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Little Did I Know: A Novel
Here is the story of an unforgettable summer. Set in Plymouth, MA in the late seventies, Little Did I Know is the tale of a young man with an outsized dream – to refurbish a dilapidated but historic theater and produce a season's worth of vibrant musicals. A recent college graduate, he fills his cast and crew with people he has come to love and trust in his university life...more
Hardcover, 336 pages
Published
September 27th 2011
by Prospecta Press
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I am so glad I read this book. It's one of those that once you start it, you can't put it down because it’s so interesting and so much happens. The author, Mitchell Maxwell does a great job of bringing us back to 1976 and the carefree times of being young. I enjoyed finding out what it took to get the old theater up and running again and made me realize how much effort is needed to put shows on. There are so many characters and by the end, I felt like they were all my good friends. The character...more
If anyone out there enjoys the theater, musical especially, you need to read this book. I am not sure the last time I wanted to go see a musical this badly, and it is all because of this story. I didn't always understand the nuances of the time period, 1976, but the theater family is one that I understand very well. This book did such a great job of portraying the family aspect, as well as the individual relationships between these characters, that you feel like you are living with them in this...more
The year is 1976.
Sam has just graduated college. Now it is time to pave his way in the real world. So the million dollar question is “What are you going to do now Sam?” Sam already has a plan. He shows his friends an ad for the rental of a theatre. This ad is the perfect answer to Sam’s dreams. Sam applies and receives a letter from The Barrows Foundation, who is managing the Priscilla Beach Theatre. The Barrows Foundation is pleased to offer Sam the theatre. Sam can live out his dreams and he w...more
Sam has just graduated college. Now it is time to pave his way in the real world. So the million dollar question is “What are you going to do now Sam?” Sam already has a plan. He shows his friends an ad for the rental of a theatre. This ad is the perfect answer to Sam’s dreams. Sam applies and receives a letter from The Barrows Foundation, who is managing the Priscilla Beach Theatre. The Barrows Foundation is pleased to offer Sam the theatre. Sam can live out his dreams and he w...more
“It was our last chance,ripe and luscious,available for the taking. The clock was ticking all too quickly. In a moment,the music would play,and those silly caps would be thrown high into the cobalt sky. When they landed,the next chapter of our lives would begin. Yesterday I was a kid. A breath from now…well,I guess I would be a grown-up.
Reading Little Did I Know by Mitchell Maxwell I was immediately impressed with how well the writer knew just what goes on at every level of a stage production an...more
Reading Little Did I Know by Mitchell Maxwell I was immediately impressed with how well the writer knew just what goes on at every level of a stage production an...more
Description:
Written by award-winning Broadway director and producer Mitchell Maxwell, Little Did I Know is a first-time novel loosely based on Maxwell's early career. After college, in the summer of 1976, Sam August travels to Plymouth, Massachusetts to follow his dream of directing musicals out of an old theater. Little does he know, that putting on a show and running a business can be a crazy ordeal, filled with unexpected twists and turns - just like life. Not only does he have to deal with l...more
Written by award-winning Broadway director and producer Mitchell Maxwell, Little Did I Know is a first-time novel loosely based on Maxwell's early career. After college, in the summer of 1976, Sam August travels to Plymouth, Massachusetts to follow his dream of directing musicals out of an old theater. Little does he know, that putting on a show and running a business can be a crazy ordeal, filled with unexpected twists and turns - just like life. Not only does he have to deal with l...more
Now, what did I think of Little Did I Know by Mitchell Maxwell ? I have been to two or three Broadway plays in my life. After reading this book, I have a greater admiration for the work that goes on behind the scenes. Samuel "Sam" August has just graduated from college in 1976, and now he and his friends are left to wonder what next. Sam has always been the best at sports, but his heart has always been in the theater. How does he make his dream of becoming a big-time theater producer come true?...more
There is something magical about the theater, and I have always loved musicals. This story is told from the perspective of someone who organizes and directs a summer stock just after graduating college. He have several aims in doing this; one is to find if he has what it takes to pull it off, another is to have fun, and a third to make a lifetime memory. It is a bit of a coming of age story, though the protagonist is somewhat older than is usual in such stories. He faces some formidable obstacle...more
Don't know what I expected but knowing that Mr. Maxwell has some impressive theatre credits, I thought this would be more of an insider's view on what it was like in the late 1970s producing theatre on the summer stock circuit in Cape Cod. I'm a theatre major and worked in summer stock and professional theatre for the past 30 years. There is precious little in this novel that rang true to me. First, it takes almost 100 pages before you even find out what shows will be produced at the theatre. I...more
This work is full of drama and excitement, it was a good read though the pace for me was slow. But in the business of show business you have to finish big, keep them coming back for more and this book is full of life lessons. It's about young Sam August becoming a man and pursuing his dreams and in the process teaching others how to do the same. He is great character with a quick temper, but a big heart and passion. It is that passion that gives him a hot head but also brings about his growth, a...more
This book transports you to another time. 1976. A time when things were less hectic. People were more laid back. It's the story about a young man who knows what he wants to do with his life (direct musicals) and will do just about anything to make it happen. And happen it does.
