Rhapsody

Listed in the Music category on Art In Fiction, Rhapsody  (2021) by Mitchell James Kaplan explores the decade-long relationship between the celebrated composer George Gershwin and gifted musician Katharine “Kay” Swift.   When Katharine “Kay” Swift—the restless but loyal society wife of wealthy banker James Warburg and a serious pianist who longs for recognition—attends a performance of Rhapsody in Blue by a brilliant, elusive young musical genius named George Gershwin, her world is turned upside down. Transfixed, she’s helpless to resist the magnetic pull of George’s talent, charm, and swagger. Their ten-year love affair, complicated by her conflicted loyalty to her husband and the twists and turns of her own musical career, ends only with George’s death from a brain tumor at the age of thirty-eight.   Set in Jazz Age New York City, this stunning work of fiction explores the timeless bond between two brilliant, strong-willed artists. George Gershwin left behind not just a body of work unmatched in popular musical history, but a woman who loved him with all her heart, knowing all the while that he belonged not to her, but to the world. “Kaplan builds an enchanting world featuring musical giants George Gershwin and Kay Swift... This spellbinding and luminous tale will linger in readers’ minds long after the final page is turned.” ― Publishers Weekly (starred review) Mitchell James Kaplan attended high school near Santa Barbara, California, where he won the Scholarship Prize and the Music Prize. He entered Yale University and graduated cum laude, receiving honors in English Literature. Following college, Mitchell spent four years in France, where he worked as a translator. Mitchell's first published short story appeared in the well-regarded Franco-American literary review, Frank . Mitchell returned to Los Angeles where he worked in the film industry. He now lives in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia with his family and two cats. Buy Now from Amazon Buy Now from Bookshop