It is the 1960’s south and teenager Larry Lime Nolan is an aspiring jazz and blues piano player. He meets the famous Bleeder who takes him under his wing a teaches him how to play. Larry is black and lives on the black side of town. He works on the white side of town doing furniture repair.
The is a piano in the back of the furniture repair shop where Larry practices during his breaks. The owner’s teenaged son, Dwayne Hallston also works there and becomes “secret” friends with Larry. His father will not allow him to have a black friend. Negros need to know their place, after all.
Dwayne is in a five piece band and Larry consults with them. They both have a love for James Brown and his Live at the Apollo album, so Larry helps them rehearse two of the songs from it. The plan is for Dwayne and his band to audition for the locally famous, Bobby Lee show. For the audition they will play two Hank Williams songs and borrow Larry’s dancing chicken. If they win the audition they will play the James Brown songs with the dancing chicken. However, tragedy strikes and the dancing chicken dies before the audition.
Meanwhile, Larry’s family argues because the father want to eat the dead pet chicken but the rest of the family want to have a funeral.
Night Train certainly has funny moments, such as the dead dancing chicken. Some of them were a bit too subtle for me. It is also very serious with racial tension of the deep south in the 60’s. Clyde Edgerton strikes a balance between the two, to make a memorable trip to the deep south for his readers. His quirky characters is what really made the book. It is because of them that I kept turning the pages.
3.5/5
Thanks to Anna Balasi of Little Brown and Company for the review copy of this book.
Did you review Night Train? Please leave a link in the comments.
Now for the giveaway:
Thanks Anna Balasi, I am giving away up to 3 copies!
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