None
Creatures of fantasy, folklore and religious tradition from the Fairy-Queen to the Firebird provide an intriguing introduction to classical music.
Here’s an appealing gallery of 20 fantastic characters depicted in music. There are elves and witches, trolls and skeletal dancers, ghosts and blessed spirits, a sorcerer’s apprentice, a sugarplum fairy, the devil and more. Each is presented in a few short paragraphs headed by the musical piece’s title, genre and composer. The text, smoothly translated from Spanish, often includes something of the background and story of the piece. These words are set against watercolor images featuring surreal and stylized figures. An accompanying CD presents the music: short, relatively familiar selections from Purcell in the 17th century to Ligeti in the late 20th. These range from solo songs and choruses to piano and orchestral pieces, recorded by well-known musicians. Some, like Schubert’s “Der Erlkönig” and Wagner’s “Valkyrie” prelude, are complete; others are just a familiar excerpt. (The text of Goethe’s poem “The Elf King” is reproduced without credit.) Most are under 2 minutes. These pieces have been well-chosen to demonstrate the range and variety of classical music and its performers. Extensive, informative backmatter describes each selection and composer and includes a timeline and glossary. Second in a series by a classically trained Mexican pianist that began with Listen to the Birds (2013), this will be welcomed by teachers, music-loving parents and their children. (Informational picture book/CD. 7-12)
NonePub Date: June 1, 2014
ISBN: 978-2-924217-21-4
Page Count: 68
Publisher: The Secret Mountain
Review Posted Online: May 3, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2014
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Poet Alexander deftly reveals the power of the format to pack an emotional punch.
Basketball-playing twins find challenges to their relationship on and off the court as they cope with changes in their lives.
Josh Bell and his twin, Jordan, aka JB, are stars of their school basketball team. They are also successful students, since their educator mother will stand for nothing else. As the two middle schoolers move to a successful season, readers can see their differences despite the sibling connection. After all, Josh has dreadlocks and is quiet on court, and JB is bald and a trash talker. Their love of the sport comes from their father, who had also excelled in the game, though his championship was achieved overseas. Now, however, he does not have a job and seems to have health problems the parents do not fully divulge to the boys. The twins experience their first major rift when JB is attracted to a new girl in their school, and Josh finds himself without his brother. This novel in verse is rich in character and relationships. Most interesting is the family dynamic that informs so much of the narrative, which always reveals, never tells. While Josh relates the story, readers get a full picture of major and minor players. The basketball action provides energy and rhythm for a moving story.
Poet Alexander deftly reveals the power of the format to pack an emotional punch. (Verse fiction. 9-12)Pub Date: March 18, 2014
ISBN: 978-0-544-10771-7
Page Count: 240
Publisher: HMH Books
Review Posted Online: Dec. 17, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2014
SEEN & HEARD
BOOK TO SCREEN
BOOK TO SCREEN
Having put together a band with renowned cousin Duck Ellington and singer “Bee” Holiday, Rooster’s chances sure look...
Winning actually isn’t everything, as jazz-happy Rooster learns when he goes up against the legendary likes of Mules Davis and Ella Finchgerald at the barnyard talent show.
Having put together a band with renowned cousin Duck Ellington and singer “Bee” Holiday, Rooster’s chances sure look good—particularly after his “ ‘Hen from Ipanema’ [makes] / the barnyard chickies swoon.”—but in the end the competition is just too stiff. No matter: A compliment from cool Mules and the conviction that he still has the world’s best band soon puts the strut back in his stride. Alexander’s versifying isn’t always in tune (“So, he went to see his cousin, / a pianist of great fame…”), and despite his moniker Rooster plays an electric bass in Bower’s canted country scenes. Children are unlikely to get most of the jokes liberally sprinkled through the text, of course, so the adults sharing it with them should be ready to consult the backmatter, which consists of closing notes on jazz’s instruments, history and best-known musicians.Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-1-58536-688-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Sleeping Bear Press
Review Posted Online: July 19, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2011
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