Description
Explore the extraordinary journey of fourteen-year-old Audrey Martin in a vibrant coming-of-age tale set against the backdrop of the Jazz Era in Saint Monkey. With her distinctive Poindexter glasses and a soul stirring with gospel music, Audrey believes she’s bound to her slow-moving hometown in Kentucky. However, an unexpected opportunity arises when a booking agent offers her a chance to step into the bustling jazz scene of Harlem—a dream that electrifies her spirit and leads her to dizzying new heights.
As she graces the stage at the Apollo, surrounded by blinding lights and the rhythmic pulse of the city, the allure of love and fame beckons her forward. Yet, amidst this whirlwind, the stark realities of competition threaten to overshadow her young talent, revealing the fragile balance between success and failure. Simultaneously, her best friend Caroline wrestles with her own struggles in a society that often dims the ambitions of Black women, highlighting the deep-rooted challenges of segregation.
Written by Jacinda Townsend, this critically acclaimed novel seamlessly weaves musical prose and lyrical vernacular into a poignant narrative. Saint Monkey not only portrays the vibrant energy of the Jazz Era but also presents a stirring exploration of dreams, friendship, and the pursuit of identity. With 368 pages of rich storytelling, this brand new paperback (ISBN: 9780393350821) will leave you captivated.
(Note: Shipping for this item is free. Please allow up to 6 weeks for delivery. Once your order is placed, it cannot be cancelled.)
Note: Shipping for this item is free. Please allow up to 6 weeks for delivery. Once your order is placed, it cannot be cancelled.
Condition: BRAND NEW
ISBN: 9780393350821
Year: 2015
Publisher: W W Norton & Company
Pages: 368
Description:
Fourteen-year-old Audrey Martin, with her Poindexter glasses and her head humming the 3/4 meter of gospel music, knows she'll never get out of Kentucky”but when her fingers touch the piano keys, the whole church trembles. Her best friend, Caroline, daydreams about Hollywood stardom, but both girls feel destined to languish in a slow-moving stopover town in Montgomery County.
That is, until chance intervenes and a booking agent offers Audrey a ticket to join the booming jazz scene in Harlem”an offer she can't resist, not even for Caroline. And in New York City the music never stops. Audrey flirts with love and takes the stage at the Apollo, with its fast-dancing crowds and blinding lights. But fortunes can turn fast in the city”young talent means tough competition, and for Audrey failure is always one step away. Meanwhile, Caroline sinks into the quiet anguish of a Black woman in a backwards country, where her ambitions and desires only slip further out of reach.
Jacinda Townsend's remarkable first novel is a coming-of-age story made at once gripping and poignant by the wild energy of the Jazz Era and the stark realities of segregation. Marrying musical prose with lyric vernacular, Saint Monkey delivers a stirring portrait of American storytelling and marks the appearance of an auspicious new voice in literary fiction.
As she graces the stage at the Apollo, surrounded by blinding lights and the rhythmic pulse of the city, the allure of love and fame beckons her forward. Yet, amidst this whirlwind, the stark realities of competition threaten to overshadow her young talent, revealing the fragile balance between success and failure. Simultaneously, her best friend Caroline wrestles with her own struggles in a society that often dims the ambitions of Black women, highlighting the deep-rooted challenges of segregation.
Written by Jacinda Townsend, this critically acclaimed novel seamlessly weaves musical prose and lyrical vernacular into a poignant narrative. Saint Monkey not only portrays the vibrant energy of the Jazz Era but also presents a stirring exploration of dreams, friendship, and the pursuit of identity. With 368 pages of rich storytelling, this brand new paperback (ISBN: 9780393350821) will leave you captivated.
(Note: Shipping for this item is free. Please allow up to 6 weeks for delivery. Once your order is placed, it cannot be cancelled.)
Note: Shipping for this item is free. Please allow up to 6 weeks for delivery. Once your order is placed, it cannot be cancelled.
Condition: BRAND NEW
ISBN: 9780393350821
Year: 2015
Publisher: W W Norton & Company
Pages: 368
Description:
Fourteen-year-old Audrey Martin, with her Poindexter glasses and her head humming the 3/4 meter of gospel music, knows she'll never get out of Kentucky”but when her fingers touch the piano keys, the whole church trembles. Her best friend, Caroline, daydreams about Hollywood stardom, but both girls feel destined to languish in a slow-moving stopover town in Montgomery County.
That is, until chance intervenes and a booking agent offers Audrey a ticket to join the booming jazz scene in Harlem”an offer she can't resist, not even for Caroline. And in New York City the music never stops. Audrey flirts with love and takes the stage at the Apollo, with its fast-dancing crowds and blinding lights. But fortunes can turn fast in the city”young talent means tough competition, and for Audrey failure is always one step away. Meanwhile, Caroline sinks into the quiet anguish of a Black woman in a backwards country, where her ambitions and desires only slip further out of reach.
Jacinda Townsend's remarkable first novel is a coming-of-age story made at once gripping and poignant by the wild energy of the Jazz Era and the stark realities of segregation. Marrying musical prose with lyric vernacular, Saint Monkey delivers a stirring portrait of American storytelling and marks the appearance of an auspicious new voice in literary fiction.