The Whirl: Men, Music & Misadventures

by Jane Cornwell

London-based Jane Cornwell, a world music critic and longtime scribe for The Australian and various magazines in Britain and Australia, has always thrown herself in head, heart and, very often, loins first into relationships. A fascination for other cultures - and the men of other cultures - has resulted in adventures as audacious and comic as they are enlightening and erotic. Cornwell collects relationships - 'experiences' - the way the rest of us do stamps or snow domes. She writes of the young Greek bartender whose father masterminded their liaison on Skyros during the islands bacchanalian Goat Festival, where men dress as women dressed as goats. The Jamaican gangster with the Rasta-coloured (red, yellow and green) stones in his teeth who got her stoned and held her hostage on a beach cliff top in Negril. The Congolese guitarist in Paris who has been meeting her on a pedestrian bridge over the Seine for a decade now, and still arrives bearing gifts. Victor, a 24-year-old Afro-Cuban dancer in Santiago de Cuba, who called her 'Mami' and convinced her to buy him jeans, shoes and a mobile phone ('It was my Sponsor A Child phase'). Bob, the well known African-American actor with whom she tranced with Gnawa musicians in Morocco, discovered bluegrass bands in North Carolina and attended wild Afro-Cuban bembe parties and hippie 5 Rhythms dancing sessions in Los Angeles. Banker, writer, beekeeper, busker, cowboy, park ranger Kicking off with her touchdown in London, Cornwalls snappy chapters tell stories of her sometimes poignant and often funny encounters. She documents her search for love and stability with men who are unable or unwilling to provide it. The experiences they provide, however, are priceless.

304 pages, Kindle Edition

First published June 1, 2015

Reviews

[Kaptain Kniccas · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ahhh what an easy read. A blessing that there are womyn out there like me who live in the moment and appreciate men but also know when it is time to move on.
There were moments when I thought, "I could write something similar" but alas, time will tell.
An easy narrative that glides you through the times and pages. I liked it for what it was and would pass it onto anyone who just wants a book that explores love, life, travel and human interaction.
Get a cup of tea, some good tunes cranking, a comfortable place and get into it.

[Rachel Blech · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jane Cornwell's musical memoir often made me chuckle out loud, at times made me cringe with embarrassment on her behalf and occasionally made me want to shout at her as she launched herself into yet another disastrous romantic affair. Candid, comic and colloquial in her narrative style, the escapades of her life (so far) as publicist, world music journalist and jazz critic are a highly entertaining read, peppered with self-deprecating humour. Her colourful anecdotes of sexual encounters and fantasies in faraway places, usually set agains a soundtrack of exotic rhythms, are at times surreal - even hallucinogenic. As Cornwell's memoir spans a period of 25 years or so, each chapter represents a relationship - some are long-term, some just a one-night fling - but each is a stepping stone along her path to self-awareness in her quest for a great man, great music, great sex and a sense of security. Without giving away the ending, the journey is clearly not over. I'm looking forward to the sequel!

[Luludji · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a lovely, warm, witty book! It's a no-holds barred emotional roller coaster ride as well as an exploration of men from different cultures (and ways of being with a man, and different types of relationship) that is frank and funny in a way that a lot of readers will relate to. It's the story of a terrific personal journey that starts in the Australian suburbs and takes Jane Cornwell all the way round the world on a one-way trip off the beaten track as she follows her heart - and as much as she falls in love with men, she also falls in love with music, and wants to learn about the people and places connected with it. She's got some terrific travellers' tales - well-observed, mostly amusing, but occasionally shocking - and The Whirl is a frank, sassy, endearing look back at a life lived to the full. It's the perfect read for the kind of traveller who wants to see the world beyond holiday resorts and tourist brochures, written by a glamorous, observant adventurer with a big heart and a keen eye for attractive, interesting and not entirely suitable gentlemen companions.

[Esther · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved this. It speaks to a generation of women moving from the stuffy Australian suburbs to a world of experience. Jane's brave I have to say, and writes openly with great humour and liveliness. She cracks the minutae of expression and you can hear the words echoing around your bedroom as you sit reading in bed. I'd love to see this on the big screen.

[Penelope Southgate · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book, was such a joy to read. I so admired this author's spirit of adventure and willing to try anything. She's met some real characters, travelled to amazing places and had a lot of laughs along the way. Was great to get a sneak peak into some fascinating sub-cultures. The Paris chapter was a particular favourite, quite moving. Would recommend it to anyone

[Dal Kular · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book and it kept me up late for several nights, much needed sultry respite after a hectic few weeks.

The Whirl is pulsing with soul, humour with a peppering of heartbreak. It had me sighing, laughing out loud and reflecting on my own misadventures in loveland. All to a soundtrack that journeys from 1980’s UK acid house to the panpipes of the Solomon Islands.

