Musical Moments: Song of the Month: June: Chosen by Hannah Harrington

It is with great pleasure I welcome Hannah Harrington to Book Angel Booktopia today not only do we have a fabulous song for the Song of the Month but Hannah has also written a terrific post about what music means to her. As you probably already know I adore music, its a part of me and I relate a lot of personal experiences to certain songs. I love his post I hope you do too.

Image from Goodreads

Read my review HERE

Theme Song: “This Time Tomorrow” by the Kinks

SONG OF THE MONTH

This song is listed on Jake’s playlist to Harper at the end of the book. Of all the songs I included or referred to in Saving June, this is the one I think most embodies the book, especially Harper’s relationship with Jake. The lyrics as I interpret them are about a romantic relationship between two people who get things wrong at times, but ultimately understand one another more clearly than anyone else. I think the tone of the song’s melody also fits the story—it’s moody and emotive, but at the same time very hopeful.

Music and ME by Hannah Harrington

Music has always been a big part of my life, and it was especially a major influence as a teenager. A lot of my identity felt wrapped up in the music I enjoyed and even in the music I didn't like-- just having those opinions and arguing or sharing with friends; it was both a personal and a communal interest. I have very little musical ability of my own, so I just appreciate it from a listener's perspective. Music, like writing or any other art form, is something to connect to and meant to invoke emotions in the audience. So I think when it comes to an influence on my writing, it had to do with the aspect of music where you listen to a song and think, "Wow, this really made me feel something," and you want to put words to what that feeling is.

I'm always listening to an eclectic mix of music. My current playlist includes the Beastie Boys, Jay-Z, Simon & Garfunkel, Amy Winehouse, Sufjan Stevens, The Ting Tings, and The Roots.

All of the songs included in the novel are ones I love, and it was difficult to narrow it down to three playlists! For June's playlist, I tried to put in songs I thought someone would pick if they were trying to introduce someone to that kind of music-- some of the more known hits and catchy tunes-- but also songs that might have had some meaning for her character. The "Say My Name" playlist was a little more random than the others, and for that one I mostly just picked my favorite songs that include names in the title. The last playlist-- the one Jake creates for Harper-- was probably the hardest; I went through and put in some of the songs that had had meaning throughout the story, and I also added a few that weren't outright mentioned but that I felt really fit Harper's story, especially from Jake's perspective. On top of that, I tried to do what Jake had mentioned about making the playlist "flow" and build up and peak before coming back down, so the music transitions aren't too jarring.

The Saving June Play-List is my favourite it really does go so well when you know the whole story <3

Musical Moments: Song of the Month: Chosen by Shelley Coriell

To celebrate the publication of Welcome Caller, This is Chloe today who better than to pick the Song of the Month than the author of a book about a radio show (among other things). It is with great pleasure I introduce Shelley Coriell with the song to go alongside the book. Enjoy.

Title: Welcome, Caller, This is Chloe

Author: Shelley Corriell

Publisher: Amulet

Publication Date: 1 May 2012

Synopsis from Goodreads

Big-hearted Chloe Camden is the queen of her universe until her best friend shreds her reputation and her school counselor axes her junior independent study project. Chloe is forced to take on a meaningful project in order to pass, and so she joins her school’s struggling radio station, where the other students don’t find her too queenly. Ostracized by her former BFs and struggling with her beloved Grams’s mental deterioration, lonely Chloe ends up hosting a call-in show that gets the station much-needed publicity and, in the end, trouble. She also befriends radio techie and loner Duncan Moore, a quiet soul with a romantic heart. On and off the air, Chloe faces her loneliness and helps others find the fun and joy in everyday life. Readers will fall in love with Chloe as she falls in love with the radio station and the misfits who call it home.

REVIEW HERE

Lenka's music is quirky, textured, and upbeat. A perfect fit for irrepressible Chloe. "Everything's Okay" is a song about a girl whose life comes crashing down on her, and like Chloe, she admits she's responsible for the "messy life I made for myself." I love this bold truth. And I love her response. She crawls out of bed and looks for "a little sunshine," seeking love and hope from those around her. Chloe does the same thing, turning to guarded-heart Duncan, spunky Grams, and the radio station staff.

There's such a lovely whimsy and joie de vivre in this song. Of course songs like this risk the chance of being too sugary-sweet, but the bridge in "Everything's Okay" slows down and becomes almost quiet, which mirrors Chloe's story journey. At its heart, WELCOME, CALLER, THIS IS CHLOE is the story of a bubbly, chatty radio talk show host desperately needing to connect with others but who finally learns to be okay with silence and being alone without being lonely.

