I really enjoyed this touching book about the relationship between an LA Times columnist and a homeless musician. Mr. Lopez is a descriptive writer who is able to capture the scene of Skid Row and the inner struggle that he experiences while attempting to find the right way to impact the life of Mr. Ayers. He has stumbled into the world that mental health professionals live daily. I hope that Mr. Ayers continues his progress and succeeds in his goal to be a musical therapist. ( )

Steve Lopez is a columnist for The Los Angeles Times. While he was searching for a story one day, he encountered Nathaniel Anthony Ayers, a homeless man playing a violin that was missing some strings. After talking to Nathanial for a while he discovered that he attended Juilliard and a column was born. Nathaniel struck a chord with Steve and the column struck a chord with the public. Several people offered instruments to Nathaniel and Steve delivered them to him with the condition that he store them at LAMP – the Los Angeles Men’s Project – so they won’t be stolen.

Steve Lopez developed a fondness for Nathaniel and worked hard to help him by contacting his sister, doctors and social workers. He pieced together Nathaniel’s background and discovered that schizophrenia destroyed Nathaniel’s dreams while he was studying at Juilliard. The two men develop a deep bond and Steve spends a lot of time with Nathaniel. He comes to realize that music is the best medicine for Nathaniel – it’s when he feels the most peaceful and calm. Steve is a wonderful advocate for Nathaniel and arranged music lessons, concerts and a visit from Nathaniel’s sister. Steve comes to think of Nathaniel almost like family and includes him in some family activities and dinners.

The Soloist by Steve Lopez is a wonderful book about the relationship between Steve Lopez and Nathaniel Ayers. In it, Steve chronicles the ups and downs of their relationship and even questions his motives behind helping Anthony. The writing is crisp, yet Steve’s affection for Nathaniel is abundantly clear. Even though parts of this book are sad, I found it joyful and uplifting. I’ve always thought of myself as being pretty open-minded, but this book made me think about my attitudes toward homelessness and mental illness. Steve has done a tremendous amount of work to improve the quality of Nathaniel’s life, but he is quick to admit that their relationship means as much to him as it does to Nathaniel. In case you couldn’t tell, I loved this book. ( )

After hearing the author speak (at the American Library Association conference in Chicago), I had to read the book, and it was as riveting as the speech. While searching for material for his column for the LA Times, Steve Lopez meets Nathaniel Anthony Ayers. Nathaniel is a paranoid-schizophrenic on Skid Row. He spends his days playing Beethoven on a violin with only two strings and sleeps on the street. As Lopez gets acquainted with the former Julliard student, what starts out as just material for a column turns into a friendship which will change both men. There are many disappointments among the small triumphs as Lopez tries to help his talented friend. This true story will force the reader to face the reality of mental illness and its effect on society as well as the difference one individual can make in another's life. ( )

This book covers a lot of territory, and I'd recommend it to anyone who's interested either in the story based on what you've heard, or in memoirs, mental illness, or the power of art/music as a healing engagement. Lopez's account is straight-forward and interesting, with an eye toward detail and the journey not only of his friend, Mr. Ayers, but himself. I believe that anyone who picks up this book with an honest interest toward any aspect of the subject will not go away disappointed. ( )

Mr. Lopez is a columnist for the Los Angeles Times. Mr. Ayers is a homeless, mentally ill man who is also a former Juilliard student and is still a musician of great talent. One day Mr. Lopez meets Mr. Ayers and sees in him the subject of a great column, but he gets more than he bargained for. As he becomes more involved in Mr. Ayers' life, they become friends.

This book is very honest about mental illness and how little we generally care about the mentally ill who are poor or whose illness prevents them from caring for themselves and from accepting help. We learn something about organized attempts to help them and the importance of patience and faithfulness.

I couldn't put this book down and very much recommend it both to persons who are interested in mental illness and to persons who want to read a very moving story of the human spirit. ( )