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kleonard's review against another edition
1.0
I hope that the ARC I just read gets a very, very heavy copyedit before it goes to press. What it really needs is a developmental edit, top to bottom.
Ostensibly a work about "Broadway and American Society from Angels in America to Hamilton," Rise Up! is a collection of anecdotes and trivia with a poor narrative structure. The author has tried to put together a chronological presentation of musicals and politics, but is too often interested in asides and jumps forwards and backwards in time: the result is a book in need of a strong outline and re-writing.
The tone is casual, aimed at a general readership, and apparently the author is a professional critic. The author's bona fides come into question, however, with a number of examples in which he appears not to actually know much about music, the study of music and ethnography, or other extant studies about the arts, society, and politics. Even for a broad audience, the book's sources display a superficiality that is also obvious in the text. Jones provides a lot of facts, but little linking them together, and even less interpretation or insight. In regard to the musical literacy issue, here's a sample: "Their [Green Day's] music may have been dominated by thrashing downward guitar strokes but is also far more melodic than their inherently atonal British ancestors [referring to the Sex Pistols] [...] Green Day did not run a-feared of major keys. They made more ample use of arpeggios--and keyboards in general--than either their predecessors or their peers." Does Jones know what atonality is? Does he know what an arpeggio is? Does he think it's an instrument? Or that an arpeggio can only be played on a keyboard?
Other issues:
--The frequent use of "a person called X" as in: "an intern named Monica Lewinsky;" a [....] taxi-driver named Rodney G. King;" A man named George Holliday;" "an [...] actress named Anna Deavere Smith;" "a solo artist named Lily Tomlin," and countless more.
--Grammar errors. Here's my favorite: "...a fantastical adventure by an unknown writer called Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone." The WRITER is called Harry Potter?
--Numerous typos. "Taylor" for "Taymor;" and others.
--Too much passive voice. "In 2017, an 18-year-old man named Michael Brown (there's that"named" thing again) was short 12 times by a police officer in Ferguson, Missouri...." No. "A police officer shot 18-year old Michael Brown...."
--Poor organization even on the paragraph/section level. Jones writes about American Idiot for four pages before mentioning the album/show's creators (..."an American punk band called Green Day...")
I'd hoped this would be a smart book appropriate for music history and music and politics courses, but alas, it is most definitely not. In fact, I'd be loath to recommend it even to the most die-hard fan of American musicals: they can find all of the info in this book elsewhere (and easily) and make their own observations and analyses.
Ostensibly a work about "Broadway and American Society from Angels in America to Hamilton," Rise Up! is a collection of anecdotes and trivia with a poor narrative structure. The author has tried to put together a chronological presentation of musicals and politics, but is too often interested in asides and jumps forwards and backwards in time: the result is a book in need of a strong outline and re-writing.
The tone is casual, aimed at a general readership, and apparently the author is a professional critic. The author's bona fides come into question, however, with a number of examples in which he appears not to actually know much about music, the study of music and ethnography, or other extant studies about the arts, society, and politics. Even for a broad audience, the book's sources display a superficiality that is also obvious in the text. Jones provides a lot of facts, but little linking them together, and even less interpretation or insight. In regard to the musical literacy issue, here's a sample: "Their [Green Day's] music may have been dominated by thrashing downward guitar strokes but is also far more melodic than their inherently atonal British ancestors [referring to the Sex Pistols] [...] Green Day did not run a-feared of major keys. They made more ample use of arpeggios--and keyboards in general--than either their predecessors or their peers." Does Jones know what atonality is? Does he know what an arpeggio is? Does he think it's an instrument? Or that an arpeggio can only be played on a keyboard?
Other issues:
--The frequent use of "a person called X" as in: "an intern named Monica Lewinsky;" a [....] taxi-driver named Rodney G. King;" A man named George Holliday;" "an [...] actress named Anna Deavere Smith;" "a solo artist named Lily Tomlin," and countless more.
--Grammar errors. Here's my favorite: "...a fantastical adventure by an unknown writer called Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone." The WRITER is called Harry Potter?
--Numerous typos. "Taylor" for "Taymor;" and others.
--Too much passive voice. "In 2017, an 18-year-old man named Michael Brown (there's that"named" thing again) was short 12 times by a police officer in Ferguson, Missouri...." No. "A police officer shot 18-year old Michael Brown...."
