Who knew a former drummer in a band could have such a sophisticated and exceptional prose style (no offense to all drummers out there)? This is the truth about Paul Harding. The detail is so hard core it is sometimes painful to read, the stories are so vivid.

A multi-generational telling (inspired by his own grandparents) the hardships, although mainly fabricated with just an outline of information to go on, paint the gloomiest pictures. But the realism is believable to those of us who had parents or grandparents living off the land at a time when the land was not quite so giving. Living rurally can be a challenge. And then to have an unfamiliar affliction (epilepsy – which makes you wonder how many others were institutionalized with this same unusual affliction) only adds to the hardships they had to endure.

There is so much sadness in this novel. There is also love for family but shown in so many different individual ways. I’ve always said of my own parents that they did the best they could with what they knew. This novel speaks to me, personally, in the same way.

George is dying and through him and his memories we meet his parents and also his grandfather. But it is the author’s telling of these stories that have brought so much attention to this novel that was awarded the Pulitzer in 2010. I expect more great things from this ex-drummer, author extraordinaire.

I rate “Tinkers” 4 out of 5 stars.

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