Body & Soul

A Novel

Fiction & Literature, Saga, Literary, Historical
Cover of the book Body & Soul by Frank Conroy, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Frank Conroy ISBN: 9780547729015
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publication: September 29, 1993
Imprint: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Language: English
Author: Frank Conroy
ISBN: 9780547729015
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Publication: September 29, 1993
Imprint: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Language: English

This saga of a son of the working class who grows into a piano prodigy is “hypnotically readable . . . The best story I know of in a long, long time” (Vanity Fair).

As a boy, Claude Rawlings looks up through the grated window of his basement apartment to watch the world go by. Poor, lonely, supported by a taxi-driver mother whose eccentricities spin more and more out of control, he faces the terrible task of growing up on the margins of life, destined to be a spectator of that great world always hurrying out of reach. But there is an out-of-tune piano in the small apartment, and in unlocking the secrets of its keys, as if by magic, Claude discovers himself. He is a musical prodigy.

Body & Soul is the story of a young man whose life is transformed by a gift. The gift is not without price—the work is relentless, the teachers exacting—but the reward is a journey that takes him to the drawing rooms of the rich and powerful, private schools, a gilt-edged marriage, and Carnegie Hall. Claude moves through this life as if he were playing a difficult composition, swept up in its drama and tension, surprised by its grace notes. Music, here, becomes a character in its own right, equaled in strength only by the music of Frank Conroy’s own unmistakable and true voice.

Bristling with character and invention, Body & Soul is Dickensian in its range and richness. This is a novel with all the emotional appeal and moral gravity of a classic bildungsroman, but with a tone as contemporary as a jazz riff—an unforgettable achievement by one of the great writers of our time.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

This saga of a son of the working class who grows into a piano prodigy is “hypnotically readable . . . The best story I know of in a long, long time” (Vanity Fair).

As a boy, Claude Rawlings looks up through the grated window of his basement apartment to watch the world go by. Poor, lonely, supported by a taxi-driver mother whose eccentricities spin more and more out of control, he faces the terrible task of growing up on the margins of life, destined to be a spectator of that great world always hurrying out of reach. But there is an out-of-tune piano in the small apartment, and in unlocking the secrets of its keys, as if by magic, Claude discovers himself. He is a musical prodigy.

Body & Soul is the story of a young man whose life is transformed by a gift. The gift is not without price—the work is relentless, the teachers exacting—but the reward is a journey that takes him to the drawing rooms of the rich and powerful, private schools, a gilt-edged marriage, and Carnegie Hall. Claude moves through this life as if he were playing a difficult composition, swept up in its drama and tension, surprised by its grace notes. Music, here, becomes a character in its own right, equaled in strength only by the music of Frank Conroy’s own unmistakable and true voice.

Bristling with character and invention, Body & Soul is Dickensian in its range and richness. This is a novel with all the emotional appeal and moral gravity of a classic bildungsroman, but with a tone as contemporary as a jazz riff—an unforgettable achievement by one of the great writers of our time.

More books from Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

Cover of the book Nine Kinds of Naked by Frank Conroy
Cover of the book Sister Aimee by Frank Conroy
Cover of the book Cinderella Man by Frank Conroy
Cover of the book Curious George Race Day (CGTV Reader) by Frank Conroy
Cover of the book Adeline by Frank Conroy
Cover of the book The Pure Gold Baby by Frank Conroy
Cover of the book Betty Crocker Halloween Cookbook by Frank Conroy
Cover of the book The Toss of a Lemon by Frank Conroy
Cover of the book A Perfect Vacuum by Frank Conroy
Cover of the book When They Come for Us, We'll Be Gone by Frank Conroy
Cover of the book Chuck's Band by Frank Conroy
Cover of the book Millions of Snowflakes by Frank Conroy
Cover of the book All the Names by Frank Conroy
Cover of the book One Man Great Enough by Frank Conroy
Cover of the book PopCo by Frank Conroy
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy