TCCDM Dig and Flip: "The Amalgamation Polka" by Stephen Wright (2006)



"The Amalgamation Polka"...Stephen Wright (2006)
323 pages

NO SPOILERS:
Liberty Fish is the son of Abolitionist parents from New York.  He is also the grandson of slave-owning grandparents from South Carolina.  It was the days of slavery.  It was the time of the Civil War.  But the story is less about battles in uniform and more about conflicts in everyday clothes.

Every location is richly described and without slowing the reader down.  Nicely done.  The dialogue and parlay between characters ring true and breathe an authentic air to every scene.  But the story sometimes dances into the land of grotesque and strange.  Which is not necessarily a bad thing.  Many novels that linger around the Civil War era can become quickly repetitive.  But in this novel, however, Stephen Wright throws a bit of a bouncing horseshoe.  What does this all mean?  It means his writing might be better than the actual story if that makes any sense.  But I quib.  I followed this one all the way home and it haunted me long after.

"All Mixed Up" - Red House Painters / "Songs for a Blue Guitar" (1996)


Good stuff.

 Casey Chambers
Follow Me On FACEBOOK

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Interview:-- Joan Staley (Actress - Classic Movies & Television)

Image
  "Elvis,  do you really want me to slap you?"  ~ Joan Staley ~     So my friends and I were talking about first crushes. First tv and movie crushes.  For me, it was easy.  It was Alma. (Joan Staley)   I broke into the double-digit age of 10 in 1993.  That was the summer I discovered my favorite Don Knotts movie while flipping thru cable one Saturday morning... "The Ghost and Mr. Chicken." Everyone has seen it.  It was a funny haunted house story similar to an episode on Andy G. with a cast of familiar characters, trippy organ music, and the prettiest girl I had ever seen...Alma. She was beautiful alright.  I was love-stung so bad, I swear I could smell flowers coming out of the TV set.  And best of all, she was nice.  She didn't like the smart alec, the wise guy, or the show-off.  Alma was digging Luther (Don Knotts) and that just made her that much prettier.  And from then on... But unfortunately, time and puberty wouldn't let her wait
Read more

Interview:--> Terry Kirkman (The Association)

Image
"...Not only learned to think, but to care.  Not only learned to think, but to dare." ~ The Association ~  With one of the most bad-ass songs about the herb that no one was quite sure about, yet everyone understood...to the anti-war homage that was both beautiful and pointed... The Association . From gentle psych pop spinneries that tease the mind...to the lush vocal and instrumental arrangements that melt the heart... The Association. The Association were all of these and none of these. Lead by co-founder Terry Kirkman, it was never an "either/or" about the music.  No pigeonhole here.  It was simply "all" about the music.  And having at least 3 of the most radio-played songs in history...I'd say The Association were on to something. TERRY KIRKMAN INTERVIEW  01/26/2015 Casey Chambers:  In the summer of '67, The Association had the opportunity to perform at the iconic Monterey Pop Festival.  How cool was that? Terry Kirkma
Read more

Interview -- Henry Lee Summer (Singer/Songwriter)

Image
"I just always have played music.  For better   or worse, I banked my whole life on it." ~ Henry Lee Summer ~     It's strange how music lets you travel through time as if there truly was no time.  I played the shit out of this album growing up.  Nothing deep or complicated.  Nothing outta bounds.  Nothing to get hung about.  It's deceptively simple.  But here's the thing... Henry Lee Summer  is serving aces all over this heartland square. This is the 35th anniversary of Henry Lee Summer's self-titled album and this one falls under that sweet spot between raucous and chill.  It's a large cup of iced coffee with a nice soulful blend.  Not usually my type of go-to and yet this album easily fills a void I didn't know I had.  Let this spin be your own private Idaho.  " Check it out, Leroy!"   Henry Lee Summer... Go get you some. Henry Lee Summer Interview -- August 2023 Henry Lee Summer Casey Chambers:  Well, this is the 35th anniversary of you
Read more