I've never really thought about what all goes into making a broadway show a success, but this book lets you know it is HARD work for everyone involved. But it's also a lot of fun and the cast and crew become a family.
My on...more
I've never really thought about what all goes into making a broadway show a success, but this book lets you know it is HARD work for everyone involved. But it's also a lot of fun and the cast and crew become a family.
My on...more
Big dreams and real life collide in Mr. Maxwell's first novel, Little Did I Know. Sam August goes to Plymouth, Mass to produce musicals in the oldest summer stock theatre. He's there first to scope everything out before his college friends and colleagues in theater come up. He runs into some big fish in a little pond and a girl who could change everything.
Reading a lot like a memoir, Little Did I Know is an intriguing foray into the world of theater and life in the 70's. Entertaining and quirky,...more
Reading a lot like a memoir, Little Did I Know is an intriguing foray into the world of theater and life in the 70's. Entertaining and quirky,...more
After over 50 pages, all we've seen is that every woman the main character meets is unbelievably gorgeous, engages in clever verbal sparring, and is almost immediately willing to throw herself at his irresistible charm and good looks. Add in overly-inflated descriptions and poor proofreading (tasseled instead of tousled, gentlemen instead of gentleman), and this book has lost the right to claim more of my time. Too bad, because the premise holds promise, but even randomly-selected pages from dee...more
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A young man graduates college with a degree in theater and sets out to establish a summer stock company in an old theater in Plymouth, MA. Along with some friends and and other talented people that he hires, they put the program together in spite of multiple problems with many of the local residents who are a cast of strange characters themselves. The story, while not compelling or deep, holds your interest and the prose is clean and straightforward. This is a pretty good book to take on vacatio...more
It is with a bit of reluctance that I give this book the rating that I did. I generally reserve 2 stars for books that did not interest me nor connect with me on any level. I wish I had the option to give it 2 1/2, but enough about all of that.
The premise and the story behind the book are indeed right up my alley. I love musical theater with a passion, and I used to dream about being in musicals mentioned in the book. I could actually relate to singing, dancing, and the show business scene.
I als...more
The premise and the story behind the book are indeed right up my alley. I love musical theater with a passion, and I used to dream about being in musicals mentioned in the book. I could actually relate to singing, dancing, and the show business scene.
I als...more
When the publicist offered Little Did I Know from a Tony Award-winning producer and director Mitchell Maxwell I was immediately intrigued. My background is in musical theatre and I've been out of the loop for a while and I thought this would be a good way to revisit. What I found instead was a romanticized reminiscence of summer stock theatre complete with drugs and salacious behavior. It hit all the cliches, which was sort of disappointing. I wasn't expecting a tell-all, but was hoping, perhaps...more
I abandoned this book after 35 pages. I usually try to give a book 50 pages before giving up. But I can't read even one more page of the writing. And the book could have used a decent editor. I feel like I'm reading an extended prelude. It's a shame because the plot is right up my alley, but I'm not going to get there.
Read the book and really enjoyed the story. I thought the characters did surprising things and there were twists throughout that kept me interested. The only criticism I must gives that the word myriad was used far too often...other than that, great story. Good ending.
fun book about a group of college grads (mostly) putting on a summer theater program in plymouth MA. took me a little bit to warm up to, but overall very enjoyable and heart-warming, especially for someone who grew up doing musical theater.
What a great coming of age story! This was one of the best books I have read this summer. Join Sam and his college friends as they embark on a whirlwind summer journey in a beautiful coastal beach town in Massachusetts. I laughed out loud and cried tears of joy throughout this book.
Set in the late seventies, Little Did I Know, is about a man with a big dream. Refurish a run down historic theater and produce a season's worth of musicals.
I would quantify this book as a beach read. I thought it started out well but the story but did not deliver in the end.
Not recommended
Quite possibly one of the "longest" and slowest books I have read. When I read the last page my first thought was, "That's it!?"
one of the worst books I have ever read
May 14, 2013
Karen Miller
is currently reading it
Apr 29, 2013
Kelli
is currently reading it
Mar 26, 2013
Mari Skyrin-Sarker
marked it as to-read
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