Fiddler's Dream

by Gregory Spatz

Gregory Spatz's novel tells the story of Jesse Alison, a prodigiously talented young bluegrass musician, who moves to Nashville from Vermont following his dream of becoming a Bluegrass Boy in Bill Monroe's band. He hopes to find his long-estranged father, himself a musician, who Jesse has heard now lives in Nashville. Juxtaposing flashbacks of Jesse's past and his earliest connections to music, the novel tracks his progress in Nashville, his edgy relationship with Genny Freed, a violin maker with whom he's staying, and concludes with his confrontation with his father.

Genres: Fiction

264 pages, Hardcover

First published March 16, 2006

About the author

GREGORY SPATZ is the author of the novels INUKSHUK (Bellevue Lit. Press, June 2012) FIDDLER'S DREAM and NO ONE BUT US, and of the story collections HALF AS HAPPY (2013) and WONDERFUL TRICKS. His stories have appeared in many publications, including The New Yorker, Glimmer Train Stories, Shenandoah, Epoch, Kenyon Review and New England Review. The recipient of a Michener Fellowship, an Iowa Arts Fellowship, a Washington State Book Award, and an NEA Fellowship in literature, he teaches at Eastern Washington University in Spokane. Spatz plays the fiddle in the twice Juno-nominated bluegrass band John Reischman and the Jaybirds.

Reviews

[Chuck · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nineteen year-old Jesse Alison is a gifted bluegrass multi-instrumentalist. He lives in Vermont with his alcoholic mother, but the music he loves has southern roots, as do the two "fathers" with whom he yearns to connect. One of them is his biological father, a once-famous songwriter who had a successful band of his own, but who abandoned the family years ago. The other is Bill Monroe, the "Father of Bluegrass", whose band Jesse aspires to join. Unfortunately, the current Blue Grass Boys [Monroe's spelling] have given no signs of leaving their positions; moreover, Monroe has recently suffered a heart attack, and isn't currently able to conduct any auditions. But Jesse, undeterred, sets off for Nashville where he hopes to fulfill his dreams.

Once in Nashville, he lodges with an old friend and former neighbor, Genny Freed, a virtuoso violin maker and repair artist who offers him a few important life lessons. Joining a jam session at the Station Inn, Nashville's premiere bluegrass venue, Jesse impresses some other highly skilled musicians with his own formidable abilities, but he resists exploring several musical job opportunities in light of his overriding desire to become part of Bill Monroe's band.

Jesse soon learns that his dad no longer lives in Nashville, so he sets off for Mississippi, heading to a rural address that he had been given, presumably by his mother. This leads to a truly bizarre scene in which Jesse, after locating his father's house, silently breaks in and manages to observe the sleeping man in bed with his current woman, but without disturbing either of them. Soon thereafter, a genuine meeting does occur, which enables Jesse to hear his father's version of the past, although the value of discovering that history remains unclear.

Author Gregory Spatz is a professional bluegrass musician whose prose captures the excitement of playing an instrument expertly, especially in a group setting where competition and mutual admiration coexist. Throughout his novel, Spatz sprinkles numerous authoritative references, most of which will be recognizable only by serious bluegrass cognoscenti. Perhaps they lend some authenticity to the story, but their sheer volume isn't really all that essential, and the average reader's eyes may start glazing over after encountering extensive doses of musicians' names and bluegrass tune titles. Although the book contains a fairly definite plot, its ending is inconclusive, inviting readers to imagine their own.

Southern Methodist University Press deserves a note of appreciation for producing a volume that is actually composed of sewn signatures with visible threads. One rarely finds that in the world of contemporary publishing. While it obviously doesn't affect content, the construction is immediately recognizable in a publication that can be fully opened without cracking the pages apart. Fiddler's Dream is not a novel for the ages, but its physical presentation may be.

[Janet · Rating 5 out of 5]

The most wonderful, quiet writing about music, what it is to be a musician, as a young man goes in search of his father in Nashville. Moves like a tune. What it feels like to have music in the bones, in the hands, how a musician listens, how he hears. LIke being invited into a secret world, or seeing beyond the visible spectrum into the eyesight of a butterfly.

[Marsha · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was slightly disappointed in this book. I enjoyed a lot about it, but it left me unsatisfied at the end.

NPR Bluegrass novel lovely prose --