rhymes with rhyme














navigation
current
archives
links page
profile















Bookstuff: The Second Violin
June 17, 2014

The Second Violin (1905), by Grace S. Richmond

☆ ☆ ☆

Book One�
When their mother falls ill and their father is forced to accompany her to the west for a year of recovery, the five Birch offspring have to fend for themselves. And on a shoestring budget, as Mr. Birch will have no income for the year he is away with his wife.

Firstborn Lanse, the pre-law student, undertakes to get take a blue-collar job for income, eldest daughter Celia stands ready to step in as cook and housekeeper, and the two youngest sons are still in school, but the middle child feels left out of the proceedings. 18-year-old Charlotte plays �second fiddle� to her more accomplished and focused brothers and sisters�not only in the family orchestra, but in life in general. Since her only talent is a flair for color and design, she feels as though she has nothing vital to contribute to the family efforts.

This all changes abruptly, when Celia tumbles down the cellar stairs on her first day in charge of the housekeeping. Charlotte must step into the breach, learning as she goes how to cook, keep house, take care of her invalid sister, and manage family life. Fortunately for Celia, and even more fortunately for Charlotte, there is a handsome young doctor next door. And he has a kindly and experienced housekeeper to lend advice. Over the course of the year, she ends up coming into her own as an accomplished young woman.

I really liked this book. Loads of pleasant and enjoyable people, only a couple of (mildly) unpleasant ones, and Charlotte may be in over her head, but she is not without her allies�younger brother Jeff is her staunchest supporter, a kindly uncle comes for a prolonged visit and contributes board money to the family coffers, the young doctor is definitely on her side, and his housekeeper is there to bail her out of any housekeeping dilemmas. That gave the story just the right balance of �tightrope� and �safety net� to make a satisfactory read for me. (I don�t like too much anxiety in my �escape� reading.)

It�s not perfect. Some of the situations are contrived (The culprit in Celia�s fall is a banana peel! Still, the book is a hundred years old, and I suppose that wasn�t as hackneyed as it is now). And there was a little bit of a �creeper� vibe to the doctor�s affections for Charlotte, even though she is pretty much grown up�he seems to feel that she is the one, even as he admits that she is too young for him, or for marriage. And then there�s the whole �he knows his intentions, her parents know his intentions, but nobody thinks it worthwhile to inform Charlotte� thing. That bugged me. But he�s a sweet, charming, and altogether terrific guy, so I did end up rooting for him.

What did ring true for me was the family dynamic�Lanse and Celia are more assured, secure in their positions of eldest son and eldest daughter, Justin is the baby of the family, watched over by all�but Charlotte and Jeff are very true to the �middle kid� role, forming a tight alliance, and struggling to define themselves in the shadow of their elder siblings.

Book Two� It is a few years later, and Charlotte gets married, but on their return from the honeymoon, Charlotte and her husband find themselves having to live up to the motto over their fireplace, �Ye Ornaments of a House are ye Guests who Frequent it�, as they are immediately inundated with first relatives, then friends, as long-term houseguests to whom they act as guardians.

Jeff and Celia both find romance, young people learn valuable lessons, and Charlotte enjoys married life, but I didn�t like the second half of the story quite as much. Nothing terribly interesting happens; it�s really just more of an opportunity to wallow in Charlotte�s immensely satisfactory life. I still enjoyed it, just not as quite much.

recede - proceed

hosted by DiaryLand.com