Music

This collection brings together texts that explore the beauty and often redemptive power of music, from classical compositions in Peter Shaffer's Amadeus and Haruki Murakami's Kafka on the Shore, to gospel songs and spirituals in Lorraine Hansberry's A Raisin in the Sun.

Barakah Beats

by Maleeha Siddiqui

Publication year 2021

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Music, Religion & Spirituality, Family, Coming of Age, Friendship

Tags Realistic Fiction, Children`s Literature, Modern Classic Fiction, Music, Religion & Spirituality

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Beach Music

by Pat Conroy

Publication year 1995

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Forgiveness, Grief, Love, Memory, Mental Health, Race, Midlife, The Past, Animals, Family, Grandparents, Mothers, Immigration, War, Loyalty & Betrayal, Music

Tags Historical Fiction, Southern Literature, Depression & Suicide, Grief & Death, Modern Classic Fiction, Dramatic Literature

Pat Conroy’s 1995 novel Beach Music is a work of historical fiction. Set primarily in South Carolina, the novel follows a community fractured by memories of the Holocaust and the social upheaval of the 1960s and 1970s. Beach Music explores the nature of generational trauma and the way our pasts shape our futures. The power of forgiveness and the differences between duty and loyalty are also prominent themes. The setting and culture of the American... Read Beach Music Summary

Being Henry David

by Cal Armistead

Publication year 2013

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Fear, Forgiveness, Loneliness, Regret, Mental Health, Coming of Age, Environment, Place, Family, Friendship, Self Discovery, Literature, Music, Truth & Lies

Tags Mystery & Crime Fiction, Realistic Fiction, Modern Classic Fiction, Romance, Action & Adventure

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Better Nate Than Ever

by Tim Federle

Publication year 2013

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Family, Music, Perseverance, Self Discovery

Tags Realistic Fiction, Humor, LGBTQ+, Music, Children`s Literature, Modern Classic Fiction

Content Warning: Better Nate Than Ever contains sensitive material, such as bullying and LGBTQ-related slurs.Better Nate Than Ever (2013) is the first book in a trilogy about Broadway hopeful Nate Foster; the next two titles in the series are Five, Six, Seven, Nate! (2014) and Nate Expectations (2018). The novel is intended for middle grade and young adult readers but may also appeal to adult fans of theater-related fiction. Author Tim Federle and the fictional... Read Better Nate Than Ever Summary

Bluebird, Bluebird

by Attica Locke

Publication year 2017

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Community, Safety & Danger, Family, Hate & Anger, Music, Race, Mothers, Food, Trust & Doubt, Justice, Equality, Marriage, Grief, Fear, Perseverance, Conflict

Tags Mystery & Crime Fiction, Horror & Suspense, Race & Racism, African American Literature, Modern Classic Fiction

Bluebird, Bluebird (2017) by Texas native Attica Locke, published by Little, Brown and Company, is a 2018 Edgar and Anthony award-winning mystery novel. It was also selected as a New York Times Book Review Editor’s Choice Finalist for the Los Angeles Times Book Prize, and Kirkus Best Mysteries and Thrillers of 2017. The first in the Highway 59 series follows Texas Ranger Darren Mathews through the backroads of Texas in search of justice and reform... Read Bluebird, Bluebird Summary

Born to Rock

by Gordon Korman

Publication year 2006

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Coming of Age, Fathers, Self Discovery, Fame, Music, Truth & Lies, Family

Tags Realistic Fiction, Modern Classic Fiction, Music, Humor

Gordan Korman’s 2006 young adult coming-of-age novel Born to Rock follows teenager Leo Caraway as he sets out to get to know his biological father—the frontman of a legendary punk rock band—hoping to fund his college tuition while navigating the foreign world of punk rock and gets to know his roots. The novel, which was written for and dedicated to Korman’s son, also named Leo, explores themes of genetics, identity, self-expression, and lying.Korman is a... Read Born to Rock Summary

Born to Run

by Bruce Springsteen

Publication year 2016

Genre Biography, Nonfiction

Themes Perseverance, Hope, Joy, Memory, Love, Coming of Age, Midlife, Childhood & Youth, Family, Friendship, Self Discovery, Community, Politics & Government, Fate, Art, Fame, Justice, Music, Equality, Loyalty & Betrayal, Trust & Doubt, Religion & Spirituality, Truth & Lies

Tags Music, Arts & Culture, Mental Illness, Social Justice, US History, Biography

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Brain On Fire

by Susannah Cahalan

Publication year 2012

Genre Autobiography / Memoir, Nonfiction

Themes Memory, Music

Tags Psychology, Mental Illness, Science & Nature, Psychology, Health, Biography

Brain on Fire (2012) is a memoir by New York Post writer Susannah Cahalan that details her struggle with a rare autoimmune disease, anti-NMDA-receptor autoimmune encephalitis. Cahalan recollects the journey through illness that took her from a normal, 24-year-old journalist to a misdiagnosed psychotic patient, and back again. In 2018, Netflix released a film based on Cahalan’s story, produced by Cahalan and Charlize Theron.Plot SummaryCahalan wakes in a hospital with no understanding of how she... Read Brain On Fire Summary

