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More About the Author
Product Description
Amazon.co.uk Review
Patrick Neate's second novel, Twelve Bar Blues, is a bouncy, ebullient book, "populated" (as one of its cast reflects midway through), "by absurd characters, dead ends and half truths" that tumbles "toward a punch-line that would seem inevitable with hindsight". It positively brims with outlandish, hilarious and moving (if occasionally hokey) tales. Literally "every name's got a story" and by jingo Neate delights in spinning each part of his yarn. Roaming through the black slums and early jazz joints of the Louisiana bayou to Africa, London, New York, Chicago and New Orleans at the end of the 20th century, his vista is extraordinary. There's Tongo Kalulu, the chief of the Zimindo, a proud African tribe, who, confused by his wife and enraptured by an attractive female American archaeologist, seeks the advice of Musa, his sex-obsessed witch doctor. There's Sylvia di Napoli, a "coffee-coloured" retired London prostitute, who has travelled to America in the hope of discovering her real father¹s identity. Also along for the ride is Jim Tulloch, a scruffy, big-hearted young Englishman half her age. Gluing these seemingly disparate elements together is the tragic love story of Fortis James "Lick" Holden, a long forgotten Louisiana jazzman who allegedly taught Louis "Dipper" Armstrong the "meanin' of the word hot" and Sylvie Black, his prostitute "sister (who wasn't no blood relation)". Chock full of jazz, poverty, sex and death, this enjoyable novel jives to a note-perfect if predictable ending, dispensing intelligent critiques of racism and sexism along the way. --Travis Elborough
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Review
A rollicking novel ... energetic, divinely plotted. If the description of Lick raising the roof of a honkytonk doesn't make your heart beat a little faster, there might be something wrong with your heart. --The Times
If I could choose one current British writer to tell tall tales around my fantasy campfire, it would be Patrick Neate. --The Daily Telegraph
Hugely enjoyable. --The Independent on Sunday
If I could choose one current British writer to tell tall tales around my fantasy campfire, it would be Patrick Neate. --The Daily Telegraph
Hugely enjoyable. --The Independent on Sunday
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First Sentence
Lick Holden was christened Fortis James. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Back Cover
Lick Holden was christened Fortis James. Read the first page
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Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Back Cover
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
9 of 9 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
An amazing book: writing like poetry, a light romantic touch and a passionate feel for humanity make this one of the most compelling novels I've read in a long time. The facts of the plot are in many ways deeply depressing - poverty, rape and murder at every turn! - but the whole is infused with such belief in the capacity of the soul to rise beyond anything (even death) that it leaves you with a profound sense of hope.
Undoubtedly crafted, 12 Bar Blues nonetheless has the satisfying texture of a bedtime story. I've no idea whether the numerous different voices (of aged jazz men, young pimps, African chiefs and ancient myths) are authentic but they FEEL authentic and that's the main thing, giving the whole novel the joyful intimacy of oral tradition, as if the tales are woven together before your eyes, just for you. All in all, as charming and seductive as one of Musa's magical dreams. Read it and you'll know what I'm talking about!
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
A great story stylishly written. I found the swagger of 1920's Mount Martre hugely enjoyable (and natural) to read and the witchdoctor and village chief characters were funny and entertaining.
Like a previous reviewer said it's a tragic story with rape and murder and prostitution and there's plenty of very strong language that some may not like but it's definitly a great story
For me the though its the author's writing style that makes it 5 stars. For example he refers to Sylvie not as just Sylvie but rather constantly as "Sylvie (who wasn't no blood relation)", which is never irritating and just adds to the style. As Neate might say : "it sho' don't detract from the story any"
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
The other reviewers have probably done a better job, but...
In a nutshell, this is the story (stretching over two centuries) of a black family tree and how that tree has been splintered around the globe for one reason or another. It jumps between three times which ultimately refer to each other. Blues and Jazz are almost the counterpoint to the whole drama and one feels that music is the common thread throughout the book.
The things that really makes this book special are the characters and the stories that they tell. Each person has a history and that history is beautifully drawn and they really spring off the page - they are so resonant and their relationships to each other so intricately rendered that they become real. If only other authors could take a leaf out of Neate's book...
Also, the stories that each character has - the history that makes them who they are - are wonderful. Sometimes extraordinary, sometimes ordinary but always interesting. This is all interweaved into a saga that spans two centuries.
When I started this review I was going to give this book four stars, because sometimes the narrative wanders a bit, but this book stays with you so I am giving it 5 stars. Recommended!
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Excellent!
One of the best books I've read in some time. I can't believe it has taken me this long to discover it. A gem! Very very original, it was just a joy to read. Read more
Published on 14 May 2010 by Do Chara
pointlessly violent, not that original
This was recommended to me by a friend who said it was "about jazz and magic". Sounds cool, I thought. Read more
Published on 29 Oct 2007 by KE Frohlich
12 Bar Blues
This is a mesmerising, hypnotic and soulful story that spans many generations and several continents. Read more
Published on 11 Dec 2006 by Leyla Sanai
Hugely original
A hugely original, multi-layered, stirring tale of love and loss and survival in a harsh world of exclusion and division, which takes jazz as the starting point for a study of... Read more
Published on 13 Nov 2006 by G. L. Haggett
"No story so important as the one you tells about yourself."
This powerful novel of identity, both personal and cultural, spans three generations and moves through Africa, New Orleans, and New York, deftly integrating the personal sufferings... Read more
Published on 12 Jun 2003 by Mary Whipple
Incomparably superb
This is a fabulous book. Neate has a gift for storytelling that is shared by few other contemporary writers. Read more
Published on 20 May 2003 by Mr. Andrew Dennis
A wonderful book
Reading this book is like listening to a piece of jazz, with all its rhythms and cadences. The characters and their stories compelling. And it doesn't ever flag.
Published on 15 April 2003 by Suroor Alikhan
from Africa to N'awlins
A spicy jambalaya of a novel! This zips between characters, storylines and crazy imagery at breakneck speed with no pausing for breath. Read more
Published on 24 Mar 2003
Excellent and original
A great read. Patrick Neate has a highly original and lyrical use of English. It is wonderful the way he brings a range of apparently totally unconnected characters together. Read more
Published on 13 Dec 2002 by R. G. Mabbitt
A major new talent!
This is a lovely novel. To be honest, I was astounded to discover that Patrick Neate was not, in fact, a black American. Read more
Published on 25 Nov 2002 by "tanyam281"
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