, and captivating from the first page to the last." - Laura Sims
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