My review of Ernest Gaines' Mozart & Leadbelly is up on the Voices of NOLA. What a great book for a writer to read! It's a fascinating look into Gaines' life and writing inspiration, particularly when it comes to The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman. He has also included a few short stories and there's an interview. I enjoyed this one a lot and I think other writers - even those not too familiar with Gaines' work - would enjoy it as well. (It seems to have been horribly undermarketed - I don't think a lot of readers have heard about it.)
Thursday
September 21
2006
10:19 AM
September 21
2006
10:19 AM
Sara that sounds like exactly the sort of thing he goes through all the time! He wrote in the book that even Newsweek couldn't believe "Jane Pittman" was all fiction.
I just love his use of language and rhythm - he really is an example of someone who found the place and time that he is uniquely qualified to write about and he just keeps impressing the hell out of readers by the words he crafts there. I think he's awesome and I was so glad to find this book. (I didn't touch on the parts about music in my review but man, wasn't that interesting?)
September 21
2006
07:45 AM
Hooray for comments!
In April I had the good fortune to hear Ernest Gaines read the essay "Writing A Lesson Before Dying", from Mozart & Leadbelly.
He explained how he came up with the idea for the novel, how he created the characters, etc. It was wonderful. Then came the time for questions. A woman raised her hand and said, "I know that this story is about real life, but are there any parts of the story that you made up?"
Mr. Gaines, bless his heart, was very gracious. "It's all made up," he said.
I agree with you--this is an overlooked book that other writers would really appreciate!