Customer Reviews

The Soloist

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Contrary to some of the other reviews, I really enjoyed the novel as I have enjoyed all of Christopher's novels. I enjoyed the pace and the gentle unfolding of details. I always love the otherworldly feeling that he's able to convey - his books are about taking you someplace else and he does that so successfully.

It's his first novel and, as such, a fascinating glimpse into what is to come. If you like Nicholas Christopher, you should check this out. I can't understand people who don't finish a book before they review it.

Nicholas Christopher captures the essence of a performing artist with ease. Although the protagonist's profession is different I could relate to processes and journey he takes. I enjoyed the novel very much.

Piano virtuoso Max Randall,has gone for years with the suspension of his career while his personal life grows more and more complex. His preparation for a comeback is disrupted by his many relations with the women whose roles in his life confuse him in his search for his self identity as a musician and a man. The book is written with great intensity and much soul searching as it is juxtaposed against the preparation to return to the concert stage. This book is not only a tome with which most musicians will identify. It also represents the struggle of a man who is searching to find himself in the midst of all his life's turmoil and chaos. It is imbued with a sense of such authenticity that I had to question what seemed to me like an autobiographical portrayal of the author's own life. This is a book with which musicians will identify but it is also a book that depicts artist's life as an ordinary person struggling for perfection.

Louise Cabral
Author,Teacher,Speaker
[...].

Well, this is a 300 page book, and I've read so far only about 130 -- so you can ignore this review if you want because it might be completely wrong. But it's not likely. I found this book in my school library because I read Nicholas Christopher's "Veronica," and like many others, simply adored that book. Unfortunately, so far this is NOTHING like "Veronica." This is bad. I mean, really reeeeally bad. Boring characters, has practically no plot (none that I can detect anyway), extremely annoying style, all in all reads like a soap opera -- actually, probably most soap opera are better than this. Time and time again I find it hard to believe that this was written by the same man who wrote "Veronica." But sadly it's true. So far all we know is this piano soloist's romantic conquests -- he just goes through his list of ex-wives and ex-lovers one by one for us. Oh and his family too -- father, mother, sister, uncle, therapist ... Worse than even your average laundry list. Almost none of them interesting, none of them has any story to tell -- it's the same boring format every time: "now I remember how I met Greta/Sarah/etc." Flat and uninteresting beyond belief. So far (almost half of the book) I can see no discernable trace of a plot (unlike in Veronica where the readers are plunged right into the middle of a fantastic world right along with the narrator), just this one guy goes on and on about his life. The only remotely interesting character is his first wife Orana who is dying of a mysterious disease -- but he only gives the reader altogether about 10 pages about her.

I seriously doubt if I have the courage to continue reading. What a disappointment. Ughh.