--Poor organization even on the paragraph/section level. Jones writes about American Idiot for four pages before mentioning the album/show's creators (..."an American punk band called Green Day...")
I'd hoped this would be a smart book appropriate for music history and music and politics courses, but alas, it is most definitely not. In fact, I'd be loath to recommend it even to the most die-hard fan of American musicals: they can find all of the info in this book elsewhere (and easily) and make their own observations and analyses.
ceilisbookshelf's review against another edition
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
5.0
anniefwrites's review against another edition
informative
medium-paced
I learned so much from this book! As a self-proclaimed theater nerd, I am surprised by how much I didn’t know about the goings on of Broadway in this particular era. It was really interesting to see how Broadway both reacted to and shaped what was going on in American culture surrounding its plays and musicals. My only complaint is that I found the strategy of tying *every* chapter to Hamilton a bit heavy-handed—of course that’s in the title and the cover, but I think if we view all of theater as leading up to the creation of Hamilton, that can be limiting and restrictive for what’s come, and is coming, after. But all in all, I found this book really fascinating, and I’m looking forward to reading more nonfiction about Broadway.
ajt87's review against another edition
4.0
I loved this book! Chris Jones is my local theater reviewer and I’ve enjoyed his works over the years. I love the history given in each chapter and it is well thought out in the way that the works he chose to spotlight all connected back to the central theme of Hamilton. A great read for theatre fans!
laurag22's review
4.0
This is a look at how broadway has changed over the years and how it has cleared the way for once taboo subjects to become more acceptable. It also looks at how broadway has shaped society out the years, continues to shape it with productions such as Hamilton and will continue to do in the future.
kleonard's review
1.0
I hope that the ARC I just read gets a very, very heavy copyedit before it goes to press. What it really needs is a developmental edit, top to bottom.
Ostensibly a work about "Broadway and American Society from Angels in America to Hamilton," Rise Up! is a collection of anecdotes and trivia with a poor narrative structure. The author has tried to put together a chronological presentation of musicals and politics, but is too often interested in asides and jumps forwards and backwards in time: the result is a book in need of a strong outline and re-writing.
The tone is casual, aimed at a general readership, and apparently the author is a professional critic. The author's bona fides come into question, however, with a number of examples in which he appears not to actually know much about music, the study of music and ethnography, or other extant studies about the arts, society, and politics. Even for a broad audience, the book's sources display a superficiality that is also obvious in the text. Jones provides a lot of facts, but little linking them together, and even less interpretation or insight. In regard to the musical literacy issue, here's a sample: "Their [Green Day's] music may have been dominated by thrashing downward guitar strokes but is also far more melodic than their inherently atonal British ancestors [referring to the Sex Pistols] [...] Green Day did not run a-feared of major keys. They made more ample use of arpeggios--and keyboards in general--than either their predecessors or their peers." Does Jones know what atonality is? Does he know what an arpeggio is? Does he think it's an instrument? Or that an arpeggio can only be played on a keyboard?
Other issues:
--The frequent use of "a person called X" as in: "an intern named Monica Lewinsky;" a [....] taxi-driver named Rodney G. King;" A man named George Holliday;" "an [...] actress named Anna Deavere Smith;" "a solo artist named Lily Tomlin," and countless more.
--Grammar errors. Here's my favorite: "...a fantastical adventure by an unknown writer called Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone." The WRITER is called Harry Potter?
--Numerous typos. "Taylor" for "Taymor;" and others.
--Too much passive voice. "In 2017, an 18-year-old man named Michael Brown (there's that"named" thing again) was short 12 times by a police officer in Ferguson, Missouri...." No. "A police officer shot 18-year old Michael Brown...."
--Poor organization even on the paragraph/section level. Jones writes about American Idiot for four pages before mentioning the album/show's creators (..."an American punk band called Green Day...")
I'd hoped this would be a smart book appropriate for music history and music and politics courses, but alas, it is most definitely not. In fact, I'd be loath to recommend it even to the most die-hard fan of American musicals: they can find all of the info in this book elsewhere (and easily) and make their own observations and analyses.
Ostensibly a work about "Broadway and American Society from Angels in America to Hamilton," Rise Up! is a collection of anecdotes and trivia with a poor narrative structure. The author has tried to put together a chronological presentation of musicals and politics, but is too often interested in asides and jumps forwards and backwards in time: the result is a book in need of a strong outline and re-writing.
