The Sound of Living Things

Albanie, a young divorcee, delights in her three-year-old daughter to the extent that she shuns adult company. She clings more and more tightly as she listens to news stories of earthquakes and wars or views newspaper pictures of homeless children. These topical insertions offer wonderful opportunities for imagery. After seeing pictures of Hurricane Hugo, for example: ``It's raining. Maria is rebuilding the houses that have been destroyed.'' Albanie, the protagonist, writes in the first person, incorporating her own perceptions and the words of others as they're filtered through her. This brief novel thus comes so close to diary form that it's often difficult to remember it's fiction. The absence of immediate interaction and dialogue can become trying; sections that are sparse on imagery assume didactic qualities. However, Maria's precocity, which convinces when seen through her mother's eyes, might not be as believable if she spoke and acted on her own behalf. Depending upon the reader's preferences, this first novel by Turcotte, a young Quebecoise writer, will either be considered a rare poetic gem or become so frustrating that it's abandoned after 30 pages. (Dec.)