Of Song and Water [Hardcover]

Joseph Coulson (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0977857662 | ISBN-13: 978-0977857661 | Publication Date: April 1, 2007 | Edition: 1st, First Edition

"Joseph Coulson's writing makes a reader hear jazz."
L.A. Times

Of Song and Water tells a tale of the Great Lakes, of singlehanded sailors and jazz musicians, of working-class dreams blighted by family duty, personal betrayals, and the untold violence between fathers and sons.

The story moves from the shores of Lake Huron and Lake Erie to the jazz bars of Detroit and Chicago, from 1920s Rivertown to present-day Humbug Marina, as it follows the life of Coleman Moore, a jazz guitarist who began his career with promise but who now finds himself adrift and in the company of ghosts: his mentor, a black jazz legend trying to live peacefully on the edge of a white town; his grandfather, a Prohibition rumrunner turned ruthless entrepreneur; and his first love, a clear-headed woman who refuses to live in the dark tunnels of the past.

In language that evokes the riffs and rhythms of jazz and the sound and movement of the Great Lakes, Joseph Coulson’s second novel is a profound Orphic journey, a story of hidden truths, unfulfilled dreams, and possible redemption.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Coulson (The Vanishing Moon) mines a put-out-to-pasture jazz guitarist's halcyon past and hardscrabble present in a poignant sophomore outing. It's 2003 and Jason Moore (on stage, he was Coleman Moore) lives near Detroit, driving a beer delivery truck. Though his battered hands can no longer handle a guitar, they work well enough for drinking, which he does frequently while reminiscing about his band, the CBT Trio, once the toast of Chicago. Other frequent rumination topics are Maureen—the girl he married and lost—and Jennifer—the girl he didn't marry. Tragic memories of his paternal grandfather Havelock and father, Dorian, both skillful sailors, also haunt Jason. The one joy in his life is his 17-year-old daughter Heather, though they, too, hit a rough patch after her high school graduation. The book isn't a total downer; the jazz scenes crackle with energy and authority, and Jason's sexy religious zealot landlady generates some chuckles. Coulson moves fluidly between the past and the present, and the novel is ultimately quiet, affecting and redemptive. (Apr.)
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From Booklist

Music and nearly magical evocations of a Midwest landscape shape Coulson's debut, The Vanishing Moon (2004). In his second novel, he portrays a jazz guitarist with grievously injured hands and a complicated relationship with Lake Huron. A third-generation sailor, Coleman, down-and-out and divorced, struggles with his disability (the price of hubris) and tries to be a good father to his wise teenage daughter. Haunted by his rumrunner grandfather and volatile father, he has inherited his father's boat, the Pequod, a clue to Coulson's subtle riffing on Moby-Dick. Patterns of dark and light shift and morph like shadows on water as Coulson choreographs complicated relationships between Coleman, who is white, and black musicians, including his honorable teacher. Coulson's complexly elegiac tale is, in part, a tribute to his mentor, poet and Great Lakes mariner Stephen Tudor. Love abandoned, violence sustained, guilt, grief, the transcendence of sailing and making music, all play in jazzlike counterpoint. Coulson's rhapsodic novel progresses from harsh equations of black and white to an exaltation of color. Donna Seaman
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 260 pages
• Publisher: Archipelago Books; 1st, First Edition edition (April 1, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0977857662
• ISBN-13: 978-0977857661
• Product Dimensions: 8.1 x 6.8 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,224,286 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Of Song and Water, May 6, 2007

By 

William L. Osburn "Bill Osburn" (Detroit, MI) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Of Song and Water (Hardcover)

This is an amazing novel. The story moves seamlessly across decades with the ease and unpredictability of a jazz guitar solo drawing the reader deeper into the life of the central character. Coulson's mastery of poetry comes through as he carefully creates images for every scene like that of the grandfather skillfully moving his boat across the currents of the Detroit River in the dark. His characters are real and you feel their emotions as they find their way through their past and present. This the work of a craftsman.

5.0 out of 5 stars A deeply immersive and moving story., July 9, 2007

By 

Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Of Song and Water (Hardcover)

Book of the Year Award-winning author Joseph Coulson presents Of Song and Water, a novel that draws upon the heady excitement of jazz, the solace of braving open waters in a sailboat, and the myriad complexity of familial obligations and painful memories. Following the life of Coleman Moore, a jazz guitarist facing mid-life doubts and seeking renewed focus through his work on and excursions in a damaged sailboat. Haunted by a memory terrible violence, Coleman Moore must come to terms with both the memories of his father and his present-day estrangement from his daughter. A deeply immersive and moving story.

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Booklist review for "Of Song and Water", April 26, 2007

By 

Archipelago Books (Brooklyn, NY) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Of Song and Water (Hardcover)

Music and nearly magical evocations of a Midwest landscape shape Coulson's debut, The Vanishing Moon (2004). In his second novel, he portrays a jazz guitarist with grievously injured hands and a complicated relationship with Lake Huron. A third-generation sailor, Coleman, down-and-out and divorced, struggles with his disability (the price of hubris) and tries to be a good father to his wise teenage daughter. Haunted by his rumrunner grandfather and volatile father, he has inherited his father's boat, the Pequod, a clue to Coulson's subtle riffing on Moby-Dick. Patterns of dark and light shift and morph like shadows on water as Coulson choreographs complicated relationships between Coleman, who is white, and black musicians, including his honorable teacher. Coulson's complexly elegiac tale is, in part, a tribute to his mentor, poet and Great Lakes mariner Stephen Tudor. Love abandoned, violence sustained, guilt, grief, the transcendence of sailing and making music, all play in jazzlike counterpoint. Coulson's rhapsodic novel progresses from harsh equations of black and white to an exaltation of color. --Donna Seaman