The Blue Guitar

... where Ireland really excels is making music, or rather the act of writing about music, quite literally sing, or at least jump off the page. Even those uneducated in the argot, or idiom of musicians and composers can almost hear the glorious sounds she's describing. Ireland's novel is unquestionably an engrossing read; one is unsure, until the end, who will win the competition. But one thing is certain, when you put down The Blue Guitar, for the last time, you are confident that young Toby Hausner is free of his demons - at last. And if that's not redemption, what is? -- Toronto Star It may sound unlikely, but Ireland has managed to create a page-turner of a novel about a classical guitar competition: You want to know who will make it to the next round, and who will win. -- National Post ...what Ireland does exceedingly well is mimic a creative mind under intense pressure. She has the ability to render acoustic sound in language that is beautiful and startling. What is perhaps most convincing is her depiction of Toby's struggle to integrate his music and his life, and to reclaim what the impetuousness of his youth cost him. -- The Globe and Mail The stark frankness of the last few pages of The Blue Guitar are powerful and brave, the sort of writing one sees only from a writer in full command of her powers, a flaying depiction of intimate brutality and selfishness that one might well recognize from life but rarely sees in such unadorned form in fiction. -- Vancouver Sun Author Ann Ireland, whose first book, A Certain Mr. Takahashi , also deals with classic music, is expert at evoking the emotional roller coaster of competition life: the egos, the panic, the prep, the rhythms of the contest, the way the adjudicators talk about the musicians. -- Now Magazine Ireland (whose previous novel, Exile, was shortlisted for a 2002 Governor General's Literary Award) packs her tale with such vivid description that it is easy to imagine being among the competitors. She also engages in her trademark sensitive and unflinching investigation of relationships. -- Quill & Quire