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The Final Revival of Opal & Nev
by Dawnie Walton
funny
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
There’s a lot to love about this oral history of a fictional rock duo who defied their times to make a brief but epic mark on music…
-The primary character voices are all strong, some leaping right off the pages. (Who wouldn’t love to spend time with Virgil LaFleur?)
-Opal Jewel is a character for the ages.
-Walton has a particular gift for placing Opal and Nev in a real-world landscape. She does it so successfully that I forgot at times that this was a fictional rock band. (Or at least wished they really existed.)
-She also has a knack for description. There is a photograph that is central to the narrative that she conjured so vividly I could readily see it.
-The retrospective claiming of Opal as a social justice icon is interesting and well-painted. I like that she was at times more show-woman than musical talent. And, even if my attention started to wane in the final quarter when the narrative focus became contemporary rather than retrospective, the titular “final revival” sucked me right back in.
While Walton has a ton of talent, there were a few things that kept this debut novel from transcending a 4-star rating. I can hardly blame her for failing to inject nuance into some of the White racist characters, but their cliched dialogue left the book feeling didactic at times.
Likewise, Walton stretched the oral history format a little beyond credulity, with some first person passages that come off like a sweaty attempt to advance the plot.
The music critic Ann Powers referred to “Final Revival” as one of the best books about the industry she’s ever read. Who am I to question her expert taste? While other readers may well agree with Powers, I had enough moments where I became hyperaware of what Walton was trying to do rather than staying locked into the fictional author’s voice. Still, this book was a delight.
-The primary character voices are all strong, some leaping right off the pages. (Who wouldn’t love to spend time with Virgil LaFleur?)
-Opal Jewel is a character for the ages.
-Walton has a particular gift for placing Opal and Nev in a real-world landscape. She does it so successfully that I forgot at times that this was a fictional rock band. (Or at least wished they really existed.)
-She also has a knack for description. There is a photograph that is central to the narrative that she conjured so vividly I could readily see it.
-The retrospective claiming of Opal as a social justice icon is interesting and well-painted. I like that she was at times more show-woman than musical talent. And, even if my attention started to wane in the final quarter when the narrative focus became contemporary rather than retrospective, the titular “final revival” sucked me right back in.
While Walton has a ton of talent, there were a few things that kept this debut novel from transcending a 4-star rating. I can hardly blame her for failing to inject nuance into some of the White racist characters, but their cliched dialogue left the book feeling didactic at times.
Likewise, Walton stretched the oral history format a little beyond credulity, with some first person passages that come off like a sweaty attempt to advance the plot.
The music critic Ann Powers referred to “Final Revival” as one of the best books about the industry she’s ever read. Who am I to question her expert taste? While other readers may well agree with Powers, I had enough moments where I became hyperaware of what Walton was trying to do rather than staying locked into the fictional author’s voice. Still, this book was a delight.