Pipe Dreams: A Faustian Tale

By Jean D. Minton

A modern depiction of the Faust legend set in New York City in the 60s, Pipe Dreams concerns a young singer's obsession with a Broadway career. His dreams of success, however, lead him to stray into a series of compromises that prove disastrous and precipitate his 'pact with the Devil' and his sacrifice of the gifted young ballet dancer whom he loves. In the startling climax, he is forced to reexamine his values and those of the society that shaped him, as well as his understanding of what constitutes success.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 059531192X
• ISBN13: 9780595311927
• Release Date: March 2004
• Publisher: iUniverse
• Length: 224 Pages
• Weight: 0.74 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 6.0" x 9.0"

Customer Reviews

Timeless legend, new voice

Ah, the world of music, theatre and dance! This novel provides a treat for lovers of the performing arts. Charlie, the protagonist, is a striving singer-actor-pianist who is tempted to compromise his principles in exchange for fame. The cast includes his love (a ballet dancer), the agent, a night club owner, his roommates (a composer, a gay dancer), a psychiatrist, and his principal rival. Sometimes funny, often thoughtful, occassionally outrageous, the characters come alive as they interact in and about the New York theater-arts scene. Minton is an accomplished writer. The novel is well crafted and often poetic; indeed, some parts sing as if written as poetry. There is substantial intellectual content. The astute reader will find classic allusions interwoven in the fabric of the story line. And there is fun to be had, too, in witty dialogue which enlivens the serious themes of the novel.Highly recommended.