A novel about a Black musical prodigy in the late eighteenth century and the early nineteenth. This novel is at its best when presenting the POV of a Black man navigating the ignorant, prejudiced, and dangerous shoals of white European culture during the late Enlightenment, when Revolution was in the air. The novel is really more about George Bridgetower's father than it is about him, especially early on, when GB was a child prodigy.

One of the best parts about this book was the light cast on creative and innovative people of color at the time. White historians peer past Dumas, for instance, as well as others, but Dongala brings them forward, demonstrating their place and their contributions to the creative life of the time. Also, the novel provides some insight into some of the ways a Black individual had to deal with maneuvering in white culture.

Some, as I said.

I wish my French was good enough to read this in the original, as I don't know whether to attribute my problems with the book to the translation or not. I really wanted to like it more than I actually did--my reading went in fits and starts, despite the author's truly impressive research.

Maybe because of the research? It seemed that the author was determined that every smidge of research was going to go into this work, so we get long catalogues of what everyone is wearing, and exactly what the streets of Paris looked like, and the layout of the Opera, and long lists of arcane pieces of music shoehorned in apparently to get them in there willynilly.

The narrative voice seemed to be all over the place, sometimes up close and personal with respect to Bridgetower's father, other times vanishing to be replaced by those neutral catalogues of facts. I did not think that a novel set against the simmering Paris on the verge, and into, the French Revolution could be quite so stiff, but there it was. I also found the narrative voice's explorations of the inner thoughts of certain famous figures to be somewhat problematical.

The clunky sentences and awkwardness, the errors (like not capitalizing German nouns when quoting German), etc, might be due to the translator, but at any rate, though the subject is intriguing and the setting a complex one, I wished that the book did them better justice.

The book is incredibly well-researched -- almost too much so. It's stuffed with details to the point that the narrative almost gets lost. It'll be of interest to lovers of history and music, but I think it would have been better as a nonfiction book.

This is a fascinating story of a young black musician and his father. Well told insight into how minorities are treated in all societies. i would have preferred to read more about the child prodigy and less about his father. All in all, worth the read.

The premise of this book intrigued me, as it follows the life of George Augustus Bridgetower, a black violinist who was well renowned in his time of the late 18th century progressing into the 19th century. He meets and befriends all sorts of celebrated names--Beethoven taking precedence over all, although Mozart is an unknowing competitor--and there will be scads of celebrities for the reader to note. The descriptions of how different countries reacted toward people of colour, and the thin protection a rising star was afforded from prejudices, were interesting.

Alas, this book focused quite a deal more on his father than what I anticipated, and the beginning portion of the book is a bit of a trek to get through, while the ending comes on abruptly. We have followed Bridgetower from the age of nine only up to his twenties, although he lives into his eighties. I would have enjoyed being able to dig more into Bridgetower's life, and getting deep into it. Who was he outside of music? What drove him on and kept him going? What hobbies did he have, apart from reading? I suppose the documents that could flesh that out are scant, but the book is a decently quick read that can help create a thirst to want to know more about this remarkable man.

As a professional strings player, I was so looking forward to reading this book but the writer's style kept me an arm's distance away from the narrative, although this might have been the fault of the translation. Even the first line of the book was not terribly inviting and a bit confusing. (I read it a few times and then had the picture in my mine). I had hoped the book would be about George, the "Negro" violinist during the Classical Period but it is more about his father and his impressions of various people. The book seems factually correct - and I learned about Chevalier de Saint-Georges - another violinist from that time period and a mulatto. But the author goes on and on about Saint-Georges when I was hoping the focus would be on George Bridgetower.
The author also goes into depth about Alexandre Dumas - not even a musician but a writer. Etta Palm was concerned about women's rights and we hear a lot about her. But there seemed to be scant information on George Bridgetower himself.
Franz Joseph Haydn was sprinkled throughout the book - to give it more credence? There were times when I couldn't understand why he was being pulled back into the story.
I hate to be disparaging as I like to find something good to say to support the author's efforts. I will say that this got me reading about Saint-Georges of which I was quite unfamiliar.

Interesting story of a father and son who traveled around 18th century Europe. The father arranged concerts where the son would play his violin. They met different composers and musicians along the way, but when they met the Prince of Wales, he took the son under his wing.