The Magic Strings of Frankie Presto, by Mitch Albom (@mitchalbom) #review

28 September 2015 by Melissa

About the book, The Magic Strings Of Frankie Presto

• Hardcover: 512 pages
• Publisher: Harper (November 10, 2015)

Mitch Albom creates his most unforgettable character—Frankie Presto, the greatest guitarist ever to walk the earth—in this magical novel about the power of talent to change our lives.

In Mitch Albom’s epic new novel, the voice of Music narrates the tale of its most beloved disciple, Frankie Presto, a Spanish war orphan raised by a blind music teacher. At nine years old, Frankie is sent to America in the bottom of a boat. His only possession is an old guitar and six magical strings.

But Frankie’s talent is touched by the gods, and it weaves him through the musical landscape of the twentieth century, from classical to jazz to rock and roll. Along the way, Frankie influences many artists: he translates for Django Reinhardt, advises Little Richard, backs up Elvis Presley, and counsels Hank Williams.

Frankie elevates to a rock star himself, yet his gift becomes his burden, as he realizes that he can actually affect people’s futures: his guitar strings turn blue whenever a life is altered. Overwhelmed by life, loss, and this power, he disappears for years, only to reemerge in a spectacular and mysterious farewell.

With its Forrest Gump–like journey through the music world, The Magic Strings of Frankie Presto is a classic in the making. A lifelong musician himself, Mitch Albom delivers an unforgettable story. “Everyone joins a band in this life,” he observes, be it through music, family, friends, or lovers. And those connections change the world.

Buy, read, and discuss The Magic Strings of Frankie Presto

Amazon | IndieBound | Barnes & Noble | Goodreads

About the author, Mitch Albom

Mitch Albom is a bestselling novelist, a screen-writer, a playwright, and an award-winning journalist. He is the author of six consecutive number-one New York Times bestsellers and has sold more than thirty-four million copies of his books in forty-two languages worldwide. Tuesdays with Morrie, which spent four years atop the New York Times list, is the bestselling memoir of all time.

Albom has founded seven charities, including the first-ever full-time medical clinic for homeless children in America. He also operates an orphanage in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. He lives with his wife, Janine, in suburban Detroit.

Connect with Mitch

Find out more about Mitch at his website, connect with him on Facebook, follow him on Twitter, and sign up for his newsletter.

My Thoughts

The first thing that really grabbed me about The Magic Strings of Frankie Presto was that the narrator of the opening chapter was Music itself. Not quite Music personified, but definitely Music as a sentient being. As a musician myself (cello, singing, learning guitar), as well as the daughter of a woman whom Music passed by, this narrative choice made a lot of sense to me, and I would have been incredibly happy if the whole novel had been narrated by Music.

As the supporting characters worked their way in, however, and their voices strengthened, my initial rush of interest wore off. Don’t get me wrong, Magic Strings is eminently readable, but it seems a lot like, aside from Music, the author didn’t really have a strong sense of his characters.

Nevertheless, I really enjoyed the story. Mitch Albom made the inclusion of real people practically seamlessly (the description compares the novel to Forest Gump in that respect, but people have been doing such things for ages). It always makes me grin when authors can do that without it feeling disruptive or gimmicky, but since the epynomous (if fictional) Frankie Presto is a contemporary of people like Elvis, it makes sense to use that storytelling device. It drives me crazy when novelists set their stories in contemporary or recently historical periods and then pretend none of the pop culture we all know ever existed.

I loved that Frankie had a miles-long birth name that demonstrated his Spanish roots, and that he came to see his musical gift (both the actual playing, and the secondary gift of the blue strings on his guitar and their special power) as both a blessing and a curse, because even those of us who are strictly amateurs often feel that way, even without magic. I liked that the simple language Albom tends to use was both really natural, but that he also gave it a rhythm that felt like someone strumming a guitar.

Since my only previous exposure to Albom’s work was is memoir Tuesdays with Morrie, which I loved, I was worried that his fiction voice wouldn’t be as engaging. I was wrong, though I will caution that this book isn’t an action novel or a romance. Instead it’s a gentle, quirky story about a man, a guitar with magic strings, and the sometimes-fickle mistress/muse/calling that is Music.

Goes well with tapas and craft-brewed beer.

Mitch Albom’s Tour Stops

Monday, September 21st: Priscilla and Her Books

Wednesday, September 23rd: Lavish Bookshelf

Thursday, September 24th: Worth Getting in Bed For

Monday, September 28th: Bibliotica

Wednesday, September 30th: Dreams, Etc.

