The Catchers by Xan Brooks – A Dark and Eccentric Tale of Music and Race
In The Catchers, Xan Brooks takes readers into the heart of 1927 rural America, where a novice "song-catcher" named John Coughlin embarks on his first mission to capture Appalachian folk music. Record labels offer $30 for a three-minute recording, a small fortune for the farmers who play the music. But if the song becomes a sensation, the artist will never see another dime, with the company reaping all the future profits. While most song-catchers see this as fair, considering folk music a natural resource like soil or water, Coughlin, though eager for success, retains a shred of respect for the musicians, seeing value in their art.
This picaresque tale is populated with eccentric characters like Bucky, a local fixer always juggling multiple ventures, from reading radio weather forecasts to managing a girls' baseball team, and Colonel Bird, a diminutive but menacing plantation owner who clings to bizarre delusions about his family's role in history. Brooks presents a world where whimsical absurdity and hidden danger coexist, creating a vivid, unpredictable setting. The novel's portrayal of the music is equally fascinating, introducing characters such as Abraham Fisk, an old farmer who sings exclusively about his fields, and Peggy Prince, a spirited young woman estranged from her family, who sings with a potent mix of rage and sorrow.
Central to the story is Moss Evans, a young Black boy with a cheap guitar and a head full of unconventional songs. Viewed by those around him as a hopeless musician, his erratic and unpredictable compositions are actually a stroke of brilliance, waiting for someone like Coughlin to recognize their value. His genius lies in the fact that his music refuses to conform to expectations, reflecting the untamed world he inhabits.
Set against the backdrop of the great Mississippi flood, Brooks uses this disaster to weave in a powerful metaphor for societal upheaval. The floodwaters sweep away homes and people, but also social structures and norms, leaving chaos and uncertainty in their wake. A striking moment occurs when a white woman sees the flood approaching and, in her terror, imagines it as an army of Black slaves advancing in revolt, reflecting the deep racial fears of the time.
Though Brooks, as a white British writer, takes on African American history and culture in the novel, he does so with a sense of awareness. He acknowledges the tension inherent in cultural appropriation while allowing his Black characters to express their anger and frustration, even as the white characters are portrayed with their own complexities and flaws. The novel balances fantasy and historical reality, creating a world that feels both strange and deeply authentic.
With its rich characters, dark humor, and insightful commentary on race, culture, and power, The Catchers offers a compelling and thought-provoking read. Brooks paints a picture of a world on the edge of transformation, where music, politics, and human lives are all caught up in the swirling floodwaters of change.
