Review
"Visions of Johanna is a beautifully written literary novel about an unlikely pairing. Matt, a young, freelance music critic during the 1980's . . . Johanna, a flamboyant feminist and artist seven years his senior. . . . Something is off about their romance. . . .Sarno keeps the mystery a secret until the book's powerful and surprising final chapters. . . . His use of metaphors and lush language draws readers into the story. . . . Readers must be patient, allowing Matt to confront his past on his own terms. However, Sarno's subtle approach makes the denouement that much stronger. Indeed, as the story reaches its affecting conclusion, readers may shed a tear or two before the final page is turned."
—BlueInk starred review
"Beautifully crafted with extraordinary depth, Visions of Johanna is a timeless love story, a lyrical tale about the complexities of artistic ambition, and a thought-provoking, contemporary reflection on the human condition. Peter Sarno's debut will leave you wanting for nothing more than his next novel."
—Lisa Duffy, author of My Kind of People and 2 other works of fiction
"Sarno's Visions of Johanna traverses a wide expanse of territory: geographic, emotional and experiential. From the working-class streets of Revere, Massachusetts, to rural Wisconsin and the East Village—from neighborhood kids' baseball, to feminist film festivals and Dylan concerts—from childhood tragedy to unfulfilled love and middle-aged emotional breakthroughs. It's a highly charged, loaded book told through unflinching prose—clean, precise, never decorative—lyrical and at times poetic. I always know I'm reading good writing when I get to the end of passages and think: I wish I wrote that!"
—Joseph Torra, author of My Ground Trilogy and 12 other works of fiction, non-fiction, and poetry
"Taking its title from the famous song, Visions of Johanna, Peter Sarno's debut novel is imbued with the lyricism and dark romance of many of Dylan's most poignant compositions. Told in the first person, Sarno writes eloquently about the struggles of balancing creative aspirations with personal relationships. The majority of the novel is set in the 1980s and Sarno evokes the era well. ...Sarno writes about music and musicians with some style. A moment in which Matt watches Johanna at a Janis Ian concert is skillfully rendered. Elsewhere he writes brilliantly on art—especially when viewed from a feminist perspective. A passage interpreting Judy Chicago's Dinner Party is particularly astute. Throughout the novel the interplay between the two leads is beautifully modulated. Any frustration felt by the reader in the characters inability to properly connect is deftly explained by the slow reveal of each character's hidden history. Visions of Johanna is an engaging, mature and compelling debut novel which, though comparatively short, carries great emotional weight."
—Kent Lane for IndieReader
"A gentle masterpiece!"
—Susan Cheever, author of Louisa May Alcott A Personal Biography, Drinking in America: Our Secret History, and 14 other works of fiction and non-fiction
"Well-written with deeply complex characters and many different beautiful settings,Visions of Johanna is worth reading more than once. ...I really enjoyed the discussion questions at the end of the book and feel this would be a perfect book club book. With questions that address the concepts of faith and hope to the efforts put towards the women's movement, there is a lot that can be talked about in this novel. Detailed, wonderfully written, and thought-provoking, Visions of Johanna will have readers thinking long after they put the book down."
—Kristi Elizabeth, Manhattan Book Review
"A deeply moving and romantic tale of young people, artists and would-be bohemians struggling to find themselves and their place in the world.... Sarno's wide-ranging novel wrestles with questions of class, family, art and the limits of ambition. It will sweep you along from the first page to the last."
—Askold Melnyczuk, author of Ambassador of the Dead and 6 other works of fiction
"Johanna and Matt's romance is deep and intense, but the distance between Boston and the Big Apple presents many challenges. . . .Sarno, an award-winning nonfiction author, literature professor, and journalist, paints an evocative portrait of New York and Boston in the '80s, with nods to an eclectic group of musicians ranging from Dylan and Joan Jett to Debbie Gibson. The details of Matt's backstory are rich and intriguing."
—Kirkus Reviews
"Sarno explores many heavy and formidable topics, but with sensitivity and delicacy...A heartfelt and fascinating narrative about the urgency of human connection. A beautifully intimate romance."
