The Song of Names

Rating:
Summary: A novel intertwining the world of music with pre-War london
Review: Martin Simmonds, the President ad Owner of Simmonds Ltd. (a music publishing company), has been asked to judge a music festival in the small town of Tawburn. He hears nothing remarkable until one young player - a violinist - plays a certain rubato, one that reminds Martin of the young man who stayed with his family in London, pre-WWII. The young man was a virtuoso, showing great promise but disappeared from Martin's family and from the world mysteriously, on the day of his debut performance.

What follows in Norman Lebrecht's "The Song of Names," is a story of remembrance and devotion. With that one rubato, Martin travels back in time, to when his father took in the promising young violinist, Dovidl Rapoport, while his father returned to Warsaw to protect his family. He remembers all the devotion the two shared and the pain that was caused to him and his family upon Dovidl's disappearance. The grown-up Martin begis a search for Dovidl, forcing both of them to face up to their pasts.

The characters are very well-defined and believable. Plus, Lebrecht's descriptions of life in pre-War London from a child's perspective are quite remarkable. You really feel as though you are biking through the streets with the two young boys or watching the Germans warplanes flying over London. He also gives the reader insight into the different sects of the Jewish community in both the past and the present.

Overall, I found this book to be quite an enjoyable read and recommend it highly.

Rating:
Summary: A novel intertwining the world of music with pre-War london
Review: Martin Simmonds, the President ad Owner of Simmonds Ltd. (a music publishing company), has been asked to judge a music festival in the small town of Tawburn. He hears nothing remarkable until one young player - a violinist - plays a certain rubato, one that reminds Martin of the young man who stayed with his family in London, pre-WWII. The young man was a virtuoso, showing great promise but disappeared from Martin's family and from the world mysteriously, on the day of his debut performance.

What follows in Norman Lebrecht's "The Song of Names," is a story of remembrance and devotion. With that one rubato, Martin travels back in time, to when his father took in the promising young violinist, Dovidl Rapoport, while his father returned to Warsaw to protect his family. He remembers all the devotion the two shared and the pain that was caused to him and his family upon Dovidl's disappearance. The grown-up Martin begis a search for Dovidl, forcing both of them to face up to their pasts.

The characters are very well-defined and believable. Plus, Lebrecht's descriptions of life in pre-War London from a child's perspective are quite remarkable. You really feel as though you are biking through the streets with the two young boys or watching the Germans warplanes flying over London. He also gives the reader insight into the different sects of the Jewish community in both the past and the present.

Overall, I found this book to be quite an enjoyable read and recommend it highly.