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From Booklist
*Starred Review* When Joey Cooper, a small-town mechanic, trades a beat-up old car for a brand new cello, he thinks he's in the market for a new hobby; for a man trying to pull himself back together after his wife left him (for another woman), music might be just what he needs. What he finds, though, is a lot more than he counted on, and a search for a cello instructor becomes, in a laid-back sort of way, a quest for personal fulfillment. Coyote's first novel--she has published three short-story collections to considerable acclaim in Canada--is gently written, with a leisurely pace that allows us plenty of time to get to know Joey like a friend. His journey, to come to terms with his past and to find something worthwhile in his future, becomes our journey. In this story of an Everyman rediscovering that life is special, Coyote is telling all our stories, and it's impossible to read the novel without feeling like the author has been sneaking around behind us, observing the way we live and the way we think. Not too many novels make a reader feel like that--almost invaded but in a good kind of way. Keep your eyes on this Canadian writer; with a little luck and some word of mouth, she could make quite a splash sometime soon. David Pitt
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved
Review
Ivan E. Coyote is a natural-born storyteller.... This book presents a compelling, positive image of just what manhood can be.
—Rabble.ca (Rabble.ca )
This graceful novel's storytelling strength comes from the compassionate interactions of the warmly authentic characters.
―Books to Watch Out For! (Books to Watch Out F )
A page-turner that also mirrors the intricacies of life. . . . Coyote shows how two worlds often collide and combine -- how something beautiful can come of disaster.
—Xtra! (Xtra! )
(Starred review) In this story of an everyman rediscovering that life is special, Coyote is telling all our stories, and it's impossible to read the novel without feeling like the author has been sneaking around behind us observing the way we live and the way we think.... Keep your eyes on this writer.
—Booklist (Booklist )
An ode to the value of change and staying awake to possibilities, and a moving illustration of how chance unfortunate events can transform into the marvelous.
—Calgary Herald (Calgary Herald )
—Rabble.ca (Rabble.ca )
This graceful novel's storytelling strength comes from the compassionate interactions of the warmly authentic characters.
―Books to Watch Out For! (Books to Watch Out F )
A page-turner that also mirrors the intricacies of life. . . . Coyote shows how two worlds often collide and combine -- how something beautiful can come of disaster.
—Xtra! (Xtra! )
(Starred review) In this story of an everyman rediscovering that life is special, Coyote is telling all our stories, and it's impossible to read the novel without feeling like the author has been sneaking around behind us observing the way we live and the way we think.... Keep your eyes on this writer.
—Booklist (Booklist )
An ode to the value of change and staying awake to possibilities, and a moving illustration of how chance unfortunate events can transform into the marvelous.
—Calgary Herald (Calgary Herald )
Inside This Book
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First Sentence
I would never have sold him the car in the first place if I'd known what he was going to do with it. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Excerpt | Back Cover
I would never have sold him the car in the first place if I'd known what he was going to do with it. Read the first page
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Front Cover | Copyright | Excerpt | Back Cover
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
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4.0 out of 5 stars (4 customer reviews)
4 of 5 people found the following review helpful
3.0 out of 5 stars
Thin, simple, easy reading, May 26 2007
By H. Harper "Paideuma" - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Bow Grip (Paperback)
While you do develop an affection for the lead character, and are pulling for him to make this journey of self-discovery in garages, blue collar restaurants, motels, "artists lofts", and rooms where he is offered herbal teas, the plot seems right out of a college sophomore writing seminar. The supporting characters have little nuance. It may be telling that almost every important "scene" has each and every character smoking cigarettes in the same way... I almost thought it was a deep literary device, but by the 20th scene like this it emerges as reliance on technique, just like when sloppy actors use cigarettes to disguise that they really don't know who their characters are. But it's got attempted suicide, dogs, death of parents, lesbian chic, white trash love, lonely gay men, and is better than TV and you can read it in just a few hours.
4.0 out of 5 stars
Well written, Dec 25 2011
By Benjamin - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Bow Grip (Paperback)
Joey, forty years of age and living in Drumheller, Alberta, lives alone with his faithful dog, his wife left him just over a year ago - for another woman. He runs his own auto-repair shop and his work occupies him fully, and both his mother and his coworker Franco tell him he needs to get out more.The day James appears at Joey's workshop looking to buy the old Volvo he has for sale everything is about to change for him. James offers to exchange an exquisite cello for the Volvo, and recognising that here is the opportunity he perhaps needs to try something new, Joey accepts.
Subsequent events involving James set Joey to worrying, persuaded by Franco and also to appease his mother he takes a few does off in Calgary hoping to solve the mystery of James, using the opportunity to return the rest of his wife's possessions, and look for a cello teacher.
Joey recounts the two weeks that set his life back on course, along the way filling in a little of his past, and introduces us the new friends he makes in Calgary. Joey comes across as a good hearted, generous guy with an open mind, someone who deserves to find himself and get his life sorted.
The story is involving, no major dramas but full of interest with a real sense of place and well drawn characters, but it is the writing the really grips one, confident yet unassuming and down to earth it reads with great ease.
1 of 2 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Stunning Page -Turner, Mar 24 2008
By Andrea Winterbottom - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Bow Grip (Paperback)
'Bow Grip' is an exceptionally well-crafted debut novel in which the author, Ivan E. Coyote accomplished to weave the silk and cotton threads of her sentences to create a vibrant tapestry of chapters.The story introduces appealing and intriguing folks that one might know as neighbours, friends or relatives who modestly unfold propelled by the author's impeccable observation skills and refreshing sense of humour.
Like a passenger on a bus touring gently rolling prairie hills, the reader stays connected to these compassionate characters, the heart-warming language and ordinary yet idyllic scenery page after page and realizes that it just plain feels good to root for the protagonist, Joey.
He is a car mechanic in his forties who gets a kick-start towards a major challenge by trading a beat-up Volvo for a cello. Witnessing Joey's journey might bring back the belief in all of us who thread our way to catch a dream.
Already accumulated accolades for this book: Winner of the 2007 ReLit Award for Best Novel, Shortlisted for the 2007 Ferro-Grumley Award for Women's Fiction and an American Library Association Stonewall Honor Book.
Watch for more from the author who may be destined to loop sky-high in the literary horizon.
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