Far From The Tree Soundtrack - Samantha Lerner
Long Distance Love - Little Feat
This song reminds me a lot of Joaquin and his relationship with Birdie. Though he broke up with her, it was because he didn’t feel like he was enough and is constantly pitying himself. This song is about being helpless and hopelessly in love, while not really being sure what to do about it. The lyrics “and her life so sweet, I wonder do she know,” made me think of how Joaquin perceives Birdie, and how he thinks her life is so perfect and that he would just be a burden to it. The chorus also makes me think of how Joaquin is so scared to reach out for help, and just drops Birdie all together even though he really likes her. “Help wanted, but not enough, you know these times are getting rough, ‘cause no matter what I do, even pray to heaven above, all I ever get from her is long distance love!”
Picture To Burn - Taylor Swift
Relatable break-up song for Grace. A song about rejection and payback, I thought would fit well for how she might have felt about returning to school. Though she didn’t directly clapback at her ex-boyfriend, she made it clear how she felt towards his friends in front of the whole school. Grace is really strong for even being able to go back to school with everyone judging her, but when Adam taunted her, she confronted him and gave him what he deserved! I love when Taylor says “state the obvious, I didn’t get my perfect fantasy, I realize you love yourself more than you could ever love me, so go and tell your friends that i’m obsessive and crazy, that’s fine;” this reminds me of how Grace probably felt right in that moment. Who is Max to call her a slut when she has quite literally gone through hell as a teenager, and has received little support from the people she loves?
I’d Like To Walk Around in Your Mind - Vashti Bunyan
This is personally one of my favorite songs ever, and it’s incredibly sad. I think it would be a tribute to Peach from Grace, as the song is about someone who cares for another very deeply but can’t confront them (my interpretation, at least). In chapter 16, I think, Grace talks about how she regrets not keeping Peach, and wonders if she would have been able to take care of her. “I would disturb your easy tranquility, I’d turn away the sad impossibility of your smile,” this makes me think of why Grace put Peach up for adoption in the first place, because she thought she couldn’t give her the life she deserved. “But most of all i’d like you to be unaware, then i’d just wander away, trailing palm leaves behind me, so you don’t even know i’ve been there,” this line is incredibly sad, but I think it might have resonated with Grace. Part of her wishes she could see Peach and still have a life with her, but she doesn’t think she could be able to do it.
Liability - Lorde
I think this would be a relatable song for Joaquin, who clearly often feels like a liability to everyone around him. Even when his foster parents tell him they’d like to adopt him, he is hesitant still because he feels so unloved. He pushes everyone away because he’s so afraid of being a grudge and a burden. “They say, ‘you’re a little much for me, you’re a liability, you’re a little much for me’” I think this is truly how Joaquin thinks others view him, which is upsetting. “The truth is, I am a toy that people enjoy ‘till all of the tricks don’t work anymore. And then they are bored of me,” this reminds me of when Joaquin says that he feels that he needs fixing, like he is broken and unchangeable. “I know that it’s exciting, running through the night, but, every perfect summer’s eating me alive until you’re gone, better on my own,” I think this relates to his relationship with both Birdie and his adoptive parents, and that he feels that he would just be better on his own.
You Belong To Me - The 88
You Belong To Me is a perfect love song to guide the moment when Grace, Maya and Joaquin finally feel that they belong somewhere, together. They all lack a sense of belonging- Maya longing for her mother, who feels belonging when she accepts her mother and is excited to have her home. Joaquin, who always felt unwanted, feels belonging with his foster parents who he agrees to be his official adoptive parents. Grace finally feels belonging with Peach, when she visits her and notices how much they have in common. They all too find belonging with their birth mother, as they found pictures of Melissa and realized she truly did love them. “I could tell an antique lie, full of all the things I want to hide, but that would only lead to the truth, you belong to me, I belong to you.”
Hair - Lady Gaga
Maya always feels like the odd one out because she’s adopted. Her parents have red hair, along with her little sister who is a biological daughter of her parents. I think this really gets at Maya, and she wishes that she could just fit in, or accept herself for looking different than the rest of her family. I think this song highlights individuality and accepting yourself from being different than everyone else. “And in the morning, I’m short of my identity, I scream Mom and Dad, why can’t I be who I wanna be?” I’m not really sure if Maya is necessarily questioning who she wants to be, but she definitely feels lost in her identity and wonders why she has to be a stranger in her own home. “I’ve had enough, enough, enough, and this is my prayer, I swear, I’m as free as my hair, I am my hair,” I love this line because I think it really represents when Maya finally meets Joaquin and Grace and sees that she isn’t so different after all. She sees that her siblings are just like her, and that she really does belong somewhere, even with her dark hair.
Thinning - Snail Mail
This is a sad song to represent Maya’s depression as she struggles through her parents divorce. It’s hard to see two people you love stop loving each other, and wondering what that means for you. On top of that, she pushes her girlfriend away because she starts to doubt her love and doesn’t think that it’s enough. I think Maya was spiraling, and Thinning pretty much sums up that feeling. “Haven’t felt right in a week, and i’m thinning out, and it hurts bad, I gotta get back,” I think this is how Maya feels, especially seeing the condition her mother is in. It’s really difficult to have to deal with something like that alone and at such a young age. “I wanna spend the entire year, just face down, and on my own time, I wanna waste time.” When Claire finds out about Maya’s mother being hospitalized, she feels bad and tries to apologize because she still loves Maya. Maya just feels so hopeless and angry that she refuses Claire, I think she copes by shutting people out and forcing herself to deal with it alone.
