The Music Shop
2 journalers for this copy...
This is a hardcover book. It arrived in the mail sent from Penguin Random House. I don't know what I did to deserve it but I'll gladly read and review it. I loved The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry by Rachel Joyce so I'm looking forward to reading this.
I loved this book. Many thanks to Random House for sending it to me. I'm still not sure what I did to deserve receiving it but I won't look a gift horse in the mouth. And that is actually a pretty good synopsis of the book.
Frank owns a small record shop on a side street in an unnamed British city. Unity Street had a few shops on one side and residences on the other side. One of the shops (a florist) had already closed down by January 1988 when our story starts. Besides Frank's shop there was a tattoo gallery run by Maud, a bakery run by Mr. Novak, a store selling religious trinkets run by Father Anthony, and a funeral parlour run by the Williams brothers. Frank only sold vinyl records. He wanted nothing to do with cassette tapes or with the CDs the record company reps were always trying to get him to carry. Frank was forty years old, lived above the shop and loved music of all types and genres. He thought he was past the hurly burly of love and romance but then Ilse Brauchmann fainted in front of his shop. Ilse was an enigma; Frank could usually get a sense from people as to what records they would like or needed. From Ilse he got no clues. And Ilse said she didn't listen to music. She came back to the shop a few days after she fainted but just to leave a plant for Frank to thank him for helping her. She mentioned a fiance which crushed Frank because he had fallen in love with her. When pressed she asked Frank if he had a recording of Vivaldi's The Four Seasons and she took it away with her. She returned in a few days and asked Frank to teach her about music. So they set up a regular lesson once a week where Frank would bring four records and explain why they were important. In this way the late winter and spring of 1988 passed with Ilse and Frank growing closer. But (you knew there was going to be a but) when push came to shove Frank just could not commit to Ilse and Ilse returned to Germany.
There is more to the story but it would spoil the plot if I revealed more. Suffice it to say that if you love music of any kind and you like to read about unusual characters you will love this book.
Frank owns a small record shop on a side street in an unnamed British city. Unity Street had a few shops on one side and residences on the other side. One of the shops (a florist) had already closed down by January 1988 when our story starts. Besides Frank's shop there was a tattoo gallery run by Maud, a bakery run by Mr. Novak, a store selling religious trinkets run by Father Anthony, and a funeral parlour run by the Williams brothers. Frank only sold vinyl records. He wanted nothing to do with cassette tapes or with the CDs the record company reps were always trying to get him to carry. Frank was forty years old, lived above the shop and loved music of all types and genres. He thought he was past the hurly burly of love and romance but then Ilse Brauchmann fainted in front of his shop. Ilse was an enigma; Frank could usually get a sense from people as to what records they would like or needed. From Ilse he got no clues. And Ilse said she didn't listen to music. She came back to the shop a few days after she fainted but just to leave a plant for Frank to thank him for helping her. She mentioned a fiance which crushed Frank because he had fallen in love with her. When pressed she asked Frank if he had a recording of Vivaldi's The Four Seasons and she took it away with her. She returned in a few days and asked Frank to teach her about music. So they set up a regular lesson once a week where Frank would bring four records and explain why they were important. In this way the late winter and spring of 1988 passed with Ilse and Frank growing closer. But (you knew there was going to be a but) when push came to shove Frank just could not commit to Ilse and Ilse returned to Germany.
There is more to the story but it would spoil the plot if I revealed more. Suffice it to say that if you love music of any kind and you like to read about unusual characters you will love this book.
I've loaned this book to my bookreading and knitting friend BellBelle. Hope you enjoy it.
Really enjoyed the book. I had read the unlikely program age of Harold fry previously. The characters were great. It was a wonderful love story, love of music and love for friends
BellBelle read this and returned it to me so I loaned it to my other reading and knitting friend who journaled (YAY!). Now I think I'll loan it to my sister.
