Coming Through Slaughter

Michael Ondaatje's debut novel brings the legendary cornet player Buddy Bolden to vivid life through a fragmentary mosaic of memoirs, interviews, and imaginary conversations set in turn-of-the-twentieth-century New Orleans. This extraordinary recreation captures both the brilliance of a pioneering jazz musician and the tragedy that marked his story. Constructed from layered voices and perspectives, the novel stands as a landmark portrait of musical genius and its devastating cost.