Don't you just love it [ : D ]

Musical Moments: Song Of The Month: Chosen by Dillon Khan

Who better to pick the Song of the Month than an author whose book is based in the music industry. Over to Dillon:

Internships never land in your lap. They are the result of trying again and again. You have to knock on several doors and wait for one to open. No matter how hard you try sometimes a door just won't open and you can go one of two ways. Feel down and extremely sorry for yourself or listen to Aaliyah. Its what Jay, the main character of The Intern does when he comes unstuck at work. The beautiful songstress reminds us that "if at first you don't succeed, dust yourself of and try again". Not only is this song a classic and one of her biggest hits, its also magically timeless. If you need more tips and advice, check out www.theintern.co.uk for some inspiring words from business leaders on "How To Make It".

Check out the amazing Chapter Playlist HERE

Title: The Intern

Author: Dillon Khan

Publisher: Puffin

Publication Date: 5 April 2012

Synopsis from Goodreads

When Jay Merchant lands an internship for the best job in music television, he is given a backstage pass to the biggest gig of his life. The velvet rope to the biggest VIP parties and hottest celebrities has been lifted and now he's got to capture it on camera. But with only six months to turn his intern dream into a real job, does he have what it takes? It's time to face the music...

Song of the Month: March: Chosen by Susie Day

In honor of St Davids Day, it is my pleasure to welcome the amazing welsh person, Susie Day, to Book Angel Booktopia. I asked Susie if she would like to pick this months Song of the Month , the guideline I gave was that it had to be something that remind her of St Davids Day/being welsh. Over to Susie:

When fellow Welsh lass Emma asked me to pick a song of the month to kick off St David’s Day, my thoughts naturally turned to the traditional. Sospan Fach! went my brain. Then my brain went Hang on, Susie, that’s a song about two saucepans. That might not be everybody’s jam.

You know I had to include the video right [ ; D ] 

But songs have a habit of taking on odd personal associations. Every March, my secondary school would hold an Eisteddfod: a cultural concert, to celebrate the arts. There were poetry prizes, and each school house would compete. I recall a lot of bassoon solos, and, alas, all the words of ‘My Grandfather’s Clock.’

One year, I was called on to perform in the ‘German Skit’. I had to sing a little song about shampoo. In German. (Well, ish. Mein Haar ist so shiny is perhaps not in any phrase book.) We rehearsed at another girl’s house, and between bouts of dubious German, she played (on a 7” single, natch) a new song from her cousin’s band. We all very politely said we liked it, and assumed she was delusional and had made the whole thing up. A couple of months later, it was a massive hit.

So, in honour of St David’s Day (sort of), I give you Transvision Vamp, featuring someone-I-was-once-in-an-Eisteddfod-with’s-cousin wearing an astonishingly tight pink frock.

Huge thanks to Susie for sharing her memories of St Davids Day

Musical Moments: Song of the Month - February 2012 - Chosen by Katie Dale

This months Song of the Month is chosen by Debut Author Katie Dale, it is with pleasure I hand over to Katie:

This is one of my all-time favourite songs, and it really resonates with Someone Else’s Life as it describes exactly what Rosie is going through. At the beginning of the novel she has a lot to deal with: the death of her beloved mother – “something you cannot replace” – and the risk that she’s inherited her mum’s fatal genetic illness, Huntington’s disease. Then when she discovers that her mother was not really her mother after all – that Rosie was switched at birth – her whole life falls apart, and she doesn’t have a clue where to turn.

Luckily, her lovely ex-boyfriend, Andy, is on the scene to help pick up the pieces and “fix” her, helping Rosie try to find where her “home” really is, even if that means travelling all the way to America in search of answers...

Title: Someone Else's Life

Author: Katie Dale

Publisher: Simon & Schuster Childrens Books

Publication Date: 2 Feb 2012

Synopsis from Goodreads

When seventeen-year-old Rosie’s mother, Trudie, dies from Huntington’s Disease, her pain is intensified by the knowledge that she has a fifty-per-cent chance of inheriting the crippling disease herself. Only when she tells her mum’s best friend, ‘Aunt Sarah’ that she is going to test for the disease does Sarah, a midwife, reveal that Trudie was not her biological mother after all... Devastated, Rosie decides to trace her real mother, hitching along on her ex-boyfriend’s GAP year to follow her to Los Angeles. But all does not go to plan, and as Rosie discovers yet more of her family's deeply-buried secrets and lies, she is left with an agonising decision of her own - one which will be the most heart-breaking and far-reaching of all...