Wednesday, September 30th: Mom in Love With Fiction

Thursday, October 1st: Raven Haired Girl

Monday, October 5th: Ms. Nose in a Book

Tuesday, October 6th: Back Porchervations

Wednesday, October 7th: A Dream Within a Dream

Thursday, October 8th: Mama Vicky Says

Tuesday, October 13th: Book Loving Hippo

Wednesday, October 14th: Good Girl Gone Redneck

Monday, October 19th: BoundbyWords

Tuesday, October 20th: Curling Up by the Fire

Wednesday, October 21st: Book by Book

Tuesday, October 27th: The Novel Life

Wednesday, October 28th: Shelf Full of Books

Thursday, October 29th: Sharon’s Garden of Book Reviews

Monday, November 2nd: Seaside Book Nook

Tuesday, November 3rd: Lesa’s Book Critiques

Wednesday, November 4th: The Book Wheel

Thursday, November 5th: Books and Bindings

Monday, November 9th: Suko’s Notebook

Tuesday, November 10th: My Life in Books

Blue, by Kayce Stevens Hughlett (@kaycehughlett) #review @netgalley

20 August 2015 by Melissa

About the book, Blue

File Size: 1490 KB
Print Length: 235 pages
Publisher: BQB Publishing (September 10, 2015)
Publication Date: September 10, 2015

One insecure perfectionist. One guilt-ridden artist. One child-woman who talks to peacocks. A trio of complex heroines on separate journeys toward a single intertwined truth.Imagine living exclusively for others and waking up one day with a chance to start over. The terrifying new beginning reeks of abandonment and betrayal. The choice for Seattle resident Monica lingers between now and then. . .them and her. Izabel’s idyllic existence on Orcas Island is turned upside down during the birth of a friend’s child. Suddenly, pain rips through her own body, and life as she knows it shifts, hinting at a forgotten past and propelling her toward an uncertain future. On another island, young Daisy awakens surrounded by infinite shades of blue. Is she dreaming or has she stepped through the portal into a fantastical land where animals spout philosophy and a gruesome monster plots her destruction? Blue – a subtle psychological mind-bender where each heroine is her own worst enemy. Eccentric. Loveable. Unforgettable.

Buy, read, and discuss Blue

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Books-a-Million | Goodreads

About the author, Kayce Stevens Hughlett

Kayce Stevens Hughlett is a soulful and spirited woman. In her roles as psychotherapist, life coach, author, spiritual director, and speaker, she invites us to playfully and fearlessly cross the thresholds toward authentic living. A strong proponent of compassionate care in the world, Kayce’s live and online work focuses on the principle that we must live it to give it. Her early career began with a multi-national accounting firm to be later refined as the path of an artist. She delights in walking alongside others as they explore and unearth their own pathways toward passionate living.

Kayce is a Certified Martha Beck Life Coach and holds a Masters in Counseling Psychology from The Seattle School of Theology and Psychology. She is the co-author of “Arts Centered Supervision” published in Awakening the Creative Spirit: Bringing the Expressive Arts to Spiritual Direction, as well as contributor to other collections and online publications. Kayce is a trained SoulCollage® facilitator, a dedicated supporter of the Soltura Foundation, and co-founder of the Soul Care Institute–a professional development program facilitating the formation, nourishment, and deep inner work of soul care practitioners. Raised in the heartland of Oklahoma, she now resides in Seattle, Washington with her family and muse, Aslan the Cat.

Connect with Kayce

Website | Facebook | Twitter

My Thoughts

My friend Debra mentioned to me that one of her other friends had recently published a novel. “You read a lot,” she said, “you might like it.” I immediately went looking for that novel – Blue – on NetGalley, and was approved for an advance e-copy, which I devoured in one afternoon. Then I ‘met’ the author through our mutual participation in one of Debra’s projects, and asked her if she’d prefer a specific date for the review. She chose August 20th.

Weeks after reading Blue, there are several things that linger with me, the strongest being the use of the color, blue, as the through-connection in this novel which is really the story of three different women, Monica, Izabel, and Daisy. I’m hesitant to elaborate because I don’t want to spoil anything, but Hughlett showed how good she is with crafting plot and writing nuances with that element.

All three women had distinct personalities, and I really liked the way each interacted with the world on her own (apparent) terms, but also had some kind of secret lurking. I wouldn’t consider this novel an out-and-out mystery, but it definitely had mysterious elements.

