Ripple Book Report: S.V. Brown - Carnival Songs

In my experience, for whatever it's worth, when musicians write a book it is either an autobiography or a collection of poems, usually the lyrics to their songs. Occasionally though, like in this case, a novel was actually written, which I think is great. Break the mold and move outside the box. And that brings us to 'Carnival Songs'. It is the debut novel by S.V. Brown, whom to me, and many others, is known as Dandy Brown. A highly accomplished producer, singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist he is currently active in the FIzz Fuzz with his wife Dawn but he is best known for his work with Hermano, Orquesta del Desierto, John Garcia, Alice Tambourine Lover and Yawning Sons, as well as having a great solo career. Because of this his writing abilities are well known and cherished but as an author of novels he worked with a clean slate so how would this compute? Well. The short and quick answer is yes, and then some!

 

Set in the town of Torrenceburg in southeastern Indiana along the Ohio River S.V. reels me in immediately. His language is great and flows so easily and the way he describes people and the area comes naturally making you feel like you are there participating right in the thick of it. Add his knack for tying together the main story with several, what seem like, side stories creating a great atmosphere despite the sometimes rather harsh and explicit content.

 

The narrator takes us back about 30 years in time as he is trying to piece together his family's history. Being the last in line of a long-standing and influential force in the community he aims to trace his ancestors back to when Torrenceburg was founded. On her deathbed his mother unveils some secrets which could be damaging to the family name.

 

As the story unfolds the seemingly pristine and clean-cut community of Torrenceburg holds a lot of darkness. Racism, adultery, violence, temptation, bigotry, genocide and displacement of Native Americans, as well as corrupted politics are brought into the light. Harsh subjects, indeed, but to S.V.'s credit he doesn't shy away from it. He is very candid without preaching which to me is the best way to bring strong issues like these out in the open. And combined with his eloquent language it all hits home quickly.

 

You can't really ask for more from a novel, debut or not. It has a very good story, it is told in a very captivating and alluring way and it doesn't hold back. At the same time 'Carnival Songs' holds a historical value as well. True, it is a fictional novel about a fictional town but it portrays the creation and life of any American town up to present days. S.V. has created a fantastic book that has it all. Thank you and I hope you write more!

 

'Carnival Songs' is published by Golden Storyline Books and it can be found at Amazon, Good Reads and other ebook platforms.

 

 - Swedebeast