Cristalle Nerine wrote (April 20, 2002):
I just recently finished reading a book about Bach. It's by RuthAnn Ridley, and it's actually a biographical novel based on Bach's life called "Bach's Passion." All true Bach Fanatics MUST read this book immediately!!!

It gives you so much insight into Bach's mind, why he made the choices he did and how he must have felt at the difficult points in his life (of which there were many!!!) It also offers some plausible explanations for some of the events in Bach's life I've always wondered about (Carl Phillip Emanuel's hatred of Anna Magdelena, for example, or Bach throwing his wig at Gorner and saying, "You should have been a cobbler!")

The depiction of the culture of the time is also incredibly vivid (in fact, to me it was one of the neatest things about the book.) This novel really transports you back to the time and immerses you in it...

To make a long story short, I just couldn't put it down. READ THIS BOOK! You can (as I recommend) order an autographed copy from RuthAnn (and she will write a thoughtful message inside the front cover if you do, which I enjoyed) or order from that <sigh> large Internet book corporation known as Amazon. Either way, get your hands on a copy ASAP!!!!