Of Song and Water
The jazz scenes crackle with energy and authority...Coulson moves fluidly between the past and the present, and the novel is ultimately quiet, affecting and redemptive. — Publishers Weekly Will remind…
The Vanishing Moon
"Vanishing Moon is the lyrical account of the Tollman family’s demise, but it is so beautifully crafted that one keeps turning the pages rapidly; that is, when one isn’t stopping to…
from Donna Seaman in Booklist — "Joseph Coulson" a review of The Vanishing Moon
Joseph Coulson 2004-01 The Tollman children—spitfire Phil, the eldest; musing Stephen, his shadow; charming but doomed Margie; and stuttering Myron—adore their lovely, competent mother and cannot forgive their lackluster…
from Doug Payne in San Diego Union Tribune — "Loss Leader: Joseph Coulson’s Vanishing Moon finds wonder in a family’s hard times"
Loss saturates Joseph Coulson’s new novel, The Vanishing Moon. This chronicle of three generations of a Midwestern working-class family opens in the Depression, with the Tollmans having had to leave…
from R. D. Fohl in Buffalo News — "Coulson's Work Mirrors Struggles of the Working Class" a review of The Vanishing Moon
I live in the city where my brother and I grew up, where we made our choices, and choices were made for us,” laments the no-longer-young narrator of Joseph…
from Chris Tucker The Dallas Morning Review — a review of The Vanishing Moon
In an era when Donald Trump is king, and the stars of unreality TV shows earn more by gobbling insects than Mark Twain ever banked, we need talented novelists…
from Leyla Kokmen in Minneapolis City Pages — a review of The Vanishing Moon
Consider, for a moment, the people around you. How would you look — who would you be — if your soul and character existed only through their eyes? In…
from Kristin Bartus in Pacific Sun — a review of The Vanishing Moon
Family snapshots—A poignant portrait of each succeeding decade “Most things that die wither away or we put them underground, but trees stay standing, rows of barren trunks that creak…