—Publishers Weekly's BookLife
"Sarno writes with a fine descriptive hand...The culture and feel of past and present experiences merge with each character's perspective to create a medley of roller-coaster days that succinctly create a 'you are here' feel. ...a thought-provoking, evocative love story firmly rooted in a sense of place and time."
—Diane Donovan, Midwest Book Review
"What sets it apart from so many novels in the genre is Sarno's tenderly honest depiction of the complexities of real-life relationships--the way the past can haunt them, the way pleasure and uncertainty can mingle in any given hour, the way a small, kind gesture or ill-chosen word can draw lovers together or shove them apart. ...The novel wraps you in its embrace and doesn't let go until the last word on the last page. Johanna is one of the more intriguing characters I've encountered in modern fiction, and the narration is so natural and true-seeming that readers will wonder if she's been plucked straight from life and set on the page. ...A moving, enlightening, and truly enjoyable read."
—Roland Merullo, Author: Breakfast with Buddha and 24 other works of fiction and non-fiction
"Treat yourself to a slice-of-life tale about two people who fall in love and change each other's lives forever...Sarno's debut novel is filled to the brim with nostalgia, romance, and a hearty appreciation of the arts. ...A stellar debut." —Readers' Favorite
"Sarnodoes a masterful job of dissecting love to its barest roots and greatest pains in his complex novel...and so well captures the signals associated with budding relationships that readers will reminisce about their own affairs at that crazy stage when they feel something happening and don't quite know what it means or what to do. Visions of Joanna created flash images for me of The Way We Were and Love Story - only in the way that love can look so right at one point and then suddenly face storm clouds. But those comparisons of commercial-centric, manipulated vehicles are not fair to the literary, crafty and intricate work the author provides in his narrative and in his fine writing. Maybe Bergman's Scenes from a Marriage is more apropos. ...This fine novel will make readers think, it will move them deeply, and challenge their senses and comprehension."
—Jim Alkon, BookTrib
From the Author
EXCERPT FROM INDIEREADER AUTHOR INTERVIEW
What's the book's first line?
"Johanna named her only child Faith, just about the time she started to lose hers and the life she'd always dreamt of had begun to slip away."
What's the book about? Give us the "pitch".
The novel explores and navigates the complexities of a relationship between two people pursuing different fields of art—a music critic and a visual artist. Matt and Johanna meet, love, and try to stay connected but are driven apart by darkness within. Those demons drive the book—how does anyone reconcile tragedy with joy? Can we ever rid ourselves of the hovering presence of trauma and loss?
What inspired you to write the book? A particular person? An event?
The book was inspired by a confluence of four main impetuses I guess. I read a novel about a younger man and an older female artist and it hadn't rung true somehow. And— with a certain level of arrogance—me, a person who never published a full length book thought, I knew a talented and brave artist, I should be able to share the experience of what that artistic life was like more effectively.
And, while I was ruminating on the idea, I later thought, Well Peter, why didn't that relationship work out?
Independent of this, over the years, I had tried several times to write a story about a dear friend who tragically lost her life while only sixteen-years-old. And I eventually finished two short stories based on her. She had been hit by a drunk driver, abandoned on the side of the road, and found dead by her older sister who went out looking for her after she hadn't returned home from a trip to the neighborhood convenience store. I was absolutely numb for weeks and longer. Years later, only two main images of Mary Ann remained: one of her dressed in a stylish suede leather fringe jacket of the era with her sparkling brown eyes and luminous smile on the Friday she left for that weekend trip to Maine—the one I saw. And the other: her lying by the side of the road, alone, waiting for her sister to find her—the one I could only imagine, yet could never rid myself of.
I didn't know how to deal with that pain. There were really no such things as a grief counselors in those days and a man (even though I was only sixteen myself) —especially in my neighborhood—was expected to suck it up. It wasn't until I started writing the novel that I understood that these events might be interconnected. That perhaps one of the reasons my relationship with the artist (and another significant one that occurred prior to that) didn't work out had something to do with this traumatic event.
Finally I wondered, Why is music so damn important to you?
What's the main reason someone should really read this book?
