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The King of Ragtime Audiobook
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(3.08) - 12 listener ratings
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Publisher Description
It’s 1916, and time’s running out for Scott Joplin. Before he dies, he wants to provide for his wife and secure his place in musical history.
Joplin has written a musical drama, and his young piano student, Martin Niederhoffer, convinces him to try to get Irving Berlin to publish and produce the work. The next day, Niederhoffer walks into his office and finds Joplin crouched over the blood-soaked body of a young man. He hustles his teacher away, but the two are seen leaving the building.
When Berlin flatly denies ever having received Joplin’s play, young Niederhoffer engages the services of hit man Footsie Vinny, who gives Berlin a five-day deadline to come up with the manuscript.
Then, just when things couldn’t get worse, Niederhoffer’s girlfriend is kidnapped. Can the ailing musician be exonerated before it is too late?
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"Mystery story involving Scott Joplin and Irving Berlin. Lots of history...shocked at the presentation of Irving Berlin. Must read more, perhaps the book by Edward Berlin."
— Jane (4 out of 5 stars)
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“Mirron Willis gives a virtuoso performance…[and] never strikes a false note in Karp’s well-researched period mystery. He fashions living human beings of all colors, textures, and dispositions with only his smooth, sultry voice. A rich listen. Winner of the AudioFile Earphones Award.”
— AudioFile -
“The rich and immensely expressive voice and narration of actor Mirron Willis place the listener fully in the world of Joplin and Berlin. His ease with dialects and gender render all characters real and immediate. The tragedy of Joplin’s quest to express his great gifts, and Willis’ skill with prose and personalities, will stay with the listener.”
— SoundCommentary.com -
“An impressive account of [Scott Joplin’s] final months, the murder mystery made all the more real by the recognizable names associated with it.”
— Mysterious Reviews -
“An extensively researched and eminently readable historical mystery, this is a must for ragtime fans.”
— Booklist -
“Well-crafted…Karp’s meticulous research helps create a vivid picture of the time and locale. Memorable, authentic characters are another plus.”
— Publishers Weekly -
“Impressively researched, with a substantial bibliography, Karp’s second Joplin mystery paints a full-bodied portrait of Harlem back in the day.”
— Kirkus Reviews
Awards
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Winner of an AudioFile Earphones Award
The King of Ragtime Listener Reviews
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" Second in the trilogy on par with the first. I like the well-researched history of these books, but the fabricated mysteries can be a bit of a stretch. "
— Bob, 6/27/2013
About Larry Karp
Larry Karp has written fiction and nonfiction, practiced perinatal medicine, and restored and collected antique music boxes. He and his wife have lived in Seattle for more than thirty years. They have two grown children.
About Mirron Willis
Mirron Willis—actor of film, stage, and television—is the winner of the prestigious Audie Award for best narration in 2012 and a finalist for the Audie in 2015, as well as the winner of four AudioFile Earphones Awards for his audiobook recordings. He has worked extensively in film and television and on stage with the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, the Houston Shakespeare Festival, and the Ensemble Theatre, among others. He has recorded some 150 audiobooks, including the Smokey Dalton series by Kris Nelscott and My Song by Harry Belafonte. He resides and records audiobooks on his family’s historic ranch in East Texas.