Attention Wholesalers & Bookstores:

Drummond is available through Ingram! Suggested price of $19.99 (with a retailer preferred wholesaler discount of 55%).

Search for Drummond: Learning to find himself in the music by Patrick R. F. Blakley. ISBN 978-1-0880-3772-0

 

 

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Biography

 

Patrick R. F. Blakley

E-mail: Patrick@PRFB.net

Website: PRFB.net/Drummond

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/57566781-drummond

Patrick R. F. Blakley is a SAMMY award-winning percussionist from Syracuse, New York. He is a music judge for the New York State Field Band Conference and participated in Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade in 2018! Blakley has written two technical marching percussion books and also a children’s book called Drummy Drum Joins Marchy Band, in which a drum joins the marching band to try to learn where and how to fit in.

The children’s book inspired his Drummond novel, which explores the question of why a drum would join the marching band in the first place. As it turns out, the drum was just a projection of his inner self and Drummond had to find out who he really was inside! Drummond then uses that newfound information to try to fit in and connect with his new family! (Full biography available here.)

2019 SAMMY Awards photo credit: Jim Houle

 

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Drummond Book & Format Information

 

Brief synopsis: Drummond, a thirteen-year-old C student in middle school, is steered into joining the high school’s marching band. He’s far from ready, and his friends help him make several attempts to learn new instruments to try and fit in better. With a little unexpected guidance from the drummers and their instructor, he realizes how well he already fits in. He discovers who he is inside. Home life deteriorates behind him and pushes him forward into the arms of his new family, the marching band.

 

 

Sales copy:

 

Discover who you are inside, then learn how to fit in!

 

Learn how to find yourself in the music!

 

 

 

Book Quotes:

“I lift my arm and feel around for the alarm clock’s snooze button, the only word I know in braille.”

“I’m not totally engaged with the man, rather, the clock on the wall behind him. About six, but ticking slow and tocking even slower.”

“Bye!” I yell to Ashley over four nearby flutes doing the opposite of tuning.”

“The table stands fast between the kitchen and the family room. It nestles between arguments and television shows, homework and birthday parties, breakfast and dinner.”

“Lying on the ground, the sousaphone looks like a Venn diagram for toppings that belong on a pizza versus pineapple, two big separate circles. He lifts the whole thing up, sticks his head through the pineapple portion, and straightens the pizza portion.”

The wind announces itself through my open bedroom window. Sheet music is blown face down onto my floor, but the birds outside sing it from memory. Accompanying them are four steady-sounding knocks on my door, very evenly spaced, about mezzo-piano, my mom must be practicing drums too.
“Let’s leave now, so we get a good view for the parade,” my mom adds lyrics through the closed door.

“Steve holds his breath as I suck all the air from the room into my lungs. I pause, then blow as hard as I can while squeezing my lips tightly together. The sound that comes out is not that of a sousaphone. In fact, it doesn’t even come out of the bell above my head. The sound that escapes and reverberates throughout the long hallway did, in fact, start with F but ended in A-R-T, and it came out the opposite end!”

“I don’t know yet,” I give her the perfect reply. The political ‘I do not recall’ get-out-of-jail-free card. Let’s see how Ashley handles this verbal razzle-dazzle.

“That’s not what Chelsea said,” Ashley pops my bubble.

“What did Chelsea say?” I ask. Now I look silly, not knowing what my apparent girlfriend thinks of our own relationship.

“Chelsea thinks you two are dating,” Ashley spills the bag and lets the cat out of the beans.”

“Percussion is my religion, and the band room is my cathedral. Inside this holy place, I don’t believe in anything more than myself.”

 

(Book excerpt and audio preview located at bottom of press kit.)

 

 

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Blurbs, Reviews, Blogs & Testimonials

(Links to the full reviews provided below.)

 

 

 

 

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“Drummond takes a unique approach to the subject of music, personal identity, and being a kid in the world. Young readers who find their place of acceptance through music will love this. What a fun story! It was compelling and tender all at once and will resonate with a lot of readers.“

• Writers Digest 

 

“This was such a brilliantly written and captivating YA Genre Fiction read! The author expertly crafted a relatable and genuine narrative that felt alive on the page, and the imagery and tone the author captured ranged from the desolate to the passionate depending on the protagonist’s environment and mood. The character growth was the heart and passion of the story in this book. Rating 10/10″

• Reedsy Reviews 

 

“Blakley’s attention to relationship-building, group efforts, and individual growth create a winning first-person story in which Drummond learns about marching bands, music, and himself. Ideally, it will also be part of a classroom assignment, discussed for its psychological revelations as Drummond learns about his strengths and employs them in a group effort to make music.”

