Power Ballads - Review

I received the galley from the publisher via netgalley.com. Expected publication: September 16th 2011 by University Of Iowa Press

On the Goodreads site, I marked that I'd finished reading Power Ballads six days ago. Why the delay of the review? Because I read several of the stories again. I also know I'll reread many of them in the future.

The ten short stories in Will Boast's award-winning Power Ballads are tied together by the lives of musicians. Not the headline makers or anyone of notoriety, but the everyday person who is compelled to play and perform, even when they know they'll never achieve the success of Boney James or Joni Mitchell. Some belong to the corner tavern polka band ("Sitting In"); or the hometown boys gone big ("Dead Weight")—sort of; or the choir director whose musical past is reflected in the equipment he's kept, and the passion he can't bury ("Mr. Fern, Freestyle ").

Boast also tells stories of the people who are part of musicians' intimate lives—the friends, a spouse, a sibling who—who are affected by the lifestyle in ways the musician often doesn't realize. Together these ten stories have drama and insight. My own family has handfuls of musicians; I have musician friends, and I have even done my stint in late-night jams. These stories are real.

The stories are also excellently written. The voice rings true with each character, especially the drummer, Tim, whose stories bookend this collection. Excellent writing as in "Heart of Hearts".

...When Kate saw Holly close her eyes onstage and lose herself completely in song, a shudder when through her, and she despaired that nothing, not work, family, or even sex, could ever exert such a tidal sway over her own life."

And from the title story, "Power Ballads"

I remember them, barely—a last-gasp eighties band that had lingered into the nineties like a stubborn stain before being erased by grunge and "alternative."

Lyrical language floats through each story, along with intense wording of emotional scenes. The tension in the last two stories, "Lost Coast" and "Coda", is gripping. They close the book with strength and energy. Power Ballads is a Must Read for anyone who enjoys excellent short fiction and fine writing. For the musicians out there, the connecting theme is a bonus. I am pleased to have this book in my library.