The Map of True Places

By: Brunonia Barry

Narrated by: Alyssa Bresnahan

Brunonia Barry, the New York Times best-selling author of The Lace Reader, offers an emotionally compelling novel about finding your true place in the world.

Zee Finch has come a long way from a motherless childhood spent stealing boats—a talent that earned her the nickname, Trouble. She’s now a respected psychotherapist working with the world-famous Dr. Liz Mattei. She’s also about to marry one of Boston’s most eligible bachelors. But the suicide of Zee’s patient Lilly Braedon throws Zee into emotional chaos and takes her back to places she thought she’d left behind.

What starts as a brief visit home to Salem after Lilly’s funeral becomes the beginning of a larger journey for Zee. Her father, Finch, long ago diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease, has been hiding how sick he really is. His longtime companion, Melville, has moved out, and it now falls to Zee to help her father through this difficult time. Their relationship, marked by half-truths and the untimely death of her mother, is strained and awkward.

Overwhelmed by her new role, and uncertain about her future, Zee destroys the existing map of her life and begins a new journey, one that will take her not only into her future but into her past as well. Like the sailors of Old Salem who navigated by looking at the stars, Zee has to learn to find her way through uncharted waters to the place she will ultimately call home.

©2010 Brunonia Barry (P)2010 HarperCollins Publishers

Critic reviews

“This is a lovingly told story with many well-drawn characters, who sooner or later consider the courses charted by personal decisions and circumstances.” ( Publishers Weekly)

I love getting lost in Ms. Barry's Novels.

My favorite all time book has always been The Lace Reader. Now both books are my favorites,

It was okay

There was absolutely nothing wrong with this book. It was a simple-ish love story, mother-daughter story, figuring yourself out story. It was okay

Interesting Story

Would you try another book from Brunonia Barry and/or Alyssa Bresnahan?

Yes

How would you have changed the story to make it more enjoyable?

Add a more color to the description of the environement.

Which character – as performed by Alyssa Bresnahan – was your favorite?

Melville

If this book were a movie would you go see it?

Probably

Any additional comments?

Alyssa Bresnahan can make a mediocre book worth reading.

Full to the brim

This book had a lot of different stories going on at once. So much so that it was sometimes hard to get centered. Several times I found myself stopping to try to figure out what a subplot had to do with the main storyline. The overall message, I believe, is how relationships evolve and holding on to the ones worthwhile.

Good story but needed a bit more

I liked the Lace Reader and was excited to find another book by this author. I enjoyed the book, but felt that it ended abruptly. The narrator was spot on. It’s not as good as her first book, but it is still definitely worth a credit.

The Map of True Places

I really enjoyed this book. I selected it because Brunonia Barry's Lace Reader is on my list of all time favorite books. Map of true places has found it's place on my list too. The story is intricately woven, the characters are complicated but believable. I loved that there was mention of some of Lace Reader's characters. Thank you Ms. Barry for another entertaining book.

not a waste of time

The cadence of the narrator was not my favorite. the story had lots of layers, some I saw coming others were a surprise. I felt the ending was a bit anti-climatic, but I appreciate the authors decision to not have everything come out in the open.

Bad Narrator

It might have been an awesome book but I couldn't stand more than 20 minutes of the narrator's voice.

Dull

Dull, plodding plot. Narration was so slow I wanted to hit a "fast forward" butting.