Half Blood Blues was recommended to me by a good friend so I really wanted to like it. It wasn't bad, but it didn't really grab me. I didn't mind putting it down and I wasn't itching to get back to it. The story is narrated by Sid, a mediocre bass player in a jazz band where the other players have a great bit more talent than he does. They are a mixed race band playing the new jazz clubs in 1940s Germany, just before the war. Sid is from Baltimore and speaks with an accent that sometimes detracts from the story. I didn't know all the slang being used which didn't help either. His jealousy of a new band member, a very young and brilliant new horn player, is what drives the story forward. Race is a big theme of this story, as is love, jealousy, friendship and forgiveness.

I could say I finished this “gem” of a book, but to call it that would do it an injustice. This jazzy, soulful novel isn’t a gem; it’s a whole lot of gems in a truckload—a mine. Hell, I wept at key parts (that if you’ve read it, will know exactly which parts I’m referring to) and I’m no crying type…well, not really. I usually come at a book as a ruthless editor and a fair, but brutally honest, sometimes brash reviewer. But this Giller beauty has earned every penny and glory worth its acclaimed prize.It’s a little rough at the beginning, and by that, I don’t mean poor in writing, but brittle in narrative that forces you as the reader to realize how you read, think, and speak. The dialogue, like the story, grows on you until our very thoughts mimic its language and tone.I was easily and unnoticeably transported to pre-war Berlin, but not just any Berlin, but its underbelly: its hot spots, its seedy bars, its jazz-crooning, smooth-wiling ways. Its nightlife—no, the potency of its life—its jazz as a tangible, organic thing.While reading, I wished I could literally “hear” the music being played, the essence of it reverberating off the pages. As the band of brothers, these soulful jazz creators, worshipped Louis Armstrong, jazz, and the life of jazz itself, I, too, became infatuated with its dinginess, its raw energy, its powerful hypnosis on the band, their listeners, and on the readers of the novel. The heart of “real” jazz seemed to be expressed as an impromptu blending, a magic that cannot be duplicated, or created by imitation, perfection, or musical scores—but could be invoked by the players themselves in their individual talent, their feel and unit as a group, and their own layers of interpretation and surprise. Jazz, the music, a fundamental thread in the book, by that definition, spoke of the players’ unstructured, chaotic, and unexpected lives. Like the band of men, Paul, Fritz, Sid, Chip, Hiero Falk—the joy, melancholy, suffering, pain, and redemption they experience in the life force of the music they play and vice versa. What is achingly beautiful about this book is how interconnected the characters are to jazz, the music, jazz, the life, their compulsion for it, their gifts in creating it, their arduous love and respect toward it—and to each other. But, it’s not just about jazz. It’s also a book about territory, war, “racial cleansing.” The music, too, is an ostracized, rebellious sibling to its classical counterparts that goes under attack. The very freedom of creativity, art, music, and brotherhood is under fire. To read the rest of my review, you may visit my blog, The Bibliotaphe's Closet: http://zaraalexis.wordpress.com/2012/01/30/half-blood-blues-jazz-and-a-hiero/

3.25 stars Most of this book is set in 1939 and 1940 in Germany and France. It follows a group of boys trying to make a jazz record. The book does switch back and forth to 1992, as two of those “boys” are making their way to Poland to find one who had gone missing during the war. Not a very good summary, but then, I wasn't all that excited about the book, so am having a hard time coming up with a summary (and overall review!). I've been waffling between 3 stars (ok) and 3.5 (good). 3.5 because mostly it seemed interesting while I was reading, but as soon as I put it down again, I had no interest in picking it back up. Ok, so it's not a very helpful review...

