Appealing and informative for a broad range.
From classical to pop, an exploration of 10 Western musical genres with poetic words, images, and short essays.
Classical, Latin, jazz, country, heavy metal, hip-hop, rock ’n’ roll, rhythm and blues, and electronic are the genres amateur musician and award-winning illustrator Johnson has chosen to present. This unusually formatted book has a concertina binding, with one long piece of cardstock folded accordion style. It reads from the front like a picture book. Each spread presents a single genre in both words and pictures. Improvisation is a feature of many musical styles, the writer tells us. It’s also a good word for the poetic text, the scatlike syllables that convey the sounds, and the colors, shapes, and images on the pages. Even the simple text has a sonic verve, with its varied typography. Johnson’s descriptions work: Country is “poignant stories”; heavy metal is “roughened steel blazing a trail of light”; electronica is “liquid sound cascading over an endless sea.” Reading on the reverse side, each spread includes a couple of paragraphs offering extended description and history, a list of the usual instruments, six examples of pieces with their composers or performers, and a quote from someone in that musical world. Adult readers knowledgeable about one genre or another might argue about the choices, but the child audience of readers, listeners, and players will find this a rich resource to explore.
Appealing and informative for a broad range. (author’s note, acknowledgments, bibliography) (Informational picture book/novelty. 7-14)Pub Date: Oct. 27, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-4169-9950-8
Page Count: 52
Publisher: Paula Wiseman/Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Nov. 26, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2020
It’s hard to argue with success, but guides that actually do the math will be more useful to budding capitalists.
How to raise money for a coveted poster: put your friends to work!
John, founder of the FUBU fashion line and a Shark Tank venture capitalist, offers a self-referential blueprint for financial success. Having only half of the $10 he needs for a Minka J poster, Daymond forks over $1 to buy a plain T-shirt, paints a picture of the pop star on it, sells it for $5, and uses all of his cash to buy nine more shirts. Then he recruits three friends to decorate them with his design and help sell them for an unspecified amount (from a conveniently free and empty street-fair booth) until they’re gone. The enterprising entrepreneur reimburses himself for the shirts and splits the remaining proceeds, which leaves him with enough for that poster as well as a “brand-new business book,” while his friends express other fiscal strategies: saving their share, spending it all on new art supplies, or donating part and buying a (math) book with the rest. (In a closing summation, the author also suggests investing in stocks, bonds, or cryptocurrency.) Though Miles cranks up the visual energy in her sparsely detailed illustrations by incorporating bright colors and lots of greenbacks, the actual advice feels a bit vague. Daymond is Black; most of the cast are people of color. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
It’s hard to argue with success, but guides that actually do the math will be more useful to budding capitalists. (Picture book. 7-9)Pub Date: March 21, 2023
ISBN: 978-0-593-56727-2
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Random House
Review Posted Online: Dec. 13, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2023
Brava!
From award winner Telgemeier (Smile, 2010), a pitch-perfect graphic novel portrayal of a middle school musical, adroitly capturing the drama both on and offstage.
Seventh-grader Callie Marin is over-the-moon to be on stage crew again this year for Eucalyptus Middle School’s production of Moon over Mississippi. Callie's just getting over popular baseball jock and eighth-grader Greg, who crushed her when he left Callie to return to his girlfriend, Bonnie, the stuck-up star of the play. Callie's healing heart is quickly captured by Justin and Jesse Mendocino, the two very cute twins who are working on the play with her. Equally determined to make the best sets possible with a shoestring budget and to get one of the Mendocino boys to notice her, the immensely likable Callie will find this to be an extremely drama-filled experience indeed. The palpably engaging and whip-smart characterization ensures that the charisma and camaraderie run high among those working on the production. When Greg snubs Callie in the halls and misses her reference to Guys and Dolls, one of her friends assuredly tells her, "Don't worry, Cal. We’re the cool kids….He's the dork." With the clear, stylish art, the strongly appealing characters and just the right pinch of drama, this book will undoubtedly make readers stand up and cheer.
Brava! (Graphic fiction. 10-14)Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2012
ISBN: 978-0-545-32698-8
Page Count: 240
Publisher: Graphix/Scholastic
Review Posted Online: July 21, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2012
SEEN & HEARD
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