• Midwest Book Review 

 

“Drummond: Learning to Find Himself in the Music is a solid coming-of-age story. Blakley’s extensive knowledge of music and his own experiences in his youth bring the tale to life. Drummond is an engaging and entertaining protagonist who many young readers will identify with.”

• The Book Review Directory

 

“Drummond is a book I wish ‌I had read during my impressionable marching band years. A little neurotic and a lot funny, Blakley reminds musicians of the intricate nuances of drumming and a fun range of different marching instruments as Drummond shuffles through sections of the band before resettling on his true love, percussion.”

• Indies Today

 

“We finally have a story that speaks to the formative experiences our many young adults have in school band! If you have a child in band, particularly if they are a percussionist, then they will certainly connect with this smartly-written tale. Drummond explores the shared experience of music education and marching band that our best and brightest students have and continue to love and cherish, regardless of time and place.”

• Dr. R. Ward Miller, D.M.A. – Macy’s Great American Marching Band, Blue Stars Drum & Bugle Corps
 

 

Blog Shares, Testimonials, Social Media:

 

 

 

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Marching Band Season Press Release

 

Click the thumbnail image below or visit the PR distribution site here! 

 

Drummond, Young-Adult Music Novel Trumpets Upcoming New York State Marching Band Season

Author Patrick R. F. Blakley lifelong participant in New York State Field Band Conference

SYRACUSE, NEW YORK — Drummond: Learning to find himself in the music is a young adult novel by Patrick R. F. Blakley, a native of Syracuse, New York. Blakley is a SAMMY award-winning musician who has participated in the New York State Field Band Conference for almost twenty-five years as a performer, instructor, four-time champion, and currently as a music judge. His novel utilizes marching band to help young readers find who they are inside, then use that information to fit in. The book will also help all readers get excited about the NYSFBC season that begins annually on the second Saturday of September. Competitions are held across the entire state on Saturdays and Sundays every week, with championships held annually on the last Sunday of October at the JMA Wireless Dome on the Syracuse University campus. Drummond tells the story of a young drummer who tries desperately to fit in by pursuing brass and woodwind instruments (with the help of some new friends). After some humorous and frustrating failures, he eventually realizes he fits nicely in the drumline and that this solution was staring him in the face all along. The story is loosely based on Blakley’s own experience joining marching band and the NYSFBC as a teen. At release, the eBook became an Amazon.com #1 best seller in four different categories. The novel has also received several five-star professional reviews and multiple book awards.

PRFB.net is an all-things percussion resource based in Syracuse, New York. The website features free sheet music, publications, apparel, and in-person studio lessons. Marching percussion consultation and show design are also available through the site as well as WGI winterguard audio editing services. Blakley’s percussion music and WGI sound designs have been utilized by groups all across the country.

Learn how to find yourself in the music at PRFB.net/Drummond

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Review copies of Drummond available. Press kit at PRFB.net/Press-Kit

Inquire for review copies of Drummond (electronic and print copies available)

 

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Book Banning Press Release

 

Click the thumbnail image below to view or download the Drummond press release PDF.

 

Drummond, Young-Adult Music Novel Challenges Book Bannings with Surreptitiously Non-Religious Protagonist

SYRACUSE, NEW YORK — Drummond: Learning to find himself in the music is a young adult novel by Patrick R. F. Blakley, a native of Syracuse, New York. His novel utilizes marching band to help young readers find who they are inside, then use that information to fit in. Using music as a starting point, the book guides its readers to think about some larger life events. It also helps readers learn to ask questions and seek out new information for developing a better specific understanding. The writing subtly shows how extraneous religion can be by drawing careful parallels to music. This subtlety is what underscores the story and also derides book bannings across the country. Drummond has been donated to several US counties that have persistently banned similar books.

Drummond tells the story of a young drummer who tries desperately to fit in by pursuing brass and woodwind instruments (with the help of some new friends). After some humorous and frustrating failures, he eventually realizes he fits nicely in the drumline and that this solution was staring him in the face all along. The story is loosely based on Blakley’s own experience joining marching band as a teen and his personal journey through life navigating some noteworthy topics outside of music. At release, the eBook became an Amazon.com #1 best seller in four different categories. The novel has also received several five-star professional reviews and multiple book awards.

