Goldman led a rich, full life in his late 50s, with family, faith, and career (former New York Times reporter, professor of journalism at Columbia, author of three books, including the best-selling The Search for God at Harvard, 1991). But when he took his cello to his first rehearsal of the New York Late Starters String Orchestra, his middle-aged musical obsession blossomed. Despite his bad back (a particular problem for a cellist) and everything going on in his life and the world at large, he determined to become a musician and to play at his sixtieth birthday party. Goldman recounts first taking up the cello at 26 after a chance meeting with Mr. J, who became his beloved teacher, and later introducing his youngest child, Judah, to his instrument and watching the boy's proficiency grow far beyond his own. Brief sketches of Goldman's fellow late-starter musicians add interest and make this more than just a memoir about music and all that it offers; it is also a warm and moving testament to the opportunities of aging.--Leber, Michele Copyright 2010 Booklist

When he was in his mid-20s, Goldman (The Search for God at Harvard), a journalism professor at Columbia, started playing cello under the guidance of an exacting and inspiring teacher whom Goldman affectionately calls Mr. J., with whom he studied for seven years. Goldman eventually put aside his cello as his family and career grew, yet that musical thread never unraveled completely from the weave of his life. Nearly 40 years later, he picked up the cello again, determined to play a little concert at his 60th birthday. With grace, humor, and elegance, Goldman generously invites readers into his tale of picking up that musical thread. In his quest to become a musician, he joins his son Judah's orchestra; gives up time at the gym to practice his cello; erases all of the music on his iPod in order to focus on cello music and train his ear by listening to that music; and devotes every Sunday afternoon to playing with the Late Starters Orchestra, an organization devoted to the notion that everyone interested in playing music should have a place to make it. In addition, Goldman spends a week at an adult music camp in Maine and another week at a summer music retreat in the north of England run by the East London Late Starters. Through it all, Goldman uncovers the soul of a musician that makes him one with his cello and the music. (July) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.