We look forward to seeing you on your next visit to the library. Find a location near you.

What Is It All but Luminous: Notes from an Underground Man
(Adobe EPUB eBook, Kindle Book, OverDrive Read)

Book Cover
Average Rating
5 star
 
(0)
4 star
 
(0)
3 star
 
(1)
2 star
 
(0)
1 star
 
(1)
Published:
Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group 2017
Status:
Available from OverDrive
Description
"Poetic musings on a life well-livedone that is still moving forward, always creating, always luminous. This isn't your typical autobiography. Garfunkel's history is told in flowing prose, bounding from present to past, far from a linear rags-to-riches story."
—Bookreporter

"It's hard to imagine any single word that would accurately describe this book . . . an entertaining volume that's more fun to read than a conventional memoir might have been."
—The Wall Street Journal

 "A charming book of prose and poetry printed in a digitalized version of his handwriting . . . witty, candid, and wildly imaginative . . . A highly intelligent man trying to make sense of his extraordinary life."
—Associated Press

From the golden-haired, curly-headed half of Simon & Garfunkel, a memoir (of sorts)—moving, lyrical impressions, interspersed throughout a narrative, punctuated by poetry, musings, lists of resonant books loved and admired, revealing a life and the making of a musician, that show us, as well, the evolution of a man, a portrait of a life-long friendship and of a collaboration that became the most successful singing duo in the roiling age that embraced, and was defined by, their pathfinding folk-rock music.

In What Is It All but Luminous, Art Garfunkel writes about growing up in the 1940s and ‘50s (son of a traveling salesman, listening as his father played Enrico Caruso records), a middle-class Jewish boy, living in a redbrick semi-attached house on Jewel Avenue in Kew Gardens, Queens.
He writes of meeting Paul Simon, the kid who made Art laugh (they met at their graduation play, Alice in Wonderland; Paul was the White Rabbit; Art, the Cheshire Cat). Of their being twelve at the birth of rock’n’roll (“it was rhythm and blues. It was black. I was captured and so was Paul”), of a demo of their song, Hey Schoolgirl for seven dollars and the actual record (with Paul’s father on bass) going to #40 on the charts.
He writes about their becoming Simon & Garfunkel, ruling the pop charts from the age of sixteen, about not being a natural performer but more a thinker, an underground man.
He writes of the hit songs; touring; about being an actor working with directors Mike Nichols (“the greatest of them all”), about choosing music over a PhD in mathematics.
And he writes about his long-unfolding split with Paul, and how and why it evolved, and after; learning to perform on his own . . . and about being a husband, a father and much more.
Also in This Series
Formats
Adobe EPUB eBook
Works on all eReaders (except Kindles), desktop computers and mobile devices with reading apps installed.
Kindle Book
Works on Kindles and devices with a Kindle app installed.
OverDrive Read
Need Help?
If you are having problem transferring a title to your device, please fill out this support form or visit the library so we can help you to use our eBooks and eAudio Books.
More Like This
Other Editions and Formats
More Copies In LINK+
Loading LINK+ Copies...
More Details
Format:
Adobe EPUB eBook, Kindle Book, OverDrive Read
Street Date:
09/26/2017
Language:
English
ISBN:
9780385352468
ASIN:
B01N2ZP8KG
Reviews from GoodReads
Loading GoodReads Reviews.
Citations
APA Citation (style guide)

Art Garfunkel. (2017). What Is It All but Luminous: Notes from an Underground Man. Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group.

Chicago / Turabian - Author Date Citation (style guide)

Art Garfunkel. 2017. What Is It All but Luminous: Notes From an Underground Man. Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group.

Chicago / Turabian - Humanities Citation (style guide)

Art Garfunkel, What Is It All but Luminous: Notes From an Underground Man. Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group, 2017.

MLA Citation (style guide)

Art Garfunkel. What Is It All but Luminous: Notes From an Underground Man. Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group, 2017.

Note! Citation formats are based on standards as of July 2022. Citations contain only title, author, edition, publisher, and year published. Citations should be used as a guideline and should be double checked for accuracy.
Copy Details
LibraryOwnedAvailable
Shared Digital Collection11
Staff View
Grouped Work ID:
45965771-6e38-e715-0134-851614dbda20
Go To Grouped Work
Needs Update?:
No
Date Added:
Jun 12, 2018 17:45:00
Date Updated:
Oct 04, 2021 19:15:01
Last Metadata Check:
Apr 14, 2024 09:21:45
Last Metadata Change:
Jan 30, 2024 06:28:28
Last Availability Check:
Apr 14, 2024 09:21:49
Last Availability Change:
Sep 15, 2023 11:17:05
Last Grouped Work Modification Time:
Apr 19, 2024 02:10:42