PRFB.net is an all-things percussion resource based in Syracuse, New York. The website features free sheet music, publications, apparel, and in-person studio lessons. Marching percussion consultation and show design are also available through the site as well as WGI winterguard audio editing services. Blakley’s percussion music and WGI sound designs have been utilized by groups all across the country.

Learn how to find yourself in the music at PRFB.net/Drummond

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Review copies of Drummond available. Press kit at PRFB.net/Press-Kit

Inquire for review copies of Drummond (electronic and print copies available)

 

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Drummond Sell Sheet

 

 

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Interview Resources / Sample Q&A

Sample questions with sample answers below

 

 

• Q: The Drummond novel is almost a retelling of the Drummy Drum Joins Marchy Band children’s book. Some chapter titles are even taken straight out of the Drummy book. Illustrations of Drummy always depict him as a drum while everyone else in that book is human. So who is Drummond?
• A: Well, I was very much inspired by the illustrations in the Drummy Drum children’s book. Emily Hogan did a fantastic job depicting Drummy as a drum among humans. I kept asking myself why is he a drum and everyone else is human? I quickly realized that his outward appearance was who he was inside! I had to expand on that idea, and the most logical place was for the next oldest readers, young adults. Although this is a work of fiction, Drummond is very much myself. In fact, most of what happens throughout the story are events that occurred when I first joined marching band. Some chapters are completely made-up storylines, but the feelings conveyed are genuine feelings we’ve all experienced in our young lives, musicians or not.

 

• Q: What made you decide to utilize alliteration as often as we see in the story? It’s perhaps the most prominent literary device throughout the book!
• A: Alliteration became one of my most fun and valuable tools during the creation of this story. Drums are a very rhythmic instrument, obviously, and alliteration seems to give sentences a similar cadence and flow as you sound out certain passages. I thought it would be an excellent parallel for a book about drums, and band, to employ such a perfect literary device throughout the story. I hope it stimulates the reader in a way they might not have expected!

 

• Q: Spoiler alert for readers who haven’t finished the book yet, this question gives a bit of the story away! There are several parallels in which the events during a band practice are reflected in Drummond’s home life. Divorce is a very common issue for kids growing up and Drummond’s parents grow apart and ultimately get divorced by the story’s conclusion. Why do you feel this was an essential element to include and leave unresolved in the book?
• A: Well, the divorce of my parents didn’t quite have the same impact as it did with Drummond, but on the other hand, some kids are wounded pretty bad by their parents deciding to divorce. My own parents’ divorce did, in fact, happen in the way the book describes but it actually took place during my college years, unlike Drummond. He experienced it all behind the scenes of his new marching band life, well before high school. Divorce is entirely life-changing, and it can be devastating for a child. That’s why I chose to leave that loose end in the book, simply because it wasn’t something that would ever be fixed. Stories shouldn’t always have happy endings! The simple story here is that Drummond transforms into a percussionist while home life deteriorates around him. Books and movies that resolve every negative issue are not being truthful to themselves or reality.

 

• Q: This novel is geared very much toward readers who are musicians or young aspiring musicians. Is the book something a non-musician would also enjoy or even understand? The ‘pit’ comes to mind. Most unfamiliar readers might literally think it’s a giant hole underperforming students are tossed into, much like Drummond himself believed. Is that something that was done intentionally?
• A: This is another fun aspect of the book, that it engages readers differently. When I taught percussion and marching band, I’d always start the first rehearsal as if nobody knew anything about drumline at all. I used terminology like volumes instead of dynamics, talked about their hands instead of stickings, and started with very basic rudiments that were easy to learn quickly. We’d then obviously begin to introduce the proper terminology slowly throughout the season. The Drummond book takes the same approach for the reader. Basic concepts at first, then eventually the reader is shown a more technical term with the correct context clues to understand how it applies. So yeah, I think this story is something that anyone with any degree of musical experience, or lack thereof, can enjoy. In fact, I think the story is even great for older readers who want to reminisce, especially if they were in marching band in their past! It’s an easy read and will strike all the familiar chords.

