Winner of the Anisfield-Wolf Book Award

Boomtown Chicago, 1920s--a world of gangsters, musicians, and clubs. Young Benny Lehrman, born into a Jewish hat-making family, is expected to take over his father's business, but his true passion is piano--especially jazz. After dark, he sneaks down to the South Side to hear the bands play.

One night he is asked to sit in with a group. His playing is first-rate. The trumpeter, a black man named Napoleon, becomes Benny's friend and musical collaborator. They are asked to play at a saloon Napoleon has christened The Jazz Palace. But Napoleon's main gig is at a mob establishment, which doesn't take kindly to their musicians freelancing . As Benny and Napoleon navigate the highs and the lows of the Jazz Age, a bond is forged between them that is as memorable as it is lasting. Morris brilliantly captures the dynamic atmosphere and dazzling music of an exceptional era.