Bread of Angels

by Patti Smith

Publication year 2025

Genre Autobiography / Memoir, Nonfiction

Themes Marriage, Family, Perseverance, Grief, Love, Memory, Mental Health, Childhood & Youth, Coming of Age, Midlife, Death, The Past, Objects & Materials, Place, Teamwork, Self Discovery, Art, Beauty, Fame, Literature, Music

Tags Memoir & Autobiography, Music, Arts & Culture, Love & Sexuality, Grief & Death

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Brothers

by Alex Van Halen

Publication year 2024

Genre Autobiography / Memoir, Nonfiction

Themes Conflict, Perseverance, Love, Memory, Language, Childhood & Youth, Coming of Age, Death, Siblings, Teamwork, Fame, Loyalty & Betrayal, Music

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Can't Stop Won't Stop (Young Adult Edition)

by Jeff Chang

Publication year 2021

Genre Book, Nonfiction

Themes Race, Music, Community

Tags Arts & Culture, Race & Racism, US History, Social Justice, Poverty, Music

Can’t Stop Won’t Stop (Young Adult Edition) is an abridged version of the original 2005 non-fiction historical account of the origin and evolution of hip-hop culture written by Jeff Chang and David “Davey D” Cook. Jeff Chang is an American journalist, music critic, and historian who, in 1993, co-founded the hip-hop label Solesides, which aided in the launching of artists like DJ Shadow and Blackalicious. Jeff Chang earned his bachelor’s and master’s degrees at the... Read Can't Stop Won't Stop (Young Adult Edition) Summary

Chances Are . . .

by Richard Russo

Publication year 2017

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Grief, Memory, Regret, Masculinity, Mental Health, Death, The Past, Appearance & Reality, Family, Friendship, Social Class, Music, Truth & Lies

Tags Mystery & Crime Fiction, Historical Fiction, Horror & Suspense

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Colorless Tsukuru Tazaki and His Years of Pilgrimage

by Haruki Murakami

Publication year 2013

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Friendship, Memory, Appearance & Reality, Music, The Past, Coming of Age, Mental Health

Tags Coming of Age, Japanese Literature, Realistic Fiction, Grief & Death, Trauma & Abuse, Love & Sexuality, Modern Classic Fiction, Asian Literature, Magical Realism

Colorless Tsukuru Tazaki and His Years of Pilgrimage is a 2014 novel by renowned Japanese novelist Haruki Murakami. The novel tells the story of a man who attempts to overcome past emotional suffering to make his present life more rewarding. Through Tsukuru’s point of view, we see the ripple effects of rejection and the necessity of sometimes confronting the past to make sense of who we are in the present. After a group of friends... Read Colorless Tsukuru Tazaki and His Years of Pilgrimage Summary

Crimes of the Heart

by Beth Henley

Publication year 1982

Genre Play, Fiction

Themes Music, Family

Tags Women`s Studies, Education, Education, American Literature, Dramatic Literature, Classic Fiction

Crimes of the Heart is a three-act play by Beth Henley. It opens five years after Hurricane Camille, in a Mississippi town called Hazlehurst. The entirety of the play takes place in the kitchen of the house belonging to the Magrath sisters: Lenny, Babe, and Meg.   The play begins on Lenny’s thirtieth birthday. Lenny and Chick, a first cousin, are taking about an unspecified piece of terrible news that will be appearing in the newspaper. It has something to do... Read Crimes of the Heart Summary

Daisy Jones & The Six

by Taylor Jenkins Reid

Publication year 2019

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Music, Fathers, Fame

Tags Historical Fiction, Music, Modern Classic Fiction, World History

Taylor Jenkins Reid’s historical fiction novel Daisy Jones & The Six, published in 2019, is a contemporary work of fiction that explores the rich music culture of the 1970s in the United States. This time was known for rock ’n’ roll, partly as a cultural response to the strict rules of the 1960s and the disaster of the Vietnam War. The California dream world of hard partying, no rules, and freedom persists as a major... Read Daisy Jones & The Six Summary

Desert Solitaire

by Edward Abbey

Publication year 1968

Genre Autobiography / Memoir, Nonfiction

Themes Music, Environment

Tags Science & Nature, Philosophy, Philosophy, Travel Literature, Action & Adventure, Classic Fiction, Biography

Desert Solitaire is Edward Abbey’s 1968 memoir of his six months serving as a park ranger in Utah’s Arches National Park in the late 1950s. Throughout the book, Abbey describes his vivid and moving encounters with nature in her various forms: animals, storms, trees, rock formations, cliffs and mountains. He communicates an uncommon reverence for nature, and an unmistakable disdain for tame, cultured humanity, including the vast majority of the tourists who visit the park... Read Desert Solitaire Summary