The Blurb: The life of Spokane Indian Thomas Builds-the-Fire irrevocably changes when blues legend Robert Johnson miraculously appears on his reservation and passes the misfit storyteller his enchanted guitar. Inspired by this gift, Thomas forms Coyote Springs, an all-Indian Catholic band who find themselves on a magical tour that leads from reservation bars to Seattle and New York--and deep within their own souls.
Thoughts: It's a story of the rise and fall and mystical wonder of an Indigenous blues band. Perhaps I was expecting more. Perhaps, it straddled the line between mystical and wild folklore and music business reality. Perhaps a couple of the characters just were so unlikable, but I came away disappointed. One side, there is the story of life on the reservation itself and understanding the sense of hopelessness one can have when a people have been pushed somewhere and then given rations. On another side, there is the mysticism of Big Mom, of the dreams and the magical guitar. Still, there is a story of a blues band strung together for no other reason as it provides some hope, but why would they let a jerk and his crony be a part of the band. It seemed the parts were greater than their sum. bookshop.org/a/23143/9780802141903In the end, I liked it, but was hoping for more.
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