Songs for the Missing: A Novel

O'Nan is one of the very best novelists writing today, in part because he has the courage to choose truth over convention every single time. Here he takes a story that's become a tired and sensational fixture on American television-- the random murder/disappearance of a young woman, presumably at the hands of a serial killer--and then systematically and pitilessly reveals what such a loss is actually like for her family and friends. The grimness of the mundane, without respite-- putting up fliers, making phone calls, waiting most of all--is precisely the point. It's both a brutal and profound book, true to the world as it is, made all the colder by the warmth of the characters. In the past he's ventured into the gothic and the fantastic, to good effect, but in both this novel and in Last Night at the Lobster he shows how powerful unadorned realism, in the right hands, can be.

Stewart O'Nan's "Songs for the Missing" introduces us to the "main" character, Kim in Chapter 1 and very quickly takes her away. That's right, Kim goes missing. What follows is vintage O'Nan. The characters who were left behind (Kim's mom, Kim's dad, her sister Lindsey, her boyfriend J.P., etc.) inhabit a curious half-life in which time as it relates to Kim stops while their lives continue. Indeed, the saga of Kim's disappearance takes on a life of its own. O'Nan's style is spare and the story is character driven rather than plot driven. What makes O'Nan's books so compelling is the meticulous rendering of the setting. In "Songs for the Missing," that setting is Ashtabula County, Ohio. O'Nan conducts a great deal of research in order to be as authentic as possible. There is no "happy ending" for "Songs for the Missing" but a satisfying ending nonetheless.

Like "Last Night at the Lobster" and "Wish you Were Here," the thing that most awed me about the latest from O'Nan is his stunning ability to once again make his characters' reactions to events that do NOT occur so real...and riveting. Without revealing anything about them that might ruin your reading experience, suffice it to say that each novel is propelled by the way in which its characters cope not with an important occurence, but instead with the ongoing void left where that hoped-for event failed to materialize. If you're into plot-driven fiction, look to another author (though O'Nan's "Prayer for the Dying" might be his one exception). But if you enjoy being drawn into a fictional world so utterly lifelike in its unwillingness to provide clarity, closure or resolution that you ache with empathy for everyone involved, this is brilliant literature.

As with Last Night at the Lobster, I started Songs for the Missing and could not do anything else until I had followed the characters to the place where O'Nan chose to leave them. His style is warm and intimate, without lapsing into sentimentality. While his work is always filled with insights into love, memory, family ties, aging, and human frailty, these are presented quietly, with soft colors and smooth strokes. What I appreciate most about O'Nan is that he seems interested in telling a good story. Period. He does not seek to impress the reader with his vocabulary, facility with words, or sly observations but, instead, lets the reader place all of his/her attention on the characters and their experiences of the world(s) they inhabit.

Stewart O'Nan's prose is quietly powerful. As readers learned from his recent novel, LAST NIGHT AT THE LOBSTER, or any one of his previous works of fiction, his style is pared down, not quite minimalist but precise, each word chosen with care. His books do not lack emotion, however, and his latest effort, SONGS FOR THE MISSING, is emotionally charged and evocative, avoiding clichés and melodrama. In July 2005 recent high school graduate Kim Larsen was working at a gas station, hanging out with friends and spending time with a boyfriend she was not in love with. She was counting the days until she departed for college, excited to be leaving her parents, sister and small Midwestern town behind and strike out on her own. The day she disappeared was like many of the days that summer: she gave her little sister a driving lesson, went swimming with her gang of friends and made plans for the night. She went home to shower and get ready for work and was never seen again. In SONGS FOR THE MISSING we meet Kim just briefly. As soon as we begin to know her, she is gone. While some of the novel focuses on the search for Kim, the story is really about who she leaves behind and how they cope with her disappearance. Her mother finds strength in organization, formalities, details and research: she holds press conferences, creates websites, distributes buttons and keeps busy. Kim's father finds strength in the search itself, mapping out areas for search parties, putting up fliers and working with police. Her younger sister Lindsay retreats, finding solace in her room, trying to connect with Kim's boyfriend, J.P., all the while wondering if anyone knew the real Kim as she did. Things move quickly at first. She is gone for just 24 hours, then 48, and her community is out looking for her and her car, adrenaline and hope keeping them going. But then it is days, weeks and months with no sign of her, and the police case stalls. Family and friends have to return to work to find a sense of normalcy while struggling with uncertainty. Kim's friends leave for college, and eventually Lindsay finishes high school and leaves home for college herself. O'Nan perfectly captures the tension that Kim's disappearance creates as her family, even as they try to go on with their day-to-day lives, are always watching and waiting for her return or anticipating news from the police. SONGS FOR THE MISSING is not as concerned with the resolution of this tension --- mostly because resolution inevitably brings more pain --- as it is with coping and grief, and the decision to mourn or not to mourn a person who has simply vanished. Despite the tension throughout, there are no big surprises or plot twists in this book. O'Nan is interested in the personal and emotional lives of Kim's family and friends as they deal with loss, fear and heartbreak. Will they grow apart or closer together? Will they define themselves by this tragedy? Narration shifts smoothly from character to character, among K