A wild ride of a book, this novel flies through the history of rock ‘n’ roll on the heels of Neal Pollack, “the greatest music critic of all time,” as he follows his spirit guide, a mythical blues singer named Clambone, in search of the ultimate Truth about music and America. The novel takes the guise of a biography of Pollack writen by another music critic, Paul St. Pierre, after Pollack’s death at the height of his degradation.

Pollack manages to be present as every rock legend is getting his or her start, so Elvis, Dylan, Mick, Lou Reed, Iggy, the Ramones and Kurt Cobain (among many others) all appear as characters in his travels through the wasteland of rock – and they all seem to despise Pollack equally. This book is definitely not meant to be taken literally or seriously, but rather services as an epic retelling of the rise and fall of rock ‘n’ roll, and if experienced in that vein, it is actually quite exhilarating and funny, even spiritual at times. I only wish I knew more about music, so I could have caught more of the inside jokes.