I read: Small Town Talk

Yes, I'm sneaking one measly book in at the end of February. My reading slump persists but I couldn't let the month go by without logging at least one read so I pushed through and here we are. I've considered giving myself a break on the whole reading thing- I'd never give it up completely but as long as I'm engaged in other activities that I'm enjoying and getting fulfillment out of, it shouldn't matter right? 

Well, I'm still experiencing lots of moments of "I need to do something...  but WHAT?!" where I have choice paralysis that leads to frustration that inevitable leads to a Mood (you know what I'm talking about). Having so much to do that I don't know what to do... yeah, there could be worse problems but not being able to choose something as simple as how to fill my free time is incredibly frustrating and I just want to grab myself by the shoulders and scream "just PICK SOMETHING!!!" I'm trying to use these moments to read because even if I'm having trouble getting myself to start reading, once I do I most definitely never feel like I wasted my time and the brain absorbing nature of said reading keeps the Mood at bay. 

That being said, without further ado, here's the latest off the book shelf, Small Town Talk by Barney Hoskyns.

I did a little redecorating so the door I normally take my book pictures in front of is occupied by a Voyage Home poster now.

Small Town Talk is about the town of Woodstock, NY,  detailing it's origins as a sort of artist colony in the Catskills to it's metamorphosis to a musical hotspot in the 60s and 70s. Hoskyns focuses pretty heavily on how the town and it's image was shaped by Albert Grossman and the acts he managed that rose to fame (Bob Dylan and The Band, etc) so not only are you learning about the growth of this small town in the mountains, you're getting a ton of information on the early 60's folk scene on into the more electrified 70s.

I'm usually terrible at reading nonfiction so this was probably a bad mid-slump choice. I love the idea of reading nonfiction and of course I find the topic interesting but... I don't know, it's just not as engaging I guess. I wish I liked it more (I have a similar relationship with documentaries). I feel like I have to put that out there given my 3-star rating- take it with a grain of salt. 

Anyhoo, that aside, I did indeed enjoy the book. I found it difficult to digest the shit-ton (a highly technical form of measurement) of names that were thrown at me but overall the information was interesting. I love the music from that era so learning the background for it added to my enjoyment- that alone makes it a worthy read. Music lovers that don't fall asleep during documentaries should most definitely read this.

Star rating: 2.5/5

2021 book count: 3

I can't end this one without a song or two so enjoy "Tears of Rage," the first track on The Band's first album which was born in a pink house in a little town in upstate New York...

..and "To Ramona." I have a love/hate relationship with Dylan but I love this song for sure.