Music the common thread in ‘Echo’
In her latest novel, “Echo” (Scholastic Press, $19.99, ages 10-14), Pam Munoz Ryan brilliantly weaves the stories of children from different times and places. Their stories are connected by a passion for music and by an enchanted harmonica.
The novel opens with a prelude. This story within a story skillfully combines elements of folklore and magical realism. It also evokes the structure of a musical composition and offers hints of the adventures to come.
Otto, a young boy in search of the perfect hiding spot, finds himself lost in the forbidden forest during a game of hide-and-seek. While hiding, he settles into reading a book.
The book, purchased from a gypsy earlier in the day, also came with a harmonica. Otto becomes absorbed in the story. Then he realizes that he can no longer hear the voices of his fellow playmates.
Panicked, he runs through the dark forest, trips on a root, bumps his head and loses consciousness.
Upon awakening, he finds three sisters standing in a clearing in the wood. Otto already knows their story because they are the same sisters he has just read about in his book.
As the story goes, the three sisters were born to a king who wanted only a son. In his anger, the king sent each daughter away to death in the dark forest. But a sympathetic midwife instead left them in the care of a witch.
The midwife knew that they would endure a life of drudgery, so she bestowed upon them a prophecy of hope: “Your fate is not yet sealed. Even in the darkest night, a star will shine, a bell will chime, a path will be revealed.”
Many bleak years pass under the witch’s care until one day word of the sisters’ rescue reaches the forest. The witch binds them to the forest unless they meet a messenger with a vessel capable of carrying their spirits.
Otto and his harmonica may be the sisters’ only hope to breaking the spell. Here begins the story of three children tied to Otto and his magical harmonica.
In Germany in 1933, Friedrich, a boy bullied by his classmates for being different, dreams of becoming a famous orchestra conductor. After a particularly violent run-in with a class bully, Friedrich is pulled from school.
His days are filled with music lessons. He also serves an apprenticeship at the local harmonica factory. One day, Friedrich is drawn to an abandoned part of the factory by what he believes is the hum of a harmonica. In a dusty old box he finds a harmonica not quite like the others produced at the factory. It fills him with courage and determination.
As the Nazi Party gains control of the country, Friedrich confronts his fears and sets out on a mission to save his father. Ms. Ryan effectively conveys the serious danger of Friedrich’s efforts without making him unrealistically heroic. This allows readers to identify with Friedrich rather than feel distanced by the difficulties he faces.
Jump ahead to Philadelphia, 1935. Mike and his younger brother, Frankie, dream of finding a real home and family.
As orphans, Mike knows that unless they are adopted together, they will be separated. Fueled by love for his brother and a passion for music, Mike plans an escape from the orphanage.
A troubled heiress and a traveling youth harmonica band play a role in his scheme. Again, children face significant challenges. But the author manages to depict a believable brotherly relationship that is both tender and humorous.
The final story unfolds in 1942 California, where Ivy, a young Mexican-American girl with a talent for playing the harmonica, discovers she must move yet again. Ivy’s father, an itinerant farmer, has found a job that has the potential for permanency.
Ivy and her family become caretakers for the Japanese-American Yamamoto family, which has been forced into an internment camp after the bombing of Pearl Harbor.
In her new home, Ivy attends a segregated school for Mexican immigrants. She experiences acts of racism directed at her and the Yamamoto family. Seeking a way to secure her family’s future, as well as that of the Yamamotos’, Ivy searches for truth and compassion in a place pervaded by fear and intolerance.
Readers must wait until the last few chapters to find out how the destinies of Friedrich, Mike and Ivy converge. Although the book is long and the structure complex, lovers of historical fiction and fairy tales will rejoice in the reading of “Echo.”
Ms. Ryan’s novel is a testament to the power of music and its ability to connect people across space and time. She artfully combines rich historical detail with a dash of magic in a story that ends with a standing ovation. “Echo” is sure to make your heart sing.