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"It was our secret. That's all it was. Lots of people have secrets,don't they? The world runs on secrets. What kind of place would the world be without them? Our secret was harmless. It did not hurt anybody."

The secret that Millicent Moody, widow of jazz great Joss Moody, refers to may have been harmless in life, but when Joss dies and the truth is exposed, it ends up affecting more people than she ever imagined. It gives nothing away to reveal right off that Millicent's late husband was, in fact, a woman--something Millie has known all along but that the Moodys' adopted son, Colman, only discovers after his father's death. Titillating as the subject matter initially seems, in Jackie Kay's capable hands Joss's gender-bending becomes almost a side issue in a novel that is, at its heart, concerned with the essential nature of love.

Kay tells her story from many different perspectives--the doctor who signs the death certificate, the mortician who prepares the body, the opportunistic biographer looking to make a buck and a name for herself, the musicians who knew Joss--but it is Millicent and Colman who bear the brunt of both the pain and the responsibility for telling the tale. Millie Moody is a tremendously sympathetic character; her love for Joss is so powerful, so right that the reader never questions the decisions this odd couple made in life. "I didn't feel like I was living a lie," Millie tells us. "I felt like I was living a life." Colman, on the other hand, is more difficult to like. Though it's easy to understand his anger and confusion upon suddenly learning that the man he regarded as his father for 30 years was actually a woman, one also has the sneaking suspicion that he wasn't a particularly lovable guy before the revelation, either. Still, by the end of Trumpet, there's hope for Colman, peace of mind for Millie, and a satisfying rendering of love in all its permutations for the reader. --Alix WilberBook Description
"Supremely humane.... Kay leaves us with a broad landscape of sweet tolerance and familial love."--The New York Times Book Review

In her starkly beautiful and wholly unexpected tale, Jackie Kay delves into the most intimate workings of the human heart and mind and offers a triumphant tale of loving deception and lasting devotion.

The death of legendary jazz trumpeter Joss Moody exposes an extraordinary secret, one that enrages his adopted son, Colman, leading him to collude with a tabloid journalist. Besieged by the press, his widow Millie flees to a remote Scottish village, where she seeks solace in memories of their marriage. The reminiscences of those who knew Joss Moody render a moving portrait of a shared life founded on an intricate lie, one that preserved a rare, unconditional love. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (24)

Awesome Novel!
Here's a contemporary novel well worth the read. The story is basically about a trumpet player whom everyone thought was a man until the truth is found out at the latter's death. The novel is divided into mainly three first person narrators: the widow of the trumpet player, his son, and a journalist who wants to ghostwrite a book on the whole thing.

I'll be honest, I never really had any interest in Jazz, or scottish culture (it's a scottish novel, written by a gay black woman, who's also scottish) but that novel makes it all mighty interesting; and the writing is great. The different voices are excellent. The whole book is like how others pictures that person who wasn't a man but was believed by all to be one. It may not seem so, but it's perfectly credible, and besides, this was inspired by a true story.

The cover of my book says it has won the 1998 Guardian Fiction Prize; pardon my ignorance but I don't know of it, just thought it might be worth mentionning here.

I really recommend it for those who wish to read something contemporary, and of quality. It's really mighty. Jackie Kay is formerly a poet, this is her first novel.

Heart and Soul
I read this book several years ago and enjoyed very much. I was surprised to find that the author, Jackie Kay, is mainly a poet. The premise of the book is sensationalistic but the execution of the story and its characters is precious and nuanced.

Many people want to know how Millie stayed with Joss once her true sex was revealed. However, Millie had already fallen in love with Joss regardless of his/her race. She accepted her "husband" fully(in for a penny, in for a pound). All couples have peculiar rituals unique to themselves. Gender is not mitigating factor. I don't think love transcends all, but it does make room.

The important thing is that Joss created a life for herself. The author alludes to the fact that Joss's fellow musicans were aware of her true sex and accepted her anyway.

While Joss's son Colman comes off as a petulant brat and his collusion with the tabloid journalist is repugnant, the story does allow for his redemption.

The writing is beautiful and atmospheric.

A short review
Let me just say that this novel brought me close to tears by the time I finished it. It was one of the top 3 novels I read in 2003, and one of my favorite novels of all time.

Satisfying Conclusion Makes it Worthwhile
I'm surprised to have given this book 4 stars. I started out struggling to finish keep up the reading for much of it. I'd done a little research on the author, and it seemed this work was going to end up being some gender-issue, multicultural, diversity advocacy. Which it is. But the author, for me, managed to transcend these themes in the overall plot. The ending is what saved the book.

The main character Joss Moody is a famous jazz musician. He married and adopted a child and lived a long successful life. But he had a secret - Joss was really a woman. The world is shocked upon Joss' death, to find out this secret. Joss' wife Millie and their adopted son Colman must deal with the public's morbid fascination. Millie experiences resentment and fear; she feels there was nothing wrong with her marriage, her spouse. But the adopted son Colman, now in his 30s, feels rage and shame when he discovers, along with the public, that his father was really a woman. He seeks "revenge" by collaborating with a tabloid author on a tell-all book. Millie is enraged by her son's duplicity. In the end, all appears to be well, but it's a long painful path.