My sincere hope is that there will be several reasons. But, it's a book for those who've loved and lost through youthful misdirection and also for those who have faith in the power of time to guide us to a place we're meant to be. It also shines some light on the challenges women (and children) faced—and, unfortunately, those they continue to confront to this day.
What's the most distinctive thing about the main character? Who—real or fictional—would you say the character reminds you of?
Some people would argue that Matt, and not the title character, ends up being the main character. But I still believe that you could make a case for Johanna being the protagonist. The most remarkable thing about her is her courage and steadfast belief in her artistic visions. But, if readers feel Matt is the main character, then the most striking thing about him is his struggle to reconcile the then and now concept of being a man and his attempts to emerge from the traditional notion of masculinity and to accept emotional sensibilities and actions.
If they made your book into a movie, who would you like to see play the main character(s)?
Like me, they're all probably too old now, but this is a fun exercise. Mary-Louise Parker and Tobey Maguire as Johanna and Matt. Tim Potter as Orlando, Rachel McAdams as Aubrey, and a young Mary Stuart Masterson as Heather.
When did you first decide to become an author?
Perhaps earlier, but in the 6th grade Sister Mary Ellen (who played touch football with us in the schoolyard during recess) encouraged us to write a story in Stockton's "The Lady or the Tiger" vein and I remember her liking mine and encouraging me.
What's a great piece of advice that you can share with fellow authors?
I'm not sure I can distill these recommendations down to one thing. I've read dozens of books and magazine articles on craft and I'm sure at least some aspect of each and every one of them has proven helpful. Still, I don't think they top what novelist and short story writer Ivan Gold told a handful of us green BU students when I went back to grad school (the first of a couple of times) in the early '80s, "Stay away from negative people."
(I have an encouraging letter that Professor Gold wrote me after I'd dropped out the following semester; it's stashed between the pages of a copy of his first novel somewhere in my cellar.)
If I were able to heed his advice, I think I might have moved that much further along, much more quickly. It's important for authors to carve out their own territory, to create their own protective bunkers, and part of the armor necessary is keeping the negative folks away—well-meaning friends and foes alike. I don't want to imply that an aspiring author should become Pollyannaish about it. Honest, sincere criticism as well as competent professional editors are mandatory. But there are too many people willing to advise creative types to simply give up.
The other thing I discovered is that pain is important. Not "woe is me doesn't my life (or my character's life) suck" pain; but there remains a need to pursue it in your art—no matter how vulnerable that ultimately might make you feel.
Is there something in particular that motivates you (fame? fortune?)
In a perfect world, I'd love to be able to garner empathetic readers one at a time. Those who might say, Gee I know how that character feels, or why a person acted a certain way. And, hopefully, I'll be able to entertain that person, allow them to feel something during our shared journey. Asking someone to invest several hours of his or her time in your book, is not an insignificant request. I understand this commitment and remain grateful and honored when a person is willing to take that leap of faith.
Which writer, living or dead, do you most admire?
This is a tough—if not an impossible—question to answer, which I'm sure many authors have already said to you in the past. So I'll cheat and name two—one living and one dead—and then come to regret I hadn't mentioned dozens of others.
Ann Beattie because she accurately tapped into the isolation, the disconnect I—and many others—felt in the '70s. And Andre Dubus Jr because of the pathos he was able to express in his short stories and novellas—long before the tragedies that eventually encompassed his own life.
Which book do you wish you could have written?
Another very difficult choice. This pick changes at least several times per week. So for today I'll say Nobody's Fool by Richard Russo. There are no car chases, no murders. It's simply a slice of life tale of working class people who sometimes act heroically, mostly accept each other's frailties, and usually try to face each new day with courage, resolve, and humor.
About the Author
Peter Sarno taught literature and memoir courses at the University of Massachusetts, Boston and has published essays, reviews, and short stories. While a graduate student at UMass, he won the Donald E Cookson prize in nonfiction. His work has appeared in The Boston Globe, Music World magazine, Sweet Potato, Gannet newspapers, Gatehouse Media, and other outlets. Visions of Johanna is his first published novel.
