The Church of John Coltrane

Before I’m accused of blasphemy, try googling it and you’ll find that such a church exists in (where else?) San Francisco. It’s actually called Saint John Coltrane African Orthodox church and is inspired by Coltrane’s 1964 album: A Love Supreme.

The teenage Jade Kelly is obsessed with Coltrane.

10 years later she leads a band that only plays his music.

Sikhism

When David and Luke first meet, Luke explains that he became a Sikh because the police wouldn’t let him ride his motorbike without a crash helmet, so he got the law changed so that Sikhs were able to drive around wearing their turbans. Not only is Luke based on a renowned Huddersfield eccentric, he did actually get the law changed!

Numerology

Numbers play an important part in the novel. Jax uses numerology to transform the letters of people’s names into meaningful information about them. The Lo Shu turtle and its totals of 15 (shown on the cover) have a significance that will change the course of lives. And of course there are numbers intrinsic to the game of darts, particularly ‘the perfect seven’ that so enthralls James.

Buddhism

You will be accompanying David to the Buddhist society and attending a lecture given by Christmas Humphreys. I remember Humphreys as an imposing, charismatic figure, brimming over with controversial opinions. His talks were more like sermons and some questioned whether he was a Theosophist rather than a Buddhist. I wasn’t allowed in his ‘advanced’ Zen class and so joined the beginners group, run by the amazing Basil Sladen, who you will also meet.

Zen

I don’t wish to give away too much of the plot but you will be encountering a Japanese form of archery called Kyudo and a book by Eugen Herigel called ‘Zen And The Art Of Archery.’ Although I still have an involvement with Zen Buddhism, I needed to research Kyudo and so attended some workshops in London.

Existentialism

I would suggest that David Carpenter hides behind his half-baked version of existentialism to mask his isolation. The Nietzschean idea is that there is no meaning, god, or hope. But if one can cry ‘yes’ in the face of this state of affairs, then man can elevate to superman. This may well be of some comfort if you have no friends or love in your life.

James Kelly as god.

Throughout the novel, many people believe in James. There are some that believe in his massive potential and others believe in him as a cash cow. David actually believes in him, almost as a deity, considering him to possess spiritual powers.