Music seems to be hiding around every corner this April. In California, the sound of artists and fans singing at Coachella ricochets through the valley. Across the country, in the small town of Wilkesboro, banjo players tune their strings in preparation for MerleFest 2025. A few towns over, the community of Boone excitedly awaits the most musical day of the year: the annual Thaw Out festival.
This rendition of the Bookstop is here to explore stories that thrive in the world of music. While your patience grows thinner in anticipation of Waka Flocka Flame, pick up a book from this list and listen to the melodies that live within the margins.
“Just Kids” by Patti Smith
Patti Smith was a leading figure in the 1970s punk movement, often titled “the Godmother of Punk.” In her debut album “Horses,” she combined the influential Beats writing style with the blossoming punk scene of New York. Smith’s memoir, “Just Kids,” explores the relationships and experiences of her adolescence that led to her becoming such an influential musician. The book is dedicated to Robert Mapplethorpe and focuses largely on their relationship.
“High Fidelity” by Nick Hornby
Set in the late 1990s, “High Fidelity” follows 35-year-old Rob Gordon, the pretentious owner of a London record store called Championship Vinyl. When his girlfriend Laura dumps him, seemingly out of the blue, music-lover Rob begins to experience an existential crisis. Through his grief, Rob analyzes his past relationships and creates a list of “the top five most memorable split-ups.”
Whether or not you sympathize with Rob, all music lovers will be able to relate to this hilarious novel from Nick Hornby.
“Strange Stars: David Bowie, Pop Music, and the Decade Sci-Fi Exploded” by Jason Heller
Have you ever been curious about the connection between science fiction and the revolutionary music scene of the early 1970s? Then look no further than Jason Heller’s book “Strange Stars.” Heller explores the pop culture scene of the 1970s with an emphasis on artists such as David Bowie, Jimi Hendrix and Pink Floyd. Plug in your earbuds to David Bowie’s “The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars” and enjoy the wild ride this book offers.
“Station Eleven” by Emily St. John Mandel
Set in a post-apocalyptic world where a virus has devastated North America, “Station Eleven” follows a troupe of performers as they make their way across the Great Lakes region. Through music and plays, the novel explores humans’ amazing ability to create deep emotional connections, even under the most dire of circumstances.
“Norwegian Wood” by Haruki Murakami
Music is a present theme in almost all of Haruki Murakami’s novels. Before dedicating his life to writing, Murakami owned a jazz bar under the name of Peter Cat in Tokyo. In several interviews, the author has admitted to always listening to music while he writes.
Murakami’s 1987 novel “Norwegian Wood” follows an older Toru Watanabe as he reflects on his college days. The title was inspired by a song off The Beatles’ 1965 album “Rubber Soul” and plays a significant role in the meaning of the novel.
“Daisy Jones and the Six” by Taylor Jenkins Reid
Would it be a musical bookstop without this 2019 classic?
Largely inspired by the volatile relationship dynamics of the band Fleetwood Mac, “Daisy Jones and the Six” follows the rise of a fictional rock band in the early 1970s. Written entirely through retrospective interviews with the bandmates, Reid masterfully conveys multidimensional characters based on the people who pioneered the early days of Rock and Roll.