I had a few questions about the plot, things that didn't seem to make sense, as I do with most books. And, as with most books, by the end these "inconsistencies" become reasonable "suspensions of disbelief." For instance, in addition to "revenge", Colman's main motivation in working on the tell-all book is money. He needs it. But Joss was wealthy. Joss loved his son, so where is the inheritence? Eventually I figured maybe Joss left it all to his wife, or knew his son was terrible with money and so didn't want to leave him any, or that Joss' assets were jointly held with his wife, etc. And how could Millie stay on with Joss after she found out he was a man? Unconditional love I figured, which is a big theme of the story.

So after a long, hard slog, the conclusion really saved the book for me. Kay manages to pull off the "love is all that matters" theme in a believable way. All the pain and suffering that Millie and Colman experience upon Joss' death, these issues sort themselves out by the end, and the author does this in a convincing and satisfying way.

Pure poetry
It was not a surprise to me to read, after finishing the book, that the author is a poet.This book moved with beautiful flow, so easy to read, and engaging.As another reviewer mentioned, the book is based, loosely, on the story of Billy Tipton."Suits Me" is interesting, but it is an incredibly slow and arduous read and, in return, does not provide much insight into Billy Tipton and his journey.However, "Trumpet" does provide insight and the reader can't help but understand all the of the characters, their struggles and their joys.This is an amazing story and beautifully written. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

thought-provoking
I thought I would write this review because I am a student at Southampton university and am currently trying to surf the net for information on Jackie Kay. As of yet I have been met with blank walls wherever I haveturned which is beginning to bug me. If anyone knows where I can find anyinfo on Jackie and The Adoption Papers maybe they could share it with me in another review. Thanks

a bravura masterpiece
magical and magnificent, here is an astounding new voice, the most important defining debut since Emily Dickinson. ... Read more

Book Description
Following on from Jackie Kay's award-winning first novel, Trumpet, comes a collection of superlative stories. In true Kay style these small masterpieces cover a great deal of emotional and narrative terrain, from an immaculate observation of the female physiognomy to the bewilderment of the elderly; from silent hidden love to a lifetime reminiscence of an immigrant's England, these stories are warm and tender, frightening and funny. They confirm the arrival of a major storyteller. ... Read more

Book Description
In Wish I Was Here, Jackie Kay explores every facet of love, the most overwhelming and complicated of human emotions. In her distinctive voice, simultaneously fierce and delicate, she exposes the moments of tenderness, shock, bravery and stupidity that accompany the search for love, the discovery of love and, most of all, loves loss. Every story here resonates with bittersweet lucidity. Fearlessly scrutinizing her characters at their moments of greatest vulnerability, Kay brings the chaotic experience of loveand of simply livinginto crystalline focus. Wish I Was Here is another work of wondrous emotional intensity and almost blinding illumination by one of our most original and engaging talents. ... Read more

Book Description
This novel has a fast pace plot, that takes the reader from California to Vietnam and back. The main character is an Air police Investigator, who is investigating a desertion case (Cold case). His Investigation quickly reveals the possibility that the Airmen did not desert, but in fact, was probably murdered. As an Air Police Investigator and later as a San Bernardino County Sheriff's detective, the pursuit of this suspect becomes an obsession. This story is based on several true events. Some of the names of the characters are real (used with the permission of the individual). If you like intrigue, the battle against injustice, murder, war stories, and surprises, then you will not be able to put this novel down! ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

To Die Alone
This is a great follow up to The Stone Throwers. Jackie keeps you interested in the action. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

Lyrical and Thoughtful
A beautiful melody of a book, Bessie Smith by Jackie Kay evokes the life of the great blueswoman through a provocative interweaving of fact, poetry, blues lyrics, and imaginings. It is also about the awakening of a young girl's (the author's) sense of herself as female and black. If you prefer dry facts only, or are doing serious research, look to another biography. If there's a bit of repetition in this book, well, think about the blues. If you want to immerse yourself in Bessie's blues, read this book in one sitting, and read it out loud. Then get
out your old vinyls and a bottle of gin, and read it again.

Problem Child
If you want to know about Bessie Smith's life, check out the Chris Albertson book.If you want a thumb-nail sketch of her life, check any descent Blues Enclyclopedia (even Encarta isn't half bad.)If you want afictional account of a blues legend, try August Wilson's "Ma Rainey'sBlack Bottom."Trouble is, Kay tries to accomplish all three in thespace of less than 200 pages.Smith's life was bigger than fiction, andFUN to read about.At best, this book will whet the appetite.But read itfast and move on...

A solid Bessie Smith primer but a lot of old news
For the person looking to just scratch the surface in understanding the Empress of the Blues, "Bessie Smith (Outlines)" hits the mark, giving the highlights and lowlights of her life and career. Perhaps,"Outline", the name of this book series, is an appropriate namegiven the length and depth of the book.For the Bessie diehards or thosethat want real depth, the book doesn't offer anything new or particularlyinsightful.Read the Chris Albertson book if you want the best bio onBessie.Also, Kay annoyingly interjects fictional passages into the story,making it difficult to determine fact from fiction.I found that aspect irratating, particularly in a book so short.The back cover presents theOutline series as exploring the impact homosexual life has had on certainaritsts.Kay misses this point entirely.She actually avoids Smith'salleged homosexuality. It is a short (150 small size pages, large font)andeasy read though. ... Read more