OverDrive Product Record

images
    • cover:
        • href: https://img1.od-cdn.com/ImageType-100/0111-1/{D5916AD2-5848-4D95-B27A-24327507A72C}Img100.jpg
        • type: image/jpeg
    • thumbnail:
        • href: https://img1.od-cdn.com/ImageType-200/0111-1/{D5916AD2-5848-4D95-B27A-24327507A72C}Img200.jpg
        • type: image/jpeg
    • cover150Wide:
        • href: https://img1.od-cdn.com/ImageType-150/0111-1/D59/16A/D2/{D5916AD2-5848-4D95-B27A-24327507A72C}Img150.jpg
        • type: image/jpeg
    • cover300Wide:
        • href: https://img1.od-cdn.com/ImageType-400/0111-1/D59/16A/D2/{D5916AD2-5848-4D95-B27A-24327507A72C}Img400.jpg
        • type: image/jpeg
formats
      • identifiers:
            • type: ISBN
            • value: 9780385352468
            • type: PublisherCatalogNumber
            • value: 236102
      • name: Adobe EPUB eBook
      • id: ebook-epub-adobe
      • identifiers:
            • type: ASIN
            • value: B01N2ZP8KG
            • type: PublisherCatalogNumber
            • value: 236102
      • name: Kindle Book
      • id: ebook-kindle
      • identifiers:
            • type: ISBN
            • value: 9780385352468
            • type: PublisherCatalogNumber
            • value: 236102
      • name: OverDrive Read
      • id: ebook-overdrive
mediaType
eBook
primaryCreator
    • role: Author
    • name: Art Garfunkel
title
What Is It All but Luminous
dateAdded
2017-09-22T16:24:00-04:00
contentDetails
      • href: https://link.overdrive.com/?websiteID=141&titleID=3225128
      • type: text/html
      • account:
          • name: Sacramento Public Library (CA)
          • id: 1151
sortTitle
What Is It All but Luminous Notes from an Underground Man
crossRefId
3225128
subtitle
Notes from an Underground Man
id
d5916ad2-5848-4d95-b27a-24327507a72c
starRating
2.4

OverDrive MetaData

isPublicDomain
False
formats
      • fileName: WhatIsItAllbutLumino_9780385352468_3225128
      • partCount: 0
      • fileSize: 36254534
      • identifiers:
            • type: ISBN
            • value: 9780385352468
            • type: PublisherCatalogNumber
            • value: 236102
      • rights:
            • type: Copying
            • value: 0
            • type: Printing
            • value: 0
            • type: Lending
            • value: 0
            • type: ReadAloud
            • value: 0
            • type: ExpirationRights
            • value: 0
      • name: Adobe EPUB eBook
      • isReadAlong: False
      • id: ebook-epub-adobe
      • onSaleDate: 9/26/2017
      • samples:
            • source: From the book
            • formatType: ebook-overdrive
            • url: https://samples.overdrive.com/?crid=d5916ad2-5848-4d95-b27a-24327507a72c&.epub-sample.overdrive.com
      • fileName: WhatIsItAllbutLumino_3225128
      • partCount: 0
      • fileSize: 0
      • identifiers:
            • type: PublisherCatalogNumber
            • value: 236102
            • type: ASIN
            • value: B01N2ZP8KG
      • name: Kindle Book
      • isReadAlong: False
      • id: ebook-kindle
      • onSaleDate: 9/26/2017
      • samples:
            • source: From the book
            • formatType: ebook-overdrive
            • url: https://samples.overdrive.com/?crid=d5916ad2-5848-4d95-b27a-24327507a72c&.epub-sample.overdrive.com
      • fileName: WhatIsItAllbutLumino_9780385352468_3225128
      • partCount: 0
      • fileSize: 48262921
      • identifiers:
            • type: ISBN
            • value: 9780385352468
            • type: PublisherCatalogNumber
            • value: 236102
      • name: OverDrive Read
      • isReadAlong: False
      • id: ebook-overdrive
      • onSaleDate: 9/26/2017
      • samples:
            • source: From the book
            • formatType: ebook-overdrive
            • url: https://samples.overdrive.com/?crid=d5916ad2-5848-4d95-b27a-24327507a72c&.epub-sample.overdrive.com
keywords
      • value: family
      • value: Biography
      • value: Friendship
      • value: Jewish
      • value: pop music
      • value: life
      • value: singer
      • value: composer
      • value: Tour
      • value: Autobiography
      • value: concert
      • value: lyric
      • value: Poetry
      • value: songwriter
      • value: Songs
      • value: Manhattan
      • value: Folk music
      • value: New York
      • value: album
      • value: Handwriting
      • value: lyrical
      • value: Music
      • value: rock and roll
      • value: memoir
      • value: musician
      • value: Queens
      • value: paul simon
      • value: art books
      • value: simon and garfunkel
      • value: books about music
      • value: music books
      • value: rock biographies
      • value: rock and roll books
      • value: simon and garfunkle
      • value: sounds of silence
      • value: books about musicians
      • value: rock and roll biographies and autobiographies
      • value: musician biography books
      • value: history of rock and roll books
creators
      • role: Author
      • fileAs: Garfunkel, Art
      • bioText: ART GARFUNKEL attended Columbia University, where he earned a master's degree in mathematics. He performed with Paul Simon as Simon & Garfunkel from 1963 to 1970. Garfunkel, with Paul Simon, has been the recipient of six Grammys, the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award, and in 1990 was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. Garfunkel lives in New York with his wife and two children. He continues to travel around the world giving concert performances, and since 1973 has produced twelve solo albums.
      • name: Art Garfunkel
imprint
Vintage
publishDate
2017-09-26T00:00:00-04:00
isOwnedByCollections
True
title
What Is It All but Luminous
fullDescription
"Poetic musings on a life well-livedone that is still moving forward, always creating, always luminous. This isn't your typical autobiography. Garfunkel's history is told in flowing prose, bounding from present to past, far from a linear rags-to-riches story."
—Bookreporter