I find that it’s easier for me to treat Monica and Izabel’s sections as one unit for purposes of review -these women were both obviously hurting, and obviously seeking things they weren’t ready to admit they needed. I found that their lives were rich and interesting and yet felt incomplete. Each lived in surroundings that completely suited her. With Izabel, I was reminded of the line from the movie The Wedding Date about how every woman has the relationship she wants.

Daisy’s story, on the other hand, was completely surreal with talking animals and a personal island paradise. My vision of her story is blend of Chagall’s art and Lewis Carroll’s stories, except that she was a lot more introspective and interesting than Alice. (Of course, Alice was a child, so…there’s that.)

Overall, I found Hughlett’s writing voice to be engaging and interesting. The opening of the novel confused me a little, but also hooked me, and made me want to figure everything out. Her characters – even the animals – felt very real. The three central women were especially dimensional.

In anyone else’s hands, the same story would have descended into cheap comedy or depressing sadness. From Kayce Stevens Hughlett’s deft hands comes, instead, a novel that manages to be poignant, compelling, puzzling, engaging, and incredibly readable.

Goes well with lemonade, blueberry pound cake, and fresh fruit, served al fresco in a lush garden.

Imaginary Things, by Andrea Lochen #review (@astorandblue)

17 April 2015 by Melissa

About the book Imaginary Things

Paperback: 400 pages
Publisher: Astor + Blue Editions (April 27, 2015)

From Andrea Lochen, award-winning author of The Repeat Year, comes an enchanting tale about family, love, and the courage it takes to face your demons and start over again.

Burned-out and completely broke, twenty-two-year-old single mother Anna Jennings moves to her grandparents’ rural Wisconsin home for the summer—her four-year-old, David, in tow. Returning to Salsburg reminds Anna of simpler times—fireflies, picnics, Neapolitan ice cream—long before she met her unstable ex and everything changed. But the sudden appearance of shadowy dinosaurs awakens Anna from this small-town spell, and forces her to believe she has either lost her mind or can somehow see her son’s active imagination. Frightened, Anna struggles to learn the rules of this bizarre phenomenon, but what she uncovers along the way is completely unexpected: revelations about what her son’s imaginary friends truly represent and hidden secrets about her own childhood.

Buy, read, and discuss Imaginary Things

Amazon | Astor + Blue | Barnes & Noble | Kobo | Goodreads

About the author, Andrea Lochen

Andrea Lochen is the author of two novels, IMAGINARY THINGS and THE REPEAT YEAR. She earned her Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing from the University of Michigan. She teaches at the University of Wisconsin-Waukesha and lives in Madison with her husband and daughter.

Connect with Andrea

Website | Facebook | Goodreads

My Thoughts

When the publicist from Astor + Blue contacted me about reviewing this novel, I was intrigued by the description, and immediately squeezed it into my schedule. I’m really glad I did, because this book is the perfect blend of straight up contemporary fiction and magical realism.

In Anna, author Andrea Lochen has given us a young woman who could be any young woman: a single mother who’s lost her most recent job and has had to slink back home to the grandparents who have always been the most stable influence in her life, in the tiny town where she was sent every time her own mother grew too bored/busy/distracted to be a parent herself.

As a daughter/granddaughter, Anna is still very much unfinished. She’s still at the point where she defines herself through her relationships with others, rather than having a truly mature self-identity. As a mother, Anna is fierce, protective, and loving, but also a bit permissive, partly as a reaction to her own upbringing.

While the Imaginary Things of the book’s title and description spring from Anna’s son David’s imagination, they are really there to serve as a sort of Greek chorus for Anna herself. It is through them that she learns to be stronger, more responsible, more open to love, and a better parent.

This novel isn’t about the destination, as much as it’s about the journey, and Anna’s companions on this journey include her son David, from whose imagination amazing things come, her grandparents Duffy and Winston, and her childhood friend (and so much more) Jamie, as well as the darker presence of David’s father, who is mentally unstable. Each of them is a fully-faceted character in his or her own right, and they interact so organically that at times if feels as though Lochen has drawn her characters from life.

The story is interesting and compelling, one of personal growth, maturation, the loss of innocence, and the acceptance of adulthood, but it’s never preachy, and never lectures.

If you pick up this novel expecting a traditional romantic comedy or romantic drama, you will be disappointed. If, on the other hand, you want a meaty contemporary read (almost literary really) with just enough magic to keep life interesting, you will not be disappointed. Imaginary Things is unimaginably awesome.