Jane Cornwell came to London as a young 20 something in the 80’s for love and for a comedian. Little did she know back then that London would be the back drop for a career in music and arts journalism that would have her interviewing celebrities and travelling all over the world…and meeting the men of the world too.

Each chapter introduces us to a new man, the background music and yes, the misadventure. It’s like reading a Lonely Planet version of international romance, an intimate and sexy window in to other cultures. From Christoph, a Congolese sapeur living in Paris who is always waiting for Jane but never replies to her texts to Mad Bill, an american movie star in to bed breaking tantric sex living in new age California to Adam from the Solomon Islands who helps Jane reflect on her journey to date and her hopes for the future.

I’m all in a whirl after reading The Whirl: Men, music and misadventures by Jane Cornwell and honestly did not want it to end. I loved it and it kept me up late for several nights, much needed sultry respite after a hectic few weeks.

The Whirl is pulsing with soul, humour with a peppering of heartbreak. It had me sighing, laughing out loud and reflecting on my own misadventures in loveland. All to a soundtrack that journeys from 1980’s UK acid house to the panpipes of the Solomon Islands.

Jane Cornwell came to London as a young 20 something in the 80’s for love and for a comedian. Little did she know back then that London would be the back drop for a career in music and arts journalism that would have her interviewing celebrities and travelling all over the world…and meeting the men of the world too.

Each chapter introduces us to a new man, the background music and yes, the misadventure. It’s like reading a Lonely Planet version of international romance, an intimate and sexy window in to other cultures. From Christoph, a Congolese sapeur living in Paris who is always waiting for Jane but never replies to her texts to Mad Bill, an american movie star in to bed breaking tantric sex living in new age California to Adam from the Solomon Islands who helps Jane reflect on her journey to date and her hopes for the future.

I loved this book because Jane never gives up on her hope for finding true love. She’s blisteringly honest about the patterns she repeats in life and relationships and I found myself nodding my head a lot. I may not have been to the Solomon Islands (takes over 6 hours in a dingy over rough seas to get there!) but I have been to some similar emotional places that Jane’s been to, crying on the floor with a box of kleenex and a broken heart being one of them. And still waiting for that wonderful someone to build a life with.

As The Whirl keeps swirling on, Jane gleans wisdom from every man and misadventure which builds throughout the book so just as you think ‘is she ever going to learn?’ we can heave a sigh of relief…and well, you’ll just have to read it to find out what happens. Jane is naturally self effacing, able to laugh at herself and the circumstances she finds herself in. And throughout we are subtly immersed and educated in to the music and ways of different cultures.

The Whirl could be read as just one woman’s sexy romp around the world, a really good holiday read or night in with a big G and T. But it’s so much more than that. Deeply self reflective, The Whirl is Jane’s way of making sense of her life, her love life and what lies ahead as a intelligent, sassy middle aged woman, still looking for love. Jane is a woman who knows who she is, what she is and this is a loving acceptance of the messy and joyful journey that has been her romantic life. And she’s not scared to say it.

[Tim · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very sharp, very funny, very acust, jane Cornwell compresses a lifetime's experiences of music and men from all points of the compass. In search of - what? Bigger wings for her Pegasus tattoo? A man whpo can stay faithful AND dance? It begins in Melbourne, around the time ACDC were still a bar band, and ends far out in the Solomon Islands, and in between you experience west London sqaut life, French-Congolese flaneurs of Paris, salsero love addicts exploring the bedrooms and dance floors of Havana, ecstasy and broken beds on America's whacky west coast, and falling into trance with Morocco's Gnawa. As her own central character, Jane Cornwell measures up, fouls up, fucks up and gets up again, dusts herself down and heads back in to the whirl - even if it means sacrificing her favourite-ever dress, out in the Pacific, somewhere near those Solomon ISlands. If you want to know what it's like to be self-empowering, self-doubting, kickboxing independent woman taking life in both hands and giving it a good long squeeze to see what comes out - then you need The Whirl.

[Liza · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jane's whirlwind tour of her world through men and music is a delight to read... There are few writers who have the guts to tell their tales with as much honesty and openness. This makes her book disarmingly authentic, written from the heart. Jane writes with a wonderful mix of humour and self-deprecation. She invokes all the right emotions you expect in a good book - curiosity, incredulity, hilarity, empathy, and the occasional moment of head-in-hands cringe of embarrassment on her behalf.. In short, we connect with this wonderfully adventurous heroine and are rooting for her all the way through!

[Kirsten · Rating 3 out of 5]

A laundry list of manscapades. The travel and music elements made this a fun read but sheesh, took her long enough to learn from her mistakes.

[Mary-Lou Stephens · Rating 3 out of 5]

An entertaining read but I did get tired of her choice in men.