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Body and Soul
  
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Body and Soul (Hardcover)

by Frank Conroy (Author)
4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (36 customer reviews)

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Product Details

Product Description

From Publishers Weekly

Conroy's debut novel, of a young and neglected musical prodigy who is taken in by a music-store owner, was named one of PW's best books of 1993.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Mass Market Paperback edition.

Review

“Beautifully written, and hypnotically readable…the best story I know of in a long, long time.”
--Vanity Fair

“Full of enchantment…a precise conjuring of an exceptional child’s perceptions and feelings.”
--Entertainment Weekly

“A big, old-fashioned book as satisfying as a fine evening at the symphony.”
--Dallas Morning News

“A literary event…a grand saga…Body & Soul was written under the spell of Dickens, not to mention Stendhal, Tolstoy and the other 19th century titans…Conroy bedazzles readers!
--Chicago Tribune



From the Trade Paperback edition.
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Customer Reviews

36 Reviews
5 star:
 (22)
4 star:
 (9)
3 star:
 (3)
2 star:
 (1)
1 star:
 (1)
 
 
 
 
 
Average Customer Review
4.4 out of 5 stars (36 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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Most helpful customer reviews

 
5.0 out of 5 stars amazing book, July 7 2004
This review is from: Body and Soul (Paperback)
After reading other reviews, I felt compelled to add my own. This is the best book I have ever read and as a musician, there are things about this book only musicians would understand. yes, you can be six and love to practice, you can turn out normal even if all you do is music, and music is a natural talent. One can develop the talent at a very young age without any guidance. Conroy displays all these traits with his character, Claude, and he does it beautifully. When I was a child, I'd sit at the piano for hours and I did somewhat teach myself how to read music. I didn't have a piano teacher yet but I still figured songs out and loved everything about the instrument. But I want to defend Conroy in that some children truly have a calling and will motivate themselves. Besides my argument, this book is extremely entertaining and when it was over I searched the back to make sure there were no hidden pages.
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5.0 out of 5 stars A good, old-fashioned story, Sep 20 2003
By Peggy Vincent "author and reader" (Oakland, CA) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   
This review is from: Body and Soul (Paperback)
Body and Soul was named best book of 1993 by Publisher's Weekly. There's a good-guy hero, and there's adversity for him to courageously overcome to reach his dream. Director of the Writer's Workshop at the Univ of Iowa, Frank Conroy avoided the easy-out of formula fiction in favor of crafting his novel with straightforward language and careful writing. We meet 6yo Claude, trapped in a NY apartment all day while his mother drives a taxi. He discovers an old piano in his basement apartment and learns to play. As his talent is recognized, interesting people come into his life and help him along the way toward recognition as a prodigy. As a bonus, the story is set in New York in the 30s thru the 60s, so weget a sociology lesson in inner city life of that era.
Also, read Conroy's engaging memoir, Stop-Time.
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5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Insight, Jun 17 2003
By A Customer
This review is from: Body and Soul (Paperback)
This wonderful book provides little known insight into the mind of a musician. I found that it had a generally interesting story, although it seemed a little melodramatic at times, especially toward the end. Frank Conroy knows a lot about the musical world, and ties all of the 'trivia' into relevant parts of the story. This book says a lot about the inner psychology of music, or any of the arts. One negative though: Conroy is WAY too hard on Schönberg!
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 		 Most recent customer reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Body & Soul
This is a lovely, lovely coming-of-age book, beautifully written. A gifted young boy, poorer than poor, is graced with mentors who help him learn to play the piano. Read more
Published on Dec 9 2002 by mis_58

4.0 out of 5 stars Great beginning, Hollywood ending
The first half or so of this story was a page-turner, a young boy born into not so nice circumstances turns out to be a musical prodigy. Read more
Published on Oct 18 2002 by Gail Moore

3.0 out of 5 stars Story?
This is a terrific book with a lousy story. Having only a cursory knowledge of music myself (but a great love for it), I came away far the wiser about how a true musician hears... Read more
Published on Mar 31 2002 by Robert B. Wooldridge

4.0 out of 5 stars Coming of age tale from a child prodigy's perspective.
Body and Soul tracks the development of a young fellow named Claude Rawlings from the first intimations that this child has a unique musical talent through his childhood and young... Read more
Published on Feb 5 2002 by David J. Gannon

5.0 out of 5 stars I envy those who are about to read this book.
This read this book years ago, when it first came out, and just reread it for the second time. It's as fresh and true as the first time. Read more
Published on Oct 18 2001 by carmenmiranda

4.0 out of 5 stars Fascinating tale about a passion for music.
Frank Conroy, an accomplished pianist in his own right, certainly knows his subject in Body & Soul. Read more
Published on Aug 15 2001 by Frank Gibbons

5.0 out of 5 stars Body & Soul
As a musician of many years, and a concert pianist for some of those years, I picked up a copy of Body and Soul from a friend who had it lying around and had never read it. Read more
Published on Mar 26 2001 by Jen Leigh

4.0 out of 5 stars Poetry in book form
Body & Soul is a beautifully written book - some passages were so descriptive - and painted such a concrete picture - I went back and re-read them many times. Read more
Published on Jan 27 2001 by Julia J. Loughran

5.0 out of 5 stars Music in the key of life
Have you ever felt that you were invisible or unable to make an impression on others? Has your life ever felt empty or useless? Read more
Published on Sep 5 2000 by Ahmed S.

5.0 out of 5 stars incredible read
I am not a musician, but I am an author and I know the amount of effort Frank Conroy put into the research for this book. Music becomes a character. Read more
Published on July 14 2000 by Elaine Bergstrom

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