Esi Edugyan’s Half-Blood Blues follows the narrator, bassist Sidney (Sid) Griffiths, in Berlin and Paris at the beginning of WW II (1939 – 40) and in the early 1990s when he and his friend — drummer Chip Jones — travel to Poland to meet their long-lost band mate, trumpeter Hieronymous (Hiero) Falk. Half-Blood Blues is about the pursuit of art in the miasma of racial bigotry, war, friendship, love, loyalty, jealousy, fear, and betrayal. Sid, a mediocre bass player, is carried along in the wake of a talented jazz band; but, when Hiero joins the band, Sid becomes resentful of the young man’s genius. Sid is also jealous of the attention that his love-interest gives to Hiero (it is a sisterly love, but Sid is naive and insecure). In the sections dealing with the past (1939-40) Sid’s narration is the melody, and the racial tensions of the burgeoning war pulse with a rhythm that drives the story forward. When Sid is an elderly man (1992) his narration weaves hints of a betrayal that occurred in the past (selfish treachery, but not designed to cause the tragedy that ensues), which becomes clearer as the novel progresses. Sid almost gained significance in the history of jazz music, but he is haunted by an incident that took place during the war-torn years. Esi Edugyan writes wonderfully, with many vivid portrayals of jazz music, yet some passages that mingled rough vernacular and smooth narration didn’t work for me. But the novel, as a whole, is a wonderful read. Recommended.

Loved sitting in my ramblin old chair listening to old Louis Armstrong and reading about these amazing jazz musicians and their struggle and love for their music. Thought this was an amazing book, took me on a journey through a world I was unfamiliar with but am very intrigued by now.

I don't understand all the hype around this book. I found it totally boring and couldn't finish it. I'm so sick of buying books that are rated as #1 bestsellers to find they are really awful. Where can I find honest reviews?

Esi Edugyan's "Half-Blood Blues” is a period story of the jazz culture with colourful scenes of jamming sessions, drinking and bickering among a mixed-race ensemble called the Hot-Time Swingers. The novel interweaves two chronologically distinct storylines one during the turmoil of the 1940’s Europe and the other decades later. We see how old friends struggle to reconcile with a past that strongly influenced their future and their contribution to the music world, a recap of their personal side and their creativeness as artists. At the center is Sidney “Sid” Griffiths, an African American bass player who performed with the Swingers in Berlin with his band mates and childhood friends, Chip C. Jones a rather tasty homophone and Hieronymus “Hiero” Falk, a “mischling” born in Germany with roots stemming from Africa. “Sid” is the narrator who takes us back and forth in time while he recounts his memories of events. It all starts in 1940 Berlin when the group is forced to flee Germany and is rumoured to have had a vague offer to play with Louis Armstrong. Griffiths and his band mates escape to Paris where they discover a rapidly changing world, one that is gradually succumbing to Nazi power and the racial hatred that follows. Their lives are in constant fear with little hope on the horizon, the trio is broken up when Hiero is arrested and disappears, only to leave a few scattered recordings of their sessions together.… The second storyline brings us to 1992 as we follow Sid and Chip’s journey back to Europe in search of Hiero hoping to rekindle the bond they had and come to peace with their past. This is an emotional story with rich and well-drawn characters. The plot is powerful and thought-provoking as it deals with sensitive issues over a span of several decades. The beautifully energetic narrative captures the rhythmic patois of the jazz musicians and has created a unique voice for its narrator. At first I found it difficult to follow, not being familiar with the lingo, however, once I overcame my handicap and addressed it as a new challenge I fell right into the beat and enjoyed every remaining page, it added another dimension to a very interesting story. Congratulations Ms. Edugyan for winning the Scotia Bank Giller prize for 2011.

After all the hype about the author and the book, I expected so much more. There were moments of greatness in the story, but like the expectations created by the hype about the author and book, the expectations from these "great" moments were not met. It took a long time to "get into" the story, and I did find the dialect, while obviously accurate with regard to urban Black America, a hindrance to the story rather than adding verisimilitude since most of the story takes place in war-time Germany and France. Why the emphasis on the American dialect and not the others? The ending of this book is such a let down that it made me angry. All the angst, all the self-deprecation, and all of our disgust at the protagonist is expected to be wiped away because his "victim" leaves the room and comes back in ready to forgive? Sorry, I don't buy it. Far too much has gone on. Attention must be paid to the suffering of the young man. Much more must be done to achieve a resolution and restitution. I really wanted to like this book. Also, Edugyan's short story titled "The Return" in the Globe and Mail was another example of an "unfinished" work. While a reader can expect to pick up subtleties, the subtleties in this story were deeply, deeply, hidden if they were there at all. Too bad. I had such high hopes.

I enjoyed this book, although I have to say it took a while to really get in to it. The story line was very interesting, it really had all my different emotions going....sad, angry, excited. It is a good story and well deserving of it's award.

This booked was absolutely amazing. I couldn't put it down once I started. It will make out you laugh outloud as well as cry.