A review by bookshelfkeeps
The Music Game by Stéfanie Clermont

dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

 ᴛʜᴇ ᴍᴜsɪᴄ ɢᴀᴍᴇ — 4 ★

What I loved most about this collection is how it sneaks up on you. At first it feels like you are reading a collection of short stories, but as you continue to move forward you realize these seemingly disconnected stories have threads pulling them together; with the three main voices being those of Sabrina, Celine and Julie, friends since grade school growing up in Montreal who are coming of age both together and separately. In the most simple form, this is a story/collection of stories about growing up, about the people who shape us and become touchstones even if their presence isn't as long-lasting as we may have anticipated. 

The format of the book (short stories) and allowing some chapters to have unnamed narrators/mcs created a level of ambiguity that I can sometimes find frustrating in a book. I think this is the part of me that wants to feel some kind of understanding and trust in the narrator, which allows me to become more emotional invested in their story. When this is missing, it's easy for me to begin to feel disconnected thinking 𝘸𝘩𝘰 𝘪𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘴𝘱𝘦𝘢𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨? 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘪𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘮𝘰𝘵𝘪𝘷𝘦? 𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘢𝘮 𝘐 𝘵𝘰 𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘴𝘦𝘯𝘴𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴? Yet, surprisingly these questions did not come up with ᴛʜᴇ ᴍᴜsɪᴄ ɢᴀᴍᴇ, and conversely Clermont's  authorial decision actually offered a  level of intimacy I wasn't expecting. It was like being in a dark room with only a flashlight to illuminate a page of a diary. You know you should look away, know the writer did not intend for you or anyone to read these words, and yet, you've never read anything more raw, more true and unencumbered by expectation. It is beautiful and terrifying.

This contrast of beauty and terror was present in these stories as we follow the characters through different stages of their lives and along the way we encounter things like rape, abuse, suicide, as well as anxiety and depression. In this way Clermont presents a collection that feels real and alive and deeply filled with hope. There were also themes I was not expecting such as the role of politics in US and Canadian relationships, and how these characters worked to make sense of the world around them, as well as their place in it. And this is where I really resonated with Clermont, in her gift to summon the nostalgia that is growing up. From being young and fearless when gathered in the company of so many big ideas and dreams, followed by the realization we are not invincible, perhaps we are already a bit broken and shabby; to realizing that the world is a mess, and sometimes we are a mess but often we are never alone. In closing, this debut is a beautiful ode to friendship, growing up, and trying to hold onto faith that we are still capable of making things better. Somehow.

Haunting, violent, earnest, and honest. Mmm. Thank you @biblioasis for sending me a copy.