“She didn’t want the separation that success bred, but she also wanted Jed to be who God had created him to be. To sing the songs he’d been given and make beauty from the pain of life,” realizes Rose in Chris Fabry’s novel, "The Song." At four hundred and forty pages, this paperback targets those who enjoy romantic fiction surrounding country music. With no profanity, topics of drugs, alcohol, and marital infidelity may not be appropriate for immature readers. A dozen color photographs from the movie are inserted in the book. After the epilogue, the authors’ biographies, a dozen discussion questions, and a preview of five days of a corresponding couple’s devotional are included. The New International Version of the Holy Bible is referenced. This reader wishes all pronouns of God were capitalized for reverence. Award-winning author and radio personality, Fabry has written more than seventy books for children and adults. His wife and he have nine children and live in Arizona. This is Ramsey’s first feature film as a writer-director. He and his wife have four children. In this tale based on the motion picture screenplay, Jed King rises in fame and fortune, climbing the country music charts with his songs of brokenness from his heart. Repeating choices related to his father’s past, he portrays a Christian image but falters when it comes to his marriage and relationship with God. Rose, the woman who changed Jed’s world drastically when he wrote a song about her, thought there would be a happily-ever-after. Initially, she agrees to leave her father’s vineyard to launch Jed’s musical career but finds their love growing distant. On the road without his wife, Jed succumbs to a fellow musician’s advances and falls for the tricks and ploys of a worldly life of sex and drug abuse. It is only when he understands he could lose it all that he accepts his mistakes and wants to change. Predictable yet tender, the love story that bonds two individuals through thick and thin overcomes the trappings of the music industry. Readers will walk away learning of forgiveness and God’s enduring love no matter how badly one messes up his or her life. Thanks to the Book Club Network and Tyndale House for furnishing this complimentary book in exchange for a review based on the reader’s honest opinions.

Top pick! There is so much to love about The Song, which is written in two parts and based on “The Song of Songs.” The prose is expressive and song lyrics are integrated to advance the story. Biblically based marital advice reminds the reader that temptations will arise, but love is a commitment. Heart-wrenching and emotional scenes abound in this tale of fame, fortune, loss and redemption.