"It's hard to imagine any single word that would accurately describe this book . . . an entertaining volume that's more fun to read than a conventional memoir might have been."
—The Wall Street Journal

 "A charming book of prose and poetry printed in a digitalized version of his handwriting . . . witty, candid, and wildly imaginative . . . A highly intelligent man trying to make sense of his extraordinary life."
—Associated Press

From the golden-haired, curly-headed half of Simon & Garfunkel, a memoir (of sorts)—moving, lyrical impressions, interspersed throughout a narrative, punctuated by poetry, musings, lists of resonant books loved and admired, revealing a life and the making of a musician, that show us, as well, the evolution of a man, a portrait of a life-long friendship and of a collaboration that became the most successful singing duo in the roiling age that embraced, and was defined by, their pathfinding folk-rock music.

In What Is It All but Luminous, Art Garfunkel writes about growing up in the 1940s and ‘50s (son of a traveling salesman, listening as his father played Enrico Caruso records), a middle-class Jewish boy, living in a redbrick semi-attached house on Jewel Avenue in Kew Gardens, Queens.
He writes of meeting Paul Simon, the kid who made Art laugh (they met at their graduation play, Alice in Wonderland; Paul was the White Rabbit; Art, the Cheshire Cat). Of their being twelve at the birth of rock’n’roll (“it was rhythm and blues. It was black. I was captured and so was Paul”), of a demo of their song, Hey Schoolgirl for seven dollars and the actual record (with Paul’s father on bass) going to #40 on the charts.
He writes about their becoming Simon & Garfunkel, ruling the pop charts from the age of sixteen, about not being a natural performer but more a thinker, an underground man.
He writes of the hit songs; touring; about being an actor working with directors Mike Nichols (“the greatest of them all”), about choosing music over a PhD in mathematics.
And he writes about his long-unfolding split with Paul, and how and why it evolved, and after; learning to perform on his own . . . and about being a husband, a father and much more.
reviews
      • premium: True
      • source: Publisher's Weekly
      • content:

        May 29, 2017
        Garfunkel, half of the folk rock duo Simon & Garfunkel, loves singing, reading, performing, acting, walking, keeping lists, and his wife—as he writes in this meandering, sometimes incoherent memoir. Early on, Garfunkel pays tribute to his vocal talent: “These vocal chords... have vibrated with the love of sound since I was five and began to sing with the sense of God’s gift running through me.” As the narrative proceeds, Garfunkel wanders through his life, reflecting here and there on his complex relationship with Paul Simon; his love for and admiration of James Taylor; the suicide of his girlfriend Laurie Bird in the late 1970s; his walks across Japan, the U.S., and Europe; and his wife Kathryn Cermack’s breast-cancer diagnosis in 1996. Obsessed with lists, Garfunkel intersperses his rambling reflections with lists of the books he has read, songs on his iPod, and even 10 reasons why he’s in “awe of his wife.” Garfunkel seldom settles on one subject for long before he’s off to a related topic from his life. While Garfunkel reveals flashes of real insight about the transcendent power of music and the inner workings of a singer’s life, for the most part this slim volume feels tiresome.

