Tuesday Nights in 1980 by Molly Prentiss

Tuesday Nights in 1980 was opened one morning and closed later that afternoon - a striking and vivid novel that luxuriates in the imperfections of art and life (what is life but a perfectly imperfect work of Art?) and left me unable to stop reading. Each new character is a new color applied to the canvas that is New York at its peak, when one might catch a mischievous look from Keith Haring as he improves a wall with his illustrations or have a brief interaction with Jean-Michel Basquiat that resets your course. Prentiss adds layers of color and character, crafting a picture of a story in a particular time and place that you can’t tear your eyes from. You’ll react with horror when a hole is punched in the canvas and then marvel as the artist deftly paints around it, surrounding the now purposeful void with just the right colors to finish the work. You’ll realize that the hole isn’t an accident, but the entire point: Art captures a moment in time and this moment is marked by an unexpected interruption. And it’s the unexpected interruptions that last as memories; be it a tragic accident, a good book on a rainy day, or a Tuesday night in 1980.

I recommend pairing this book with my Brand X playlist, I felt that it fit the vibe pretty well.