Review: The Rise of The Mad March

THE RISE OF THE MAD MARCH

by ROBERT ESPENSCHEID JR.

New Adult / Coming of Age / Friendship

Publisher: Stoney Creek Publishing

Pages: 374

Publication Date: May 9, 2025

SYNOPSIS

This one is for all the rock bands who never headlined the big stage, who never needed protection getting to the limo, who never made any money, who never got signed, who had no answer to the cry of “why aren’t you guys famous?” It’s for those who wrote killer songs never heard on the radio, who never made a Rolling Stone cover—or even a mention inside. It’s for those whose collars were always blue, who were promised this and wound up with that, who always opened and never closed.

America, 1973. Christine on lead, Henry on rhythm, Gretchen on bass and Melissa on drums. A chaotic rise, fighting amongst themselves, battling self-destruction, finding their sound, learning to trust, finding a helping hand, overcoming convention (girls can’t play guitar) to become one band, on one tour, for one month – New York to LA and all the stories in between.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Rob Espenscheid, Jr. is a Connecticut native and a 1966 Wake Forest College graduate. After an Army RVN stint in 1969, Rob pulled up stakes and moved to the rural Midwest, settling in southern Iowa in the early 1970s. Prairie life provided a career tuning and repairing pianos from cattle country small towns to collegiate concert halls. When not tinkering on a piano, he can usually be found either on a golf course or working on a manuscript. In 1998, family connections led to a move, with his wife Sharon, to Smithville, Texas.

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It was a real treat to read Rob Espenscheid’s The Rise of The Mad March! I love stories that have to do with bands, the music scene, and especially those that take place during an earlier time than the present. Why do these tales resonate with me when I have absolutely nothing to do with music except for singing along (badly) to my Spotify playlist? It’s everything that it takes to create music, and especially a band. It’s the rise and fall of popularity. It’s the comradery and opposition of band members. It’s the family and friendship, and sometimes it’s the destruction. I found a bit of everything in The Rise of The Mad March.

The tale follows Henry Hollins’ story, but it really is about the band itself - so it includes his female bandmates, Christine, Gretchen, and Melissa - in 1970s Iowa. It was a time of change and turbulence after Vietnam, and Henry finds himself wanting to chase the dream of music. Along with the misfits he picks up along the way (i.e. his bandmates), they experience the love and upheaval of what it means to have a found family in the land of success. Although what we read is the story of a band on it’s way up and everything that entails with the eventual ups and downs, what I really took from the story is the friendship and family aspects. Each member of this band comes with their own brand of trauma and experiences and they face their circumstances together - for better or worse.

So, come for the music, but stay for the journey of friendship because that is exactly what you’ll find in Espenscheid’s The Rise of The Mad March. Truly a great read.

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