The author, Mitch Albom, beautifully and believably weaves Frankie's life along with some of the great musical legends of our times, from classical to jazz to rock & roll. It tells the tale of Frankie - rescued by a nun after his mother dies, saved by a hairless dog from a river, raised by a poor but loving man as his own son, taken in by his music teacher, sent to America at the age of 9 in the bottom of a boat, and follows his musical career that follows him through the 1940's, 50's and 60's.
Music introduces his wisdom on Page 4: “All humans are musical. Why else would the Lord give you a beating heart?" and continues to tell the story of talent, life and ultimately love. The blue strings hold mystery and magic and you soon realize that, "Those strings did indeed have lives inside them, but it was not his playing that turned them blue; it was his [Frankie's] heart."
Our wonderful hostess even had her own magic guitar...
and spoiled us with yummy cupcakes and wine!
And our meeting was held in the library of her building! How appropriate :)
A favorite quote from the book is from the only song that Frankie wrote after his beloved Aurora died, “Yesterday I saw a bird, Whose tree had disappeared. The clouds lay claim, To a moonless sky, You are gone, I’m here.” Aurora was Frankie's tree - his home, his shelter, his grounding. Such a sad part of the book!
This book received a high rating from our book club, 9.0 out of 10! A must-read!
