Diane Rapp's Blog: She's a Mystery and Science Fiction Writer! - Posts Tagged "rock-n-roll"

The Mud Dance by Neil Grimmett

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Flawed individuals who make the music

THE MUD DANCE is a story about friendship, sorrow, and life. Kenny and Larry became fast friends in grammar school, escaping bullies together and discovering their mutual interest in music. They formed a rock band. Kenny was a talented drummer and Larry the extraordinary keyboard player, linked together in music and life from that point forward. They got “ensnared by vanities and false pride” as they danced their own “mud dance” of life. Switching from the present to the past and back again, Kenny narrates their tumultuous story through soaring highs and terrible lows. Readers become “bedroom moths”, caught by the “starlight in his music”, as Kenny delivers the captivating tale like an explosive drum solo.

The author’s vivid descriptions of drugs, sex, and rock-n-roll during the sixties seem real and gritty. He masterfully unfolds harsh truths about Larry’s full history until readers understand the demons that plagued him.

By the end of the story, we hope that Kenny can drag himself out of the past and learn to enjoy life again. Perhaps the beat of his music will prove harmonious in the end. One of my favorite lines from the novel was this: “Our eternal rhythm box: no more than one strand on the snare drum of the universe vibrating its strings of harmony or discord with each beat as we move in and out of time.” The character studies of Kenny and Larry give readers a glimpse into rock bands and the flawed individuals who make the music.




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