A coming-of-age memoir about a young boy in rural Arkansas who searches for himself and his distant father through soul musicGrowing up in rural Arkansas; young Rashod Ollison turned to music to make sense of his life. The dysfunction; sadness; and steely resilience of his family and neighbors was reflected in the RB songs that played on 45s in smoky rooms.Steeped in the sounds; the smells; the salty language of rural Arkansas in the 1980s; Soul Serenade is the memoir of a pop music critic whose love for soul music was fostered by his father; Raymond. Drafted into the Vietnam War as a teenager; Raymond returned a changed man; ldquo;dead on the inside.rdquo; After his parentsrsquo; volatile marriage ended in divorce; Rashod was haunted by the memory of his itinerant father and his mamarsquo;s long forgotten ldquo;sunshine smile.rdquo; For six-year-old Rashod; his fatherrsquo;s record collectionmdash;the music of Aretha Franklin; Bobby Womack; Al Green; and othersmdash;provided solace; coherence; and escape.Moving nine times during his childhood; Rashod constantly adjusted to new schools and homes with his two sisters; Dusa and Reagan; and his mother; Dianne. Resilient and tough; while also being distant and punitive; she worked multiple jobs; striving ldquo;to make ends wave at each other if they couldnrsquo;t meet.rdquo; He spent time with his acerbic motherrsquo;s mother; Mama Teacake; and her familyrsquo;s living-out-loud ways; which clashed with his fatherrsquo;s familymdash;religious; discreet; and appropriatemdash;where Rashod gravitated to Big Mama and Paw Paw; his fatherrsquo;s parents.Becoming aware of his same-sex attraction; Rashod felt further isolated and alone but was encouraged by mentors in the community who fostered his intelligence and talent. He became transformed through discovering the writing of Toni Morrison; Alice Walker; Nikki Giovanni; and other literary greats; and these books; along with the soulful sounds of the 1970s and 80s; enabled him to thrive in spite of the instability and harshness of his childhood.In textured and evocative language; and peppered with unexpected humor; Soul Serenade is an original and captivating coming-of-age story set to an original beat.
#2181491 in eBooks 2014-02-21 2015-04-30File Name: B00WY64FHC
Review
9 of 9 people found the following review helpful. Images reproduced from original artworkBy Diego CordobaHaving read all of Eisnerrsquo;s graphic novels; collected the Spirit in various formats (when it appeared in the Warren magazines; as a comic book published by Kitchen Sink and the slightly recent DC Spirit Library hardcover reprints); and followed the lsquo;Will Eisner Quarterly Magazinersquo; published by Kichen Sink; therersquo;s practically nothing Irsquo;ve left out on this manrsquo;s career (I donrsquo;t really care what he did for the army). I also had a chance to meet him personally in Europe and talk to him about comic books; as I was one of the few fans over there who actually spoke English. That said; what could I possibly find interesting in this book that I havenrsquo;t seen or read a million times before?Being a long time fan of Eisnerrsquo;s work (and who isnrsquo;t); I had to buy this book to see what else is new about him. Unfortunately; not much; though Paul Levitz does a rather excellent job on recounting Eisnerrsquo;s life for the umpteenth time (no actual interviews with Eisner though); but what abolutely blew my mind is that most of the images we see here are scanned from the original artwork; and that alone is worth getting hold of this book (whether you are a long-time fan; or new to Eisnerrsquo;s work). Some images (bits of them) are even published at their original size; or even larger to better appreciate the actual art.In conclusion; while I didnrsquo;t learn anything new (and Levitz wastes too much pages discussing who produced the first graphic novelmdash;as Eisner has been credited on having coined the termmdash;but who cares; really?); itrsquo;s the artwork that is a joy to admire and feast your eyes over. For those who donrsquo;t know anything about Eisner; this is a good (and great) way to start; and as I said; old fans will rejoice on seeing images scanned from Eisnerrsquo;s original art; something of a rarity; since Eisner held on to it for a long time (he didnrsquo;t want to sell me any of his piecesmdash;at least not twenty years ago).All in all; highly recommended.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Eisner (and Levitz) for the winBy Kindle CustomerA wonderful book -- a perfect encapsulation of comic-book history and the man who shepherded the graphic novel form its infancy into its true potential.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Will Eisner: Champion of the Graphic NovelBy THOMAS C. BIAGIAm reading right now. Most of the info has been out there before but is still interesting. Lots of new photos and asides that make it almost new.