 

• Q: Early in the story, Drummond discovers that he does not believe in god and that percussion replaces his religion. Why do you think it’s important to have a main character who is an atheist in your novel? And is that also a reflection of your own personal awakening?
• A: That is absolutely a reflection of who I was in the past and also who I am today. In fact, I remember when I found out that the word atheist even existed. Coincidentally, it was in high school band class! I grew up methodist, then my family switched to catholicism. Around that time, I started thinking about how two different churches could both be within the Christian faith but believe slightly different things. Turns out, there are an incredible number of different Christian churches, a staggaring number of slightly different beliefs across one religion! I began to question if I actually believe what Catholics believe or if there was a better fit for me. Finally, upon reading the bible for myself, I discovered that I don’t agree with many of the things that it actually said. Specifically, I was so morally opposed to the amount of death and destruction the god of the bible devastated his people with. These are things they don’t preach about or teach you in Sunday school. Actually, I was even kicked out of a Sunday school lesson for bringing these questions up to the class. A petty god; pettiness being a very human trait. When I finally took a step back and looked at my former religion from the outside, I saw people who literally thought they were drinking blood while chanting in monotone. Those are cult-like traits, conditioning techniques even. It was creepy to see that juxtaposed in modern society. I found myself in a conversation with a percussion friend back in high school school. She was the one that actually told me I was an atheist. I literally had to look the word up before realizing it was true. Now, I don’t like going around and advertising my atheism, but I felt compelled to include an atheist main character in my story, both because Drummond is a reflection of who I am and because there are very few stories with a non-religious main character!

 

• Q: The book has countless references to religion throughout each chapter. Can you expand on why a book with an atheist main character frequently references these religious ideas? It feels like there’s something more there.
• A: Yea, there’s something more there for sure. At first, I wanted to just compare how I felt at church on Sundays to how I felt taking drum lessons with my various instructors. Both were an hour of my week early in the morning, and both felt boring, like an obligation. While developing this idea, I realized that it seemed to crossfade with my religious beliefs as I explored my drumming talent. My percussion hobby filled that missing part of myself that religion had held hostage during my developmental years. The book subtly highlights this growth using religious symbols or specific buildings as metrics for my advancement in percussion. Drummond was a parishioner of percussion, but not yet a percussionist, right up until the book’s final line. The book ends when Drummond becomes a percussionist, perhaps a metaphor for disbanding religion completely!

 

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Drummond Book Excerpt & Audio Preview

 

Drummond Book Excerpt:

Chapter 1: Lessons Are A Lot Like Church

          "Hi Dru," the man says from my front door.
          I shudder just a little bit. Dru, a single syllable, bland and unsophisticated. Shouldn't a name be more interesting than a singular blurted sound? I mean, it represents an entire human life, complex and exciting, summed up by one syllable? Blah. I can't hold it against him, I think to myself, my name is Drummond, and he assumes I go by Dru. Every time this happens, I read that line in my head like a script. Sometimes I continue; they're just being friendly. Let's see if they're the type of person to ask what name I prefer. Some people are careful not to insult me by shortening the name my parents gave me. Not that I'd be insulted, but I guess some people actually take offense to something like that. Not me, though! I blur the line on sarcasm.
          Some people just call me Drummond right away. Usually, this is a sort of question that silently invites me to let them shorten it if I so choose. Others will use my full name but ask if I go by Dru or not. I always respond the same way, that they can call me both, but I prefer Drummond. Maybe I'm too nice. I don't love the name Dru, but I'm not going to correct someone because I don't want them to feel like they did something wrong. Maybe I tend to overthink this. Perhaps it's time to give up and let the wheel-of-randomness decide my name for everyone who meets me and spins it!
          The tiniest fraction of people will issue me a multiple-choice surprise quiz. I'm not a fan of tests, and I get a little bit uneasy.
          "Hi Drummond," they'd begin, "do you go by A: Drummond, B: Dru, C: Drum, or D: None of the above?"
          Okay, okay, they don't literally list them like that using lettered answers, but they do suggest abbreviations for my name. This single-question test is worth one-hundred percent of my grade. I better get this right since it'll go onto my permanent record with this testing institution. How do I answer, though? Am I allowed to choose more than one answer? How do I make sure they know I'm not offended by any of these names but that I do have a preferred designation. Should I give them strict percentages for every response on how often they're allowed to use each name? Or will they cling to the most dominant answer I give and brandish that title as the pilot insignia under the cockpit of a fighter jet?
          What nobody ever knows, and couldn't ever guess, is that my friends call me Drummy. I'm not sure who coined the nickname, maybe family, maybe a friend. If I had to guess, I'd say that in the past someone gave me the ol' pop-quiz, and I answered C, for Drum, and it turned into a nickname.
          C is the most common answer on most multiple-choice tests since teachers don't want to give up the correct answer right away for answers A or B. And to wait until D is tantamount to circling the correct answer themselves. C! C is definitely the correct answer precisely sixty-five percent of the time, which promises you a passing grade if you just pick C all the way down the page. You'll end up bored just sitting in class after handing in your test mere moments from receiving it, but boredom is a low price to pay for just getting by with the bare minimum. However, a coy teacher would know this and, in turn, might shift their correct answers to B, the next logical hiding place. Doing this would ultimately defeat the classic C strategy. Until it's brought before the Supreme Court of the United States of America, students using the C strategy against this tactic will plummet the overall grades of every school in the county, perhaps even the entire world!... Anyway, I probably got the wrong answer, and calling me Drum evolved into rebranding the nickname to Drummy.
          Nobody gets to pick their own nickname, but at least Drummy made sense. I'll always know someone's talking to me when they call me that; it sounds just like my full name.
          Funnier still, I think the name drew me toward drums. When asked what instrument I wanted to play, I gravitated toward drums, probably without realizing it! I think my dad played trumpet in school, but music isn't really a big part of our everyday lives. Besides racks of CDs in the family room and a tall wooden cabinet of sound gear, my starter drum pad just collected dust at home. Music and band is just another class in school.
          Half a second passed in slow motion as I oversaturated it with my tired inner monologue…
          "Hello," I simply respond to the man at my front door.



