Broad Street [Paperback]

Christine Weiser (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 20, 2008

Christine Weiser's debut novel follows the fictive all-girl Philadelphia rock-group, Broad Street, through the highs and lows of struggling for success in the male-dominated Philadelphia rock scene. When Kit Greene and Margo Bevilacqua make a drunken pact to form a band with the sole purpose of outshining the musical men in their lives, they have no idea what awaits them: gigs in seedy bars, obsessed fans, threats from a stalker, parties with biker gangs, and a seemingly endless quest to secure a steady drummer. Meanwhile, both women must learn to juggle their personal, professional and musical lives as they deal with ex-boyfriends, mind-numbing day jobs, and hard-to-please parents as they claw their way to the top of the Philly rock pile. Through it all, Kit and Margo learn that they don't have to sell a million records to find success - that the bigger challenge is figuring out how to harmonize all of the facets of their lives.

--This text refers to the Kindle Edition edition.

Product Details

• Paperback: 234 pages
• Publisher: PS Books, Inc. (September 20, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0979335019
• ISBN-13: 978-0979335013
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 5.9 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,196,479 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Finally A Philadelphia Based Music Scene Book, October 8, 2008

By 

Michelle Wittle (Philadelphia, PA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Broad Street (Paperback)

I have read so many books about New York City and its scenes that I am thrilled to finally read a book about the Phialdelphia Music scene. "Broad Street" takes place in the 1990's when the music scene was turning away from the bubble gum pop music of the 80's and turning toward the rustic sounds and blood letting lyrics of garage bands.
The main character, Kit, finds herself once again without a boyfriend and is looking for a new project. At a party in which Kit fears she may in fact run into her ex, she meets Margo and the girls decide it is time for them to get out from under the shadows of their male musicial counterparts and start claiming the lime light for themselves. Weiser keeps her characters running through the ups and downs of life as a struggling female musician.
Although this is Weiser's first novel, it reads with the maturity of a seasoned novelist. Weiser's characters are well crafted and I dare anyone to not see either a bit of themselves or someone close to them in the characters Kit and Margo.
I started reading this book at around noon and by dinner time I was annoyed that it was over. I even tired to stop myself from turning the pages, but my willpower was weak.
Christine Weiser is a great new writer and her novel is an explosive read. I look forward to watching Weiser's literary career and fan base grow.

4.0 out of 5 stars The Big Move from Girly to Woman, May 18, 2009

By 

jambi (phila, pa) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Broad Street (Paperback)

I finished Broad Street last night, (even paid for it...through
Amazon) after four enjoyable last-thing-at-night reads. I really
enjoyed the book overall and your writing. At first it felt kind of
girly to me, so much worrying about whether a guy was going to call
the next day after the night before. But as the story built, I
realized that the insecure person who narrates the beginning of the
book becomes a more confident and self-actualized person by the end.

Using the death of Kurt Cobain and the quest to give meaning to it
was a brilliant way to end the book. The event really gets Kit to see
her life and her quest for "success" in perspective.

Also, the whole local rock scene depicted was fascinating to me,
especially the insiders' language.

The final paragraph has a kind of Fitzgerald/Gatsby feel to it that
carried Kit away to what, I thought, would be a wiser level of
living. I liked it so much I reread it again last night.

3.0 out of 5 stars Broad Street, May 13, 2009

By 

Thoughts on the Arts "biblioholic29" - See all my reviews

This review is from: Broad Street (Paperback)

As someone who spent most of the 90's in a Philadelphia suburb, I really wanted to love this book. I didn't love it, but I liked it. I felt it was a pretty realistic portrayal of life in the early to mid-nineties, though I did find myself occasionally thinking things like, "Would she have really been able to afford to have a DVD player then?" Or," why would the "poor" girl have a cell phone?" Though dates are never officially mentioned, the fact that Kurt Cobain's suicide occurs at the end of the book (I promise that's not a spoiler) places the book squarely in the fall of 1993 through the spring of 1994. Such anachronisms can be forgiven though as the rest of the book puts you squarely during the time of early grunge and pop punk.

There were times when Broad Street felt like any other "chick lit" (of course the heroine's day job is in the publishing industry, I can't think of many in the genre who aren't) but then a scene shows up that veers you right out of the genre. (Other than good old Bridget Jones, I can't think of another chick lit heroine who does mushrooms.) Of course Kit, our narrator, makes the requisite horrendous choices (I mean really horrendous!) when it comes to men, work and life. What's beautiful is that everything isn't tied up in a little bow at the end. Certainly Kit grows and comes to know herself better, but like life, there's always more to learn.

That's the story itself, a few quick notes in regard to the copy. This was not an uncorrected proof as far as I could see. Nowhere were those words printed on the cover and the ISBN and bar code were clearly visible on the back, so the number of typos and grammatical errors was inexcusable (the author used to be a proofreader for goodness sake!) and the prose felt clumpy and stunted at times. However, this was the first time out for both the author and publisher. I'm hoping that this will be the first of more to come from this promising writer.