Jake and Jasmine

Title: Jake and Jasmine
Author: C.D. Webb
ISBN: 0-75964-394-6
Publisher: Authorhouse
Pages: 168

"Jake and Jasmine" is another work from the talented C.D. Webb, author of "The Credence of Christopher Craig." "Jasmine" is his first novel, and although his writing style is not quite as refined as it is in his second novel, "Jasmine" is a wonderfully told story and an enjoyable read.

"Jake and Jasmine" deals with the love between two young musicians who study at Juilliard. The two confront many problems as a result of their vastly different backgrounds and social stations. Jake is a poor white boy from Appalachia, and Jasmine is a rich black girl from Newport. The two are confronted not only with the inherent difficulties of a budding romance, but with the added pressure of achieving acceptance in their conservative and polar-opposite families.

Music plays a large role in the story, and it provides the impetuous for the book's best moments. Webb is at his best when he is describing a composer's love and euphoria for playing and creating music. There is a certain community that seems to exist around the world of classical music, and "Jake and Jasmine" functions like a documentary about young loved filmed within that community. Snippets are revealed from that world that would go forever unwitnessed by the uninitiated observer, and there is a resonance to the work that makes it seem truly real.

The only complaint I have about "Jasmine" is that it is written predominantly in the present tense. I understand that this is the conscious choice of the writer, but I found it distracting. As much as I ended up enjoying the novel, I was tempted to quit reading after the first few chapters. I eventually got used to the strange mode of storytelling, but I think this work would be better served by being told in the traditional past tense.

I would be hard pressed to think of a better love story for music lovers than "Jake and Jasmine." The novel is a wonderful piece of writing and places the most elegant of traditional literary themes, the love story, against a backdrop of classical music. "Jake and Jasmine" is an entertaining read and an extremely ambitious novel that succeeds on many levels.

The End