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The Music Shop: A Novel Audiobook
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(2.50) - 2 listener ratings
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Publisher Description
“An unforgettable story of music, loss and hope. Fans of High Fidelity, meet your next quirky love story.”—People
NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY THE TIMES (UK) AND THE WASHINGTON POST
It is 1988. On a dead-end street in a run-down suburb there is a music shop that stands small and brightly lit, jam-packed with records of every kind. Like a beacon, the shop attracts the lonely, the sleepless, and the adrift; Frank, the shop’s owner, has a way of connecting his customers with just the piece of music they need. Then, one day, into his shop comes a beautiful young woman, Ilse Brauchmann, who asks Frank to teach her about music. Terrified of real closeness, Frank feels compelled to turn and run, yet he is drawn to this strangely still, mysterious woman with eyes as black as vinyl. But Ilse is not what she seems, and Frank has old wounds that threaten to reopen, as well as a past it seems he will never leave behind. Can a man who is so in tune with other people’s needs be so incapable of connecting with the one person who might save him? The journey that these two quirky, wonderful characters make in order to overcome their emotional baggage speaks to the healing power of music—and love—in this poignant, ultimately joyful work of fiction.
Praise for The Music Shop
“Captures the sheer, transformative joy of romance.”—The Washington Post
“Love, friendship, and especially the healing powers of music all rise together into a triumphant crescendo. . . . This lovely novel is as satisfying and enlightening as the music that suffuses its every page.”—The Boston Globe
“Magnificent . . . If you love words, if you love music, if you love love, this [novel] will be without question one of the year’s best.”—BookPage (Top Pick in Fiction)
“Joyce has a knack for quickly sketching characters in a way that makes them stick. [The Music Shop] will surprise you.”—Minneapolis Star Tribune
“Rachel Joyce has established a reputation for novels that celebrate the dignity and courage of ordinary people and the resilience of the human spirit. . . . But what really elevates The Music Shop is Joyce’s detailed knowledge of—and passion for—music.”—The Guardian
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"The Music Shop is an unabashedly sentimental tribute to the healing power of great songs, and Joyce is hip to greatness in any key. . . . [The novel] captures the sheer, transformative joy of romance—‘a ballooning of happiness.’ Joyce’s understated humor . . . offers something like the pleasure of A. A. Milne for adults. She has a kind of sweetness that’s never saccharine, a kind of simplicity that’s never simplistic. . . . I wouldn’t change a single note. Rachel Joyce, if music be the food of love, write on!"
— Ron Charles, The Washington Post
Quotes
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Rachel Joyce’s charming and deceptively simple fourth novel chronicles an offbeat love story between a mystery woman and an ardent, if lonely, collector and gently explores the power of memory and music and the certainty of change. . . . Love, friendship, and especially the healing powers of music all rise together into a triumphant crescendo. . . . This lovely novel is as satisfying and enlightening as the music that suffuses its every page.
— The Boston Globe -
Magnificent . . . If you love words, if you love music, if you love love, this [novel] will be without question one of the year’s best.
— BookPage (Top Pick in Fiction) -
An unforgettable story of music, loss and hope. Fans of High Fidelity, meet your next quirky love story. Vinyl fans, hold on to your turntables—Joyce’s latest is a buoyant homage to the healing power of music well-played.
— People -
Joyce has a knack for quickly sketching characters in a way that makes them stick. [The Music Shop] will surprise you.
— Minneapolis Star Tribune -
Inspiring . . . The Music Shop is a warm, familiar place where everybody knows your name.
— Associated Press -
While this tale is easily the most charming novel you will read this year, it is also one of the most profound. . . . The Music Shop is a life-affirming novel that depicts human beings at their best.
— Fredericksburg Free Lance-Star -
Magical . . . Joyce has a winner in this deceptively simple love story. . . . Joyce’s odes to music . . . and the notion that the perfect song can transform one’s life make this novel a triumph.
— Publishers Weekly“Whether on foot, as in her novel The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry, or track by track, on this unlikely musical odyssey, Joyce excels in enveloping readers in epic journeys of lost connections and loving reunions. -
Joyce sets up a charming cast of characters, and her spirals into the sonic landscapes of brilliant musicians are delightful, casting a vivid backdrop for the quietly desperate romance between Frank and Ilse. From nocturnes to punk, this musical romance is ripe for filming.
— Kirkus Reviews -
[A] beautiful ode to music, community and love.
— The Sun -
“Narrator Steven Hartley’s raspy, unrefined, British accent is a natural fit for characters who are rough around the edges. His narration underscores the psychological states of the ragtag group—which range from contemplative to anxious to angry. The story and the narration complement each other and remind us that music can bring people together and allow them to heal. Winner of the AudioFile Earphones Award.”
— AudioFile -
“An unforgettable story of music, loss, and hope…[a] quirky love story. Vinyl fans, hold on to your turntables—Joyce’s latest is a buoyant homage to the healing power of music well played.”
— People -
“A love letter to music, to nostalgia, to community, and to personal growth. In true Joyce fashion, the novel is driven by a colorful cast of players wrapped in quiet dignity. The healing power of music—the personal power of music—plays through each appropriately song-titled chapter, the familiar and the new merging together in a comforting harmony that spans about twenty years.”
— RT Book Reviews (4 stars)
Awards
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Winner of an AudioFile Earphones Award
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A Sunday Times (London) Best Book of the Year
The Music Shop Listener Reviews
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1/20/2022
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Leslie Starr, 12/1/2020
About Rachel Joyce
Rachel Joyce is the author of the international bestsellers The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry, The Love Song of Miss Queenie Hennessy, and Perfect. She is also the award-winning writer of more than twenty plays for BBC Radio 4. She started writing after a twenty-year acting career, in which she performed leading roles for the Royal Shakespeare Company and won multiple awards.
About Steven Hartley
Steven Hartley is a voice talent and Earphones Award–winning narrator.