As an art student Dave Kobrenski had a fondness for the great outdoors. He would climb mountains and trek his way through the American wilderness. Sleeping under the stars, his backpack filled with spiritual books by Buddhist poets, Native American holy men and Indian philosophers, he was a seeker of truth and enlightenment. Then, a chance opportunity to provide illustrations for a scientific expedition took him further afield to Ghana. Instantly bewitched by the continent, Kobrenski began a lifelong relationship with the music, culture and spirituality of West Africa devoting his time to learning about ritual drumming and the traditions of an ancient land.

After his first visit to West Africa, Kobrenski became a serious student of the traditional rhythms of the Malinké and studied drumming with numerous master musicians. This led him to build a career as a musician/teacher in the USA and this, combined with his painting, is how he is best known. Those wishing to learn more about the music of the Malinké people, their djembé drums and other traditional instruments would be better served with Kobrenski’s earlier book, Djoliba Crossing.

When he was struck down by a mystery illness–a section of his spine had fused resulting in a debilitating affliction which would lead to an expensive and increasingly futile dependence on pharmaceuticals–Kobrenski struggled to return to the USA and when he finally arrived home he realized that his life had changed forever. When the condition had first appeared in West Africa there had been rumors in the village in which he was living that he had been cursed by sorcery or malevolent spirits. Despite building a career as a successful musician and artist, Kobrenski’s chronic addiction to opioid painkillers and the worsening of his condition offered an increasingly bleak future. In desperation he decided to return to the place where it all started to investigate whether there was any truth to the story that he has been cursed and, if so, would it be possible for the curse to be lifted.

There is still much on music included within the pages of FINDING THE SOURCE but in the main the book is an autobiographical travelogue and a study of spirituality and healing. Kobrenski writes with great charm and is an enlightening guide to aspects of African life and culture with particularly fascinating investigations into the history of voudoun and ritual magic. Though always mindful that he may inadvertently stumble into cultural appropriation or the “othering” of post-colonialism, Kobrenski’s prose is balanced between reverent and informed observation and solid, competent travel writing. He effortlessly evokes the arid expanse of the savannah and the chaos of travelling across a country where the roads are apt to crumble beneath the ragged hulk of his ancient jalopy. There are moments of humor and moments of great warmth as Kobrenski is shown kindness by those helping him in his quest to find a particular healer.

FINDING THE SOURCE is a well-written travelogue with a narrative driven by a personal quest for both physical and spiritual healing. A talented visual artist, Dave Kobrenski shows he is also able to paint an intriguing and illuminating portrait of a place using only well-crafted words.

~Kent Lane for IndieReader