Chapter 1: Lessons Are A Lot Like Church (Cont'd)

          The kitchen table is an entirely foreign environment for Dwayne but a well-known meeting ground for my family and me. The room is habitable but sometimes hostile. The table stands fast between the kitchen and the family room. It nestles between arguments and television shows, homework and birthday parties, breakfast and dinner. The kitchen is no place to discuss religion. But then again, Dwayne's isn't just any religion.
          Dwayne lays upon the table forty commandments, or whatever he calls them. I'm not totally engaged with the man, rather, the clock on the wall behind him. About six, but ticking slow and tocking even slower.
          "Drummond," his big-finger points to the page, "how many of these do you know already?"
          I try to focus. I orient myself with the page, taking just a moment and stopping at the first thing I recognize.
          "Oh, I know, Paradiddles," the words confidently pop out of my mouth somehow.
          "Any others?" Dwayne encourages me.
          I take more time and actually look at a few before chiming in again.
          "Um, yeah, I think I know a lot of these already," I assure everyone at a mezzo-forte volume.
          This visit isn't what I thought it was, this whole meeting. Dwayne didn't cold call us at all! My parents had something to do with this entirely. Dwayne slides the first two pages toward me and goes through his bag on the floor next to his chair. I hear a familiar wooden sound as he haphazardly searches for a pencil at the bottom of his small black backpack. The next sheet he pulls out for me has some text with blank lines scattered throughout. Dwayne looks at me and gives me his pitch, an easy fastball right down the middle.
          "I want to sign you up for percussion lessons, Drummond. I teach music at the high school, and we're looking for a few more members. Your band teacher, Mr. Ti, gave me your name specifically, and I think you'd be a great fit," he continues for a moment. "Do you think you'd be interested in joining the marching band?... Not many eighth-grade students get the opportunity to play in the high school band. We would take several baby steps to get you up to speed, 'half-steps' we call them in music. Twelve half-steps, and I'm certain you'll be ready. A chromatic scale in D, for Drummond!"
          He smirks. That's probably pretty clever if you already understand what a half-step is. I don't, not yet anyway. We'll have to add that to the list of things he'll need to show me if I join the band.
          "Do you have any questions about any of this?" Dwayne pauses, turning all eyes toward me.
          "Yea, what's percussion?" I ask, slightly confused.
          I'm a drummer in school. Why would I play percussion? I just showed him I recognized these forty drum rudiments moments ago!
          "Percussion is drums," my father emphasizes. "You're a percussionist already, Drummy."
          I don't feel like a percussionist, as right as he may be. I barely feel like a drummer. Right now, I'm more of a boy that just owns two cheap drumsticks!

 

Wholesalers & Bookstores

Get stock of the Drummond novel through Ingram! Suggested price of $19.99 (with a retailer preferred wholesaler discount of 55%).

Search for Drummond: Learning to find himself in the music by Patrick R. F. Blakley. ISBN 978-1-0880-3772-0

 

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