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3.69 AVERAGE
3.69 AVERAGE
It was okay. It took longer than usual to read because it was hard to get into it despite the characters being interesting.
A rare 5 Stars! So far, this has been my favorite book of 2018. I didn’t want it to end and I want everyone to read it! The Music Shop by Rachel Joyce tells the story of Frank and Ilse Brauchmann through music. I loved Frank’s descriptions of the music so much that I wanted to lay on the floor and listen to the music the way Frank tells Ilse Brauchmann to experience it. And through all the betrayals, the highs and lows of Frank’s life, I felt the crescendos, The decrescendos, and the silences. And it didn’t hurt that my favorite 80s band, Def Leppard, got a mention either! This novel is story telling at its absolute finest! I highly recommend it!
Abandoned at pg. 142....pace of the story was agonizingly slow and the characters flat.
Imagine my joy when I saw the e-mail from Goodreads telling me I was a winner––not the endorsement of my state of being I might otherwise have desired but something better: I had won a not-yet-released book by one of my favorite authors, The Music Shop by Rachel Joyce. Although this book has all the hallmarks of RJ’s previous books––the quirky, endearing characters; the clever turn of phrase; and a good story––it also has a bonus: a list of really good tunes that provided the soundtrack for reading it. I hesitate to say, however, that despite how special I felt having the opportunity to read it before its general release, tbh, I can’t say I loved it as much as I loved The Love Song of Miss Queenie Hennessy, which I adored. Nevertheless, I have a feeling it’ll be one of those books I shall selfishly hoard and turn to again and again to reread RJ’s lyrically drawn descriptions of some truly great music. Thus written while listening to every version of “Beata Viscera” iTunes has to offer.
The first three-quarters of this book are set in 1988, following Frank, a record shop owner on Unity Street whose care-for-the-community-attitude forgoes his business sense. He refuses to believe that in the advent of CDs, persevering with selling only vinyl while other shops around him start to be swallowed up by the Fort Development.
In walks Ilse Brauchmann, a beautiful lady who faints outside the shop and returns to offer her thanks when Frank tends to her.
Their relationship grows through Frank’s passion for music, until Ilse reveals a secret that turns Frank’s beliefs upside down.
The final quarter sees the Unity Street community reunited as they try to reassemble what they once had.
Full of wry observations on life in a record shop, and in the independent retail industry, I could feel the love and warmth on every page. The love of the Unity Street community, Frank’s love of music (and fatherly, somewhat begrudging love for his Saturday assistant, Kit), and of course the unspoken love between Ilse and Frank.
If you have wiled away the hours in a dingy record shop, then this is for you. It feels like it is part of me.
In walks Ilse Brauchmann, a beautiful lady who faints outside the shop and returns to offer her thanks when Frank tends to her.
Their relationship grows through Frank’s passion for music, until Ilse reveals a secret that turns Frank’s beliefs upside down.
The final quarter sees the Unity Street community reunited as they try to reassemble what they once had.
Full of wry observations on life in a record shop, and in the independent retail industry, I could feel the love and warmth on every page. The love of the Unity Street community, Frank’s love of music (and fatherly, somewhat begrudging love for his Saturday assistant, Kit), and of course the unspoken love between Ilse and Frank.
If you have wiled away the hours in a dingy record shop, then this is for you. It feels like it is part of me.
As someone who worked in a record store in the '80s and '90s (and married a man who owned a 100% vinyl shop, until the stupid CD fad) , I loved this book. Yes it is sentimental, but it captures (some) of the magic of the LP.
As an aside, (and while I disliked the shrink wrap machine), I was surprised to not see a reference to the other music store essential, the phonolog. How I loved doing the updates!
As an aside, (and while I disliked the shrink wrap machine), I was surprised to not see a reference to the other music store essential, the phonolog. How I loved doing the updates!
Loved it! A bitter sweet book. Descriptions of music pieces wonderfully sensual. I actually YouTubed and listened to them as I went along. Ending was a bit out of character with the rest of the book by loved it anyway.
I really liked the characters, especially Kit, Frank, and Ilse. I think I would have enjoyed this one more if I cared more about music. All the flashback chapters with Peg interrupted the story too much for me, and I couldn’t share Frank’s passion for records. But all in all, a decent read.
3.5 stars. Charming little novel about the power of music. High Fidelity but with more earnestness.
I enjoyed reading this book so much I was wishing I could click on each piece of music on my eReader as I read instead of going to iTunes all the time. Maybe one day reading will become more interactive this way. Rachel Joyce's descriptions brought the music to life and the characters as well.