Squeak, Rumble, Whomp! Whomp! Whomp!

Starred review from September 1, 2012

PreS-Gr 1-Who better to lead children in a celebration of sound than jazz virtuoso Wynton Marsalis? From the "tluck...tlock" of a dripping faucet and the "Chrrick chrrrick" of toast being buttered to the noises of trucks, drums, and washboards, the musician gives voice to the sounds enveloping an African American boy throughout the day. The setting, established by the wrought iron balconies on the title page and furthered in contextual clues, is the birthplace of jazz (and Marsalis)-New Orleans. The retro style of the instruments on the endpapers will immediately connect readers familiar with Langston Hughes's First Book of Jazz (Watts, 1955) to Cliff Roberts's jaunty and decorative designs in that landmark introduction, adding another layer of appreciation. Rogers's lively ink and digital illustrations, with strong black lines; a controlled palette; visual quotes from Roberts; and intent, closed-eyed musicians, echo and continue the rhythmic exploration. The font conveying the sounds sashays and slithers around the images; printed in orange, it varies in size and weight to indicate volume. In one dynamic spread, four "Pizzicato violinists plick-pluck licks," with the one farthest away playing the softest (smallest) "tlick!" Floating against a white background, pictures and text read well from a distance; they practically call out for sharing with a group of eager noisemakers. The penultimate image is the boy with a horn, bringing to mind another famous New Orleans native. This exuberant articulation of sounds both subtle and grandiose is sure to inspire closer listening and creative responses.-Wendy Lukehart, Washington DC Public Library

Copyright 2012 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from September 1, 2012
Marsalis and Rogers, who collaborated on the scintillating Jazz ABZ (2005), reunite for this sonic celebration for the younger crowd. Marsalis contributes 10 three-line verses that crackle with invented sound words. Most verses link a couple of everyday sounds with one made by a musical instrument: "Big trucks on the highway RRRRUMