New Orleans and jazz are a potent, and favorite, combination - add to it Michael Ondaatje's (who also wrote The English Patient) poetic prose and you have a dreamy complex story that takes you to another place.
I'd first read Coming Through Slaughter back during my senior year of high school and it made an impression. Recently, I reread it and enjoyed it even more. If you're looking for something a bit different, but brilliant, this book is worth checking out.