      • premium: True
      • source: Kirkus
      • content:

        July 15, 2017
        The silky voiced singer looks back on his career and life.It would be hard to improve on the author's description of his younger self: "I live in my own rarified air. I put the 'e' in 'artist' every day." There have been few popular music memoirs with more literary references and less of a sense of self-deprecating humor. Though Garfunkel (Still Water: Prose Poems, 1989) knows that he is generally dismissed as the secondary partner to songwriter Paul Simon--"I was a 'BOUNCE, ' a sort of wall / and he of course had the ball"--this singular mixture of verse, doggerel, blog and diary entries, soul-baring confession, and lists of hundreds of books read is less about setting the record straight on Simon and Garfunkel than allowing readers to gaze into the poetic soul of an artist who variously sees himself as Don Quixote, James Joyce, Rimbaud, Odysseus, Whitman, and Prometheus. "I have these vocal cords. Two," he writes. "They have vibrated with the love of sound since I was five and began to sing with the sense of God's gift running through me." Simon may have written the songs, but Garfunkel had the voice, the hair, and the looks, and he got the girls. But all things must pass. "Does anyone notice the faint aroma of slowly decaying flesh?" he asks. "I'm depressed. All is vanity. Where is meaning?" Much of the book is about the joy he has found as a husband and a father, and some of it is about his acting career, which established him as a presence apart from Simon. "Before there was Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, there was Simon and Garfunkel--an extraordinary, a singular love affair," he writes, though the relationship is as ambivalent as it is symbiotic. Now, many decades on, "I am an old boatman / I cast my net of pretense before me / Then I sail into it." There are many voyages here, some flashes of vision, and plenty of pretense.

        COPYRIGHT(2017) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

popularity
603
links
    • self:
        • href: https://api.overdrive.com/v1/collections/v1L1BWwAAAA2I/products/d5916ad2-5848-4d95-b27a-24327507a72c/metadata
        • type: application/vnd.overdrive.api+json
id
d5916ad2-5848-4d95-b27a-24327507a72c
starRating
2.7
images
    • cover:
        • href: https://img1.od-cdn.com/ImageType-100/0111-1/{D5916AD2-5848-4D95-B27A-24327507A72C}Img100.jpg
        • type: image/jpeg
    • thumbnail:
        • href: https://img1.od-cdn.com/ImageType-200/0111-1/{D5916AD2-5848-4D95-B27A-24327507A72C}Img200.jpg
        • type: image/jpeg
    • cover150Wide:
        • href: https://img1.od-cdn.com/ImageType-150/0111-1/D59/16A/D2/{D5916AD2-5848-4D95-B27A-24327507A72C}Img150.jpg
        • type: image/jpeg
    • cover300Wide:
        • href: https://img1.od-cdn.com/ImageType-400/0111-1/D59/16A/D2/{D5916AD2-5848-4D95-B27A-24327507A72C}Img400.jpg
        • type: image/jpeg
isPublicPerformanceAllowed
False
languages
      • code: en
      • name: English
subjects
      • value: Biography & Autobiography
      • value: Music
      • value: Nonfiction
publishDateText
09/26/2017
otherFormatIdentifiers
      • type: ISBN
      • value: 9780525564393
mediaType
eBook
shortDescription
"Poetic musings on a life well-livedone that is still moving forward, always creating, always luminous. This isn't your typical autobiography. Garfunkel's history is told in flowing prose, bounding from present to past, far from a linear rags-to-riches story."
—Bookreporter

"It's hard to imagine any single word that would accurately describe this book . . . an entertaining volume that's more fun to read than a conventional memoir might have been."
—The Wall Street Journal

 "A charming book of prose and poetry printed in a digitalized version of his handwriting . . . witty, candid, and wildly imaginative . . . A highly intelligent man trying to make sense of his extraordinary life."
—Associated Press

From the golden-haired, curly-headed half of Simon & Garfunkel, a memoir (of sorts)—moving, lyrical impressions, interspersed throughout a narrative, punctuated by poetry,...
sortTitle
What Is It All but Luminous Notes from an Underground Man
crossRefId
3225128
subtitle
Notes from an Underground Man
publisher
Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group
bisacCodes
      • code: BIO004000
      • description: Biography & Autobiography / Composers & Musicians
      • code: BIO026000
      • description: BIOGRAPHY & AUTOBIOGRAPHY / Memoirs
      • code: MUS029000
      • description: MUSIC / Genres & Styles / Pop Vocal