The tone is casual, aimed at a general readership, and apparently the author is a professional critic. The author's bona fides come into question, however, with a number of examples in which he appears not to actually know much about music, the study of music and ethnography, or other extant studies about the arts, society, and politics. Even for a broad audience, the book's sources display a superficiality that is also obvious in the text. Jones provides a lot of facts, but little linking them together, and even less interpretation or insight. In regard to the musical literacy issue, here's a sample: "Their [Green Day's] music may have been dominated by thrashing downward guitar strokes but is also far more melodic than their inherently atonal British ancestors [referring to the Sex Pistols] [...] Green Day did not run a-feared of major keys. They made more ample use of arpeggios--and keyboards in general--than either their predecessors or their peers." Does Jones know what atonality is? Does he know what an arpeggio is? Does he think it's an instrument? Or that an arpeggio can only be played on a keyboard?
Other issues:
--The frequent use of "a person called X" as in: "an intern named Monica Lewinsky;" a [....] taxi-driver named Rodney G. King;" A man named George Holliday;" "an [...] actress named Anna Deavere Smith;" "a solo artist named Lily Tomlin," and countless more.
--Grammar errors. Here's my favorite: "...a fantastical adventure by an unknown writer called Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone." The WRITER is called Harry Potter?
--Numerous typos. "Taylor" for "Taymor;" and others.
--Too much passive voice. "In 2017, an 18-year-old man named Michael Brown (there's that"named" thing again) was short 12 times by a police officer in Ferguson, Missouri...." No. "A police officer shot 18-year old Michael Brown...."
--Poor organization even on the paragraph/section level. Jones writes about American Idiot for four pages before mentioning the album/show's creators (..."an American punk band called Green Day...")
I'd hoped this would be a smart book appropriate for music history and music and politics courses, but alas, it is most definitely not. In fact, I'd be loath to recommend it even to the most die-hard fan of American musicals: they can find all of the info in this book elsewhere (and easily) and make their own observations and analyses.
easyqueenie's review
4.0
Love it or hate it (and Sophie’s firmly in the former camp), there’s no denying the cultural impact of Hamilton. The musical did the unthinkable, taking Broadway by storm with everyone from critics to suburban housewives to presidents raving about its centuries-old story made new again through a diverse cast and modern music. But, despite initial appearances, Hamilton didn’t come out of the blue entirely. For decades, Broadway has been laying the foundations with other shows that brought politics, current events, and deep cultural issues to the stage.
Rise Up! by Chris Jones is the story of those shows. Chapter by chapter it looks at a wide array of Broadway productions that came with an important message. These are often difficult subjects; the book looks at the HIV crisis through Angels in America and Rent, 9/11 through Metamorphoses and Come From Away, and current politics through Boulevard of Broken Dreams. A chapter focused on The Lion King explores how racial diversity broke through into the mainstream, while Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark looks at what happens when Broadway goes too far. There’s even a look at how Broadway went meta in shows like Avenue Q and Monty Python’s Spamalot.
You don’t need to have seen the shows discussed here to appreciate this book, but Sophie will admit that it helps. She found herself far more engaged with the chapters that discussed shows she had the privilege to see—never in their original Broadway incarnations, but in their UK performances. It also added several shows to her “must see” list!
Rise Up! is a fabulous book for anyone interested in Broadway theatre and its ability to both reflect and create culture.
Rise Up! by Chris Jones is the story of those shows. Chapter by chapter it looks at a wide array of Broadway productions that came with an important message. These are often difficult subjects; the book looks at the HIV crisis through Angels in America and Rent, 9/11 through Metamorphoses and Come From Away, and current politics through Boulevard of Broken Dreams. A chapter focused on The Lion King explores how racial diversity broke through into the mainstream, while Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark looks at what happens when Broadway goes too far. There’s even a look at how Broadway went meta in shows like Avenue Q and Monty Python’s Spamalot.
You don’t need to have seen the shows discussed here to appreciate this book, but Sophie will admit that it helps. She found herself far more engaged with the chapters that discussed shows she had the privilege to see—never in their original Broadway incarnations, but in their UK performances. It also added several shows to her “must see” list!
Rise Up! is a fabulous book for anyone interested in Broadway theatre and its ability to both reflect and create culture.