Goes well with Grilled cheese, tomato soup, and homemade lemonade.

Review: The Taste of Apple Seeds, by Katharina Hagena

11 February 2014 by Melissa

About the book, The Taste of Apple Seeds

• Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: William Morrow Paperbacks (February 4, 2014)

The internationally bestselling tale of love, loss, and memories that run deep

When Iris unexpectedly inherits her grandmother’s house in the country, she also inherits the painful memories that live there. Iris gives herself a one-week stay at the old house, after which she’ll make a decision: keep it or sell it. The choice is not so simple, though, for her grandmother’s cottage is an enchanting place, where currant jam tastes of tears, sparks fly from fingertips, love’s embrace makes apple trees blossom, and the darkest family secrets never stay buried. . .

Buy a copy:

Amazon | Barnes & Noble

About the Author, Katharina Hagena

Katharina Hagena is the author of On Sleep and Disappearing. She lives in Hamburg, Germany.

My Thoughts

If I were asked to describe this book, I’d say it’s a blend of Like Water for Chocolate and Tales of Hoffmann, which latter is a collection of classic fairy tales with a decidedly Teutonic sensibility. I use this description with affection, because from the first page, I was completely entranced.

I’m not certain whether Hagena writes in English, or if this is a translation, but either way, the language puts the reader into a sort of dreamlike state, where everything is soft-focus and just a little bit off-kilter. Not disconnected, just not quite plumb.

I liked, especially, the character of Iris, from whose perspective we experience this book, but I also liked her Buddhist monk aunt, and the rest of her extended family.

As someone who has always loved rambling old houses, and who absolutely believes that houses (and all buildings) retain a bit of the essence of their inhabitants, I also fell in love with Iris’s inherited house. Sure, there was bitterness and sadness there, but there was also love, hope, and not a little magic, and without the darkness, what is light?

The Taste of Apple Seeds is not a fairy tale. It’s a contemporary novel laced with just enough magical realism to make you smell the fruit, and feel the breeze, and taste the buttercake.

In short, it’s wonderful, and I loved it.

Goes well with Earl Grey tea and a slice of lemon pound cake.

This review is part of a virtual book tour. For more information, visit the tour page by clicking here.

A Matter of Perception, by Tahlia Newland

10 December 2011 by Melissa

When Tahlia Newland, an on-and-off blog-buddy of mine, asked me to read and review her collection of magical realism/urban fantasy short stories, there was no way I could refuse, but the truth is I’d have read this collection of six tales no matter who the author was.

Taken together, these stories are a collection of different ways to perceive fantasy, and to use fantasy to perceive reality. The collection feels like a complete suite – all moods and tastes are well represented. Taken separately, well, let’s do that, shall we?

The Drorgon Slayer’s Choice
An unnamed photographer’s assistant sees an interdimensional monster, and is rescued by a god, though she does some rescuing of her own. It’s a great blend of action, romance, and philosophy. This was my favorite of the collection, and not just because it’s the longest or most developed. I really wanted to know what happens next

The Bone Yard
This one is the darkest in the series, in terms of mood. It involves a woman in a desperate situation being helped by supernatural beings, though the twist at the end is rather grisly. A balance of classic horror and modern terror.

Mistril’s Mistake
With great power comes great responsibility, even when you’re a wizard. The colored light battle had me imagining light sabers (but only a little), but the story about taking ownership of your actions is actually very good. More, please?

A Hole in the Pavement
What if our emotional troughs became literal holes that we fell into? That’s the premise of this story, and Newland envisions it beautifully. It was delicate and delicious.

Not me, it can’t be
Mind blowing: alternate points of view between a modern woman undergoing chemo and an ancient (fantasy?) world woman about to become a ritual sacrifice – and each are apparently dreaming of the other in a fabulous riff on the old “Am I a man dreaming I am a butterfly, or a butterfly dreaming I am a man” conundrum. I was teary at the end.

Rose Coloured Glasses
Easily the lightest tale in the sextet, this story is about an office worker named Sally who discovers a new perspective on her colleagues (and a possible new romance) thanks to a very special pair of glasses. Haven’t we all wished for these at some point?

I believe that any fan of fantasy, magical realism, or just a really gripping tale, will find this collection of stories compelling and entertaining, but what really puts the cherry on top is Newland’s explanation of the themes, included at the back of the book. Excellent book group fodder, but perfect for a plane trip, as well.

Goes well with hot chocolate and a brownie.

This book is available for Amazon Kindle. Buy this book from Amazon.com >>