WAYWARD SAINTS
Mary Saint, the rule-breaking, troubled former lead singer of the
almost-famous band Sliced Ham, has pretty much given up on music after
the trauma of her band member and lover Garbagio’s death seven years
earlier. Instead, with the help of her best friend, Thaddeus, she is
trying to piece her life together while making mochaccinos in San
Francisco. Meanwhile, back in her hometown of Swallow, New York, her
mother, Jean Saint, struggles with her own ghosts.
When Mary is invited to give a concert at her old high school,
Mary Saint, the rule-breaking, troubled former lead singer of the
almost-famous band Sliced Ham, has pretty much given up on music after
the trauma of her band member and lover Garbagio’s death seven years
earlier. Instead, with the help of her best friend, Thaddeus, she is
trying to piece her life together while making mochaccinos in San
Francisco. Meanwhile, back in her hometown of Swallow, New York, her
mother, Jean Saint, struggles with her own ghosts.
When Mary is invited to give a concert at her old high school, Jean
is thrilled, though she’s worried about what Father Benedict and her
neighbors will think of songs such as “Sewer Flower” and “You’re a Pig.”
But she soon realizes that there are going to be bigger problems when
the whole town—including a discouraged teacher and a baker who’s
anything but sweet—gets in on the act.
Filled with characters that are wild and original, yet still familiar
and warm—plus plenty of great insider winks at the music industry—Wayward Saints is a touching and hilarious look at confronting your past and going home again.
- Voice
- Hardcover
- January 2012
- 272 Pages
- 9781401341770
Buy the Book
$24.99
About Suzzy Roche
Along with her sisters, Suzzy Roche is a founding member of the singing group the Roches, whose debut recording was named Album of the Year by the New York Times. She has been touring, recording, and writing songs for over thirty years. Wayward Saints is her first novel, and in 2013 her children’s book, Want to Be in a Band?, will be published by Random House. Suzzy lives in New York City.
Praise
“Wayward Saints is full of wonderful observations about family,
fame, guilt, aging, the stupid music business, and the power and glory
of performing and creating. Most importantly, Suzzy Roche has written a
book about love and redemption. And it’s funny! I loved the little
details and the big surprises.”
—Loudon Wainwright, Grammy-winning songwriter
“[Roche’s] language is dazzling—unpredictable, supremely funny, irreverent, and full of authority. Wayward Saints is the best and most surprising debut novel I’ve read since I can’t remember when.”—Rosellen Brown, author of Half a Heart and Before and After
“If you’ve ever had the privilege of hearing Suzzy Roche sing, you know
all about her perfect pitch, her angel’s voice, her subtle wit. Her
masterful debut novel, Wayward Saints, mines these same
prodigious gifts. When Mary Saint, a once-promising indie rocker, is
invited to perform in her hometown, where her mother, Jean, still holds
court, the two are forced into a long-deferred reckoning: with each
other and with the demons of their past. This is a golden-threaded tale
of redemption, of the transformative powers of art, and of the
mysteries, pains, and sacrifices of love.”—Deborah Copaken Kogan, author of Hell Is Other Parents and The Red Book
“Spoiler alert: this book is wonderful from beginning to end. I loved every page.”—Patricia Marx, author of Starting from Happy