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James Hawthorne

Teoksen Two Centuries of Irish History tekijä

7 teosta 17 jäsentä 2 arvostelua

Tekijän teokset

Two Centuries of Irish History (1974) 5 kappaletta
The Visionary (2014) 5 kappaletta
Dark Day Dreams (2016) 2 kappaletta
Dark Day Dreams: Stories by (2016) 1 kappale
Playlist (2019) 1 kappale

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Jäseniä

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Well. This was an unexpected treat. I chose to read this book for two reasons: I LOVE music, and someone suggested I would like it. And I did!

Let me start by saying that I am a 50-something published novelist with a background in musical theater. I sing, play the violin, and pretend I can play the piano. This fall I will begin turning one of my heftier novels into a full-length musical. I love everything from the Bee Gees to Metallica to Frank Sinatra to WHAM! In effect, you could say that I am a dabbler. So. That is who I am in a nutshell when it comes to music.

Now on to PLAYLIST.

This book is filled with the author’s faves on his actual playlist. You know, the music we listen to over and over while driving, vacuuming, lifting weights, or just hanging out on a hammock. Our lives are filled with music. Who would want it any other way? The thing is, not everyone can WRITE about music and make it work. This author is factual, witty, and honest. For those reasons alone I would give the book three stars. A fourth star comes from the fact that I found no typos (at least none I could not live with), and the sentence variance and structure as well as book layout are spot-on.

Here is where the fifth star comes in: I love learning about bands and the individual musicians that comprise them, and James Hawthorne entertained while educating me at the same time. I would be here all day if I shared in this review how much I learned about these bands!

While I did skip some chapters where the musicians did not sound remotely familiar, I found myself reading about albums that I may have heard of in passing. And while my playlist is NOTHING like Hawthorne’s, I was thoroughly entertained while reading the intimate details of who was guest playing on a particular album, who the original composers were, where they are now, etc. I wish I could tell you all of the things I learned about these musicians, but I would be ruining the fun of discovering them yourself. I will, however, share some of my faves: Aerosmith, David Bowie, Lindsey Buckingham (saw him play in concert while enduring a painful muscle cramp), Cheap Trick, Eric Carmen, Peter Gabriel, Genesis, Daryl Hall & John Oates (awesome in concert), The Kinks, Randy Newman (Now THAT was interesting), Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, Linda Ronstadt, Sting, and Van Halen. Keep in mind, these groups are merely the tip of the iceberg. There are so many more to read about! I hope you find a few that you have heard of before or perhaps have had a kinship with.

While Hawthorne’s PLAYLIST is incredibly diverse, the best part for me with a book like this was this reminder: With so much commercial junk out there (yes, there is a place for that, too), it’s nice to be reminded that true musicians work their asses off. They often write for months in solitude. They write when the muse comes, and deal with writer’s block. They try to remain optimistic even when all seems bleak. They worry that their voices won’t hold out, or their hand muscles will turn on them, or their memories will be affected. They often have to choose between career and family. They deal (just like authors) with the public liking them one day and turning on them the next. And, unfortunately, they fear that their music will be stolen and listened to for free, or, worse yet, disappear into obscurity.

Hawthorne reminds us that music adds to our world unlike anything else; that musicians sacrifice in order to give us that three or four-minute song; that we, as listeners, should occasionally be reminded where music stems from, and how far musicians are willing to go to share their talents with the world.
… (lisätietoja)
 
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LTManning | Mar 7, 2020 |
The Visionary by James Hawthorne is a good story about seeing into the future and beyond. It grabbed me right away and then it got slow about 2/3 through then picked up again. I did enjoy it and it is certain worth the read. I am glad I read it. There were a few typos but that doesn't bother me too much.
I really liked the premise of the story and then how it followed the people to the end. Pretty cool. This probably doesn't make to much sense but I can't tell too much without giving spoilers.… (lisätietoja)
 
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MontzaleeW | Dec 11, 2017 |

Tilastot

Teokset
7
Jäseniä
17
Suosituimmuussija
#654,391
Arvio (tähdet)
½ 4.5
Kirja-arvosteluja
2
ISBN:t
5