Read the first chapter HERE

Musical Moments: Song of the Month: January: Chosen by Dave Cousins

Book Birthday Celebrations & Song of the Month

Title: 15 Days Without A Head

Author: Dave Cousins

Publisher: OUP

Publication Date: 5 Jan 2012 (TODAY)

Synopsis from Amazon

Fifteen-year-old Laurence Roach just wants a normal life, but it's not easy when your mum is a depressed alcoholic, and your six-year-old brother thinks he's a dog. When Mum fails to come home one night, Laurence tells nobody, terrified he and his brother will be taken into care if anyone finds out. Instead, he attempts to keep up the pretence that Mum is still around: dressing up in her clothes to trick the neighbours and spinning an increasingly complicated tangle of lies. After two weeks on their own, running out of food and money, and with suspicious adults closing in, Laurence finally discovers what happened to his mother. And that's when the trouble really starts . . . A compelling thriller filled with some hilarious and surreal moments. Fifteen Days Without a Head is a tender, honest story about family, forgiveness and hope.

Here is the reason that Dave chose this song as the them song for 15 Days Without a Head

I heard this song for the first time in the Baz Luhrmann movie of Romeo and Juliet. I was writing 15 Days Without a Head at the time, and it struck me how well it matched the mood and even some of the storyline. The start of the song is sparse and quite melancholy, but there's a real sense of tension, of something about to happen. Sure enough halfway through the track, the music finally explodes – the lyrics even talk about waiting for someone to come and kick the door down to get you – a situation Laurence finds himself in at one point. If anybody ever makes a film of the book, I'll suggest this for the soundtrack!

Musical Moments: Song of the Month: December

This months Song of the Month has been kindly chosen by Sara Grant.

Song of the Month – Aging Well by Joan Baez with Dar Williams 

Aging Well is one of my favourite songs. I can’t remember where or how I first heard it. It’s not a well-known song, and Joan Baez was more popular with the generation before mine. It’s the eleventh song on a live, best-of album where Joan Baez sings duets with a variety of artists. From the first moment I heard it, I was immediately attracted to the song and its message.

The heart of my young adult novel Dark Parties and Aging Well is feminine empowerment. Both story and song are about rebelling and re-claiming who you are. They are also about feminine camaraderie. As a writer, I find the following lyrics particularly poignant:

Well I know a woman with a collection of sticks

She could fight back the hundreds of voices she heard

And she could poke at the greed, she could fend off her need

And with anger she found she could pound every word

But one voice got through, caught her up by surprise

It said, "Don't hold us back we're the story you tell"

And no sooner than spoken, a spell had been broken

And the voices before her were trumpets and tympani

Violins, basses and woodwinds and cellos...

Aging Well is one of those songs I come back to again and again. It lifts me up and reminds me that the best is yet to come...

Title: Dark Parties
Author: Sara Grant
Publisher: Indigo
Publication Date: 22 Dec 2011

Synopsis from Goodreads

Sixteen-year-old Neva has been trapped since birth. She was born and raised under the Protectosphere, in an isolated nation ruled by fear, lies, and xenophobia. A shield "protects" them from the outside world, but also locks the citizens inside. But there's nothing left on the outside, ever since the world collapsed from violent warfare. Or so the government says...
Neva and her best friend Sanna believe the government is lying and stage a "dark party" to recruit members for their underground rebellion. But as Neva begins to uncover the truth, she realizes she must question everything she's ever known, including the people she loves the most.

Musical Moments: Song of the Month: November: Chosen by Savita Kalhan

Title: The Long Weekend
Author: Savita Kalhan
Publisher: Andersen
Publication Date: 2 Oct 2008

Synopsis from Goodreads

Sam knows that he and his friend Lloyd made a colossal mistake when they accepted the ride home. They have ended up in a dark mansion in the middle of nowhere with man who means to harm them. But Sam doesn't know how to get them out. They were trapped, then separated. Now they are alone. Will either of them get out alive? This gripping and hypnotic thriller will have you reading late into the night.

I am in the middle of reading this book and I have to be honest with you each time I pick it up my heart pounds. It is a parents worse nightmare, so I am being gentle with myself and reading it little by little so I don't get too traumatized. You know what a complete wimp I am, seriously I open the book and my heart jumps into my mouth. Now  I would say that is powerful writing wouldn't you. A very important topic and a book that will be going into a lot of recommendations in the school library. Something that should be brought to the attention of Young Adults who tend to live in their own little bubbles. 

Here is what Savita had to say about the song chosen for this month's Song of the Month: 

In The Long Weekend, the two main characters, Sam and Lloyd, are listening to music in the back of the flash car as they are being whizzed through the rain and the countryside towards what will turn out to be the most frightening, the most terrifying, weekend of their lives.

But they don’t know that yet.

They are listening to a band called BUSTED, who had by then recently split up, but the boys can still remember and sing all the lyrics. In this moment they are simply two eleven year olds feeling happy and care-free – it’s Friday night and all they’re looking forward to is getting back and playing on the X-box, messing about, having a laugh, hanging out. So they sing the lyrics to The Year 3000 at the top of their voices.

Then, very quickly, their lives change forever...