WFL Book CLub - The Violin Conspiracy

WFL Book Club meets the 2nd Tuesday of the month at 1:30pm at West Falmouth Library. New members and drop-ins are always welcome. No meeting in December. For January 10th, the Club will discuss The Violin Conspiracy: A Novel by Brendan Slocumb.
About The Violin Conspiracy: Growing up Black in rural North Carolina, Ray McMillian’s life is already mapped out. But Ray has a gift and a dream—he’s determined to become a world-class professional violinist, and nothing will stand in his way. Not his mother, who wants him to stop making such a racket; not the fact that he can’t afford a violin suitable to his talents; not even the racism inherent in the world of classical music.

When he discovers that his beat-up, family fiddle is actually a priceless Stradivarius, all his dreams suddenly seem within reach, and together, Ray and his violin take the world by storm. But on the eve of the renowned and cutthroat Tchaikovsky Competition—the Olympics of classical music—the violin is stolen, a ransom note for five million dollars left in its place. Without it, Ray feels like he’s lost a piece of himself. As the competition approaches, Ray must not only reclaim his precious violin, but prove to himself—and the world—that no matter the outcome, there has always been a truly great musician within him.

What the Critics Say: “Slocumb imbues his character’s life with so much authenticity in the details, details that anyone who has played a stringed instrument, or played in a professional ensemble, will recognize. . . . Where Slocumb shines … is in the passages where he shows Ray’s grit. . . . [Brendan Slocumb] has plenty of brio to share with readers as well as listeners.”
—NPR

“Such a page-turner . . . a musical bildungsroman cleverly contained within a literary thriller. . . . Slocumb isn’t too different from his protagonist: a natural. He easily conjures the thrill of mastering a tough musical passage and the tinnitus-like torture of everyday racism.”
—The New York Times

“A spellbinding first novel that melds classical music, the mystery surrounding a stolen violin and history, too—by way of some troubling insights into our nation’s painful legacy of slavery.”
—Ebony

WFL Book Club Schedule 2022-2023:

November 8th: Horse: A Novel by Geraldine Brooks

January 10th      The Violin Conspiracy by Brendan Slocumb

February 14th     Beautiful Little Fools by Jillian Cantor (a follow-up novel to The Great Gatsby)

March 14th         The Revolutionary:  Samuel Adams by Stacy Schiff

April 11th            Blue Latitudes by Tony Horwitz

May 9th              Year of Wonders  by Geraldine Brooks