Happy Release Day!
Congratulations Matt
on the release today of
Restrung!
Restrung: Fatherhood in a Different Key by Matt Fogelson
Memoir, Fatherhood, 304 pages
Published February 3, 2026 by SparkPress
Weaving the author’s coming of age in 1980s New York with his life as a father today, this Nick Hornby–meets–Cheryl Strayed debut memoir examines father-son relationships, the pain of early parent loss, and the importance of embracing your passions.
For nearly fifteen years, Matt Fogelson didn’t recognize how deeply the early death of his workaholic father had affected him. Then he had a son of his own and the floodgates opened, helping him realize that even deeper than the wound left by his father’s death were the wounds inflicted by his absence while alive.
Restrung follows Fogelson from his beginnings as a music-loving kid combing through vinyl in Greenwich Village, through his struggles to overcome his grief during young adulthood, and into becoming a man who is startled by the reemergence of his long-suppressed passion for music after becoming a father. Told with humor, grief, and hope, it’s the story of a passionate music lover’s effort to break free of the real and imagined constraints standing between him and his best life—an effort that ultimately allows Fogelson’s son to know his father in a way Fogelson never knew his.
Funny and deeply honest, Restrung is a balm for every father and son fortunate enough to still have each other in their lives. It will inspire readers to try to cross the emotional gulf that seems almost endemic to the father-son relationship and finally break through to one another.
My thoughts about Restrung ~~
(I love to note the first lines of the books I'm reading. First lines can really grab a reader's attention and I love seeing where the author takes the reader after their first lines.)
First lines—"'River gonna take me, sing me sweet and sleepy. Sing me sweet and sleepy all the way back home.' Those were the words I sang that finally cracked the code, that finally nudged my two-day-old son Jed off to sleep his first night home.
Matt Fogelson documents the importance of music that he has felt his whole life in this interesting memoir. As he becomes a new father, he thinks back to the ways that music has influenced his thinking and feelings for as far back as he can remember.
Growing up loving music, concerts, and playing record albums brought him clarity and thoughts to contemplate. After his father died, he struggled with how to go on, thinking about how much he missed his father and how much his father was missing out on his own son's life. As always, music was the savior comforting him through the bad times and blessing him during the good times.
I enjoyed all the snippets of lyrics and mentions of bands sprinkled throughout the book. Each incident reminded me of how much music was, and still is, such a big part of my own life. In the end, Matt hopes that his own son will take comfort and strength from the music that is so important to him.
Restrung: Fatherhood in a Different Key is a must read for all music lovers!
I received an ARC of Restrung and this is my honest opinion.
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About the author
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Matt Fogelson is a writer and former lawyer whose true passion is music, primarily of the classic rock variety. His Substack, Fine Tuning, blends personal storytelling with a love for the music that makes sense of life, centering on new artists and the intersection of music and parenting.
His work has appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post, Scary Mommy, and NPR. Matt resides in Oakland, California. ~ Amazon
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