Order from a Major Online Bookstore
Ultimate Book Price Comparison Engine
Save Your Time And Money
| AnyBook4Less.com | Order from a Major Online Bookstore |
|
| Home | Store List | FAQ | Contact Us | | ||
| Ultimate Book Price Comparison Engine Save Your Time And Money |
||
 |
Title: The Clarinet Polka: A Novel by Keith Maillard ISBN: 0-312-30889-2 Publisher: Thomas Dunne Books Pub. Date: 13 March, 2003 Format: Hardcover Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $24.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 4.55 (11 reviews)
Rating: 4
Summary: "OJ DA NA, OJ DANA!"
Comment: Any fans of the Polish polka must read this book, for what other contemporary novel would dare mixe unabashed praise for old Polish musicians like Lil Wally ("father of Chicago-style polka"), Walt Solek and Marion Lush? And then manage to weave an engrossing story in a believable 1970s time-capsule, replete with different characters' viewpoints on polka music?? Is it "zdegenerowana" (degenerate peasant culture) or is it part & parcel of Polish-Americanism? Author Keith Maillard brings us again a story set in fictional Rayburg, WV (think: Wheeling, WV) in a blue-collar Polish Catholic community. The story is told from the viewpoint of a 3rd-generation, Holden Caulfield-esque narrator named Jimmy Dombrowski, back in town after an overseas stint in the Army. He's bored and bummed about the Vietnam War and as anomie and alcoholism set it, a form of unexpected rescue comes his way as he gets involved with his kid sister's new all-girl polka band.
Even though our 26 y/o Jimmy doesn't see it coming, we readers do as he falls hard for the leader singer in a band, a mere teenager named Janice. Even a messy physical relationship with a married woman can't erase his feelings for Janice and our Jimmy takes a dive. Anyone familiar with the vagaries of chronic, severe alcoholism will realize that author Maillard does a first-rate job detailing how one can hit rock bottom and stay there for a long time.
Of course, I won't reveal the ending to this rather length story, but suffice it to say that Jimmy's Polish background is a constant in his frequently changing world: he can recite the Rosary in Polish, appreciates good golubka and uszka and can sing along to Polish polkas with the best of 'em.
(As a Cleveland-style polka fan, I appreciated the mention of Ray Budzilek in the story and the commentary about Cleve-style polka (altho' not totally accurate, in my opinion). The venerable Eddie B gets regular mention; curiously, Grammy-winner Jimmy Sturr gets no print!
The title song, "The Clarinet Polka" pops up often enough in Jimmy's story, but I believe that the old standard, "Zosia," gets more print and and printed lyrics than the former. A tip of the hat to the author as he also captures the poignant sadness of the start of the decline of eastern European communities at this point in American history: as a 3rd-generation Polish-American, Jimmy sadly observes the slow dying out of the culture as American popular culture steadily wipes out any vestiges left.
Some of this story puts me in mind of Greg Cielec's "My Cleveland Story" that takes place in a similar setting (1970s blue-collar ethnic city) when somebody's uncle was always squeezing an accordion in a kitchen somewhere. Maillard's afterward actually makes equally interesting and informative reading as he reveals his historical and political sources for devising this novel. He does great characterizations with the comical chicks in the polka band; the tragic figure of Janice's father; a realistic portrait of Jimmy's father (typical 1960s dad!) and the complexities in both Janice's and Linda's personalities.
So much more could be said about this important novel: questions of good versus evil come up; the importance/relevance of religious faith post-Holocaust...little-known facts on Poland's role in WWII.
Beware: after reading this book, you may suffer cravings for kielbasa and pierogi!
Rating: 4
Summary: A Couple Good Stories in One
Comment: Maillard does a good job combining the story of the servicemen re-assimilating post-Vietnam with the story of the Nazis' treatment of Catholic Poles in WWII. His book is also a fascinating portrait of blue-collar America, specifically the Polish-American communities in the Midwest. It made me want to look for recordings of the polkas the all-girl polka band plays.
Rating: 5
Summary: The Hero as Everyman
Comment: It's hard to imagine a frequently very funny book about hard-core alcoholism, but Maillard pulls it off triumphantly. Jimmy Koprowski becomes a mythical Everyman for all of us who have ever screwed up badly once - well, maybe more than once - in our lives, journeying to the bottom of the bottle and back to bring us all a little redemption, a little hope, a little love. At once both tender and gritty, this marvelously crafted encapsulation of the Polish community of a fictional West Virginia town in the late 60's, early 70's made me laugh, made me cry, and made me a little wiser about some of my own mistakes.
 |
Title: Gloria : A Novel by Keith Maillard ISBN: 0060935979 Publisher: Perennial Pub. Date: 04 September, 2001 List Price(USD): $15.00 |
 |
Title: A Question of Honor : The Kosciuszko Squadron: Forgotten Heroes of World War II by Lynne Olson, Stanley Cloud ISBN: 0375411976 Publisher: Knopf Pub. Date: 23 September, 2003 List Price(USD): $27.95 |
 |
Title: Dancing With Dziadziu by Susan Campbell Bartoletti, Annika Nelson ISBN: 0152006753 Publisher: Harcourt Pub. Date: March, 1997 List Price(USD): $15.00 |
 |
Title: Pears on a Willow Tree by Leslie Pietrzyk ISBN: 0380799103 Publisher: Avon Pub. Date: 06 July, 1999 List Price(USD): $13.00 |
 |
Title: Last Year's Jesus by Ellen Slezak ISBN: 0786886382 Publisher: Hyperion Pub. Date: 16 April, 2003 List Price(USD): $13.95 |
Thank you for visiting www.AnyBook4Less.com and enjoy your savings!
Copyright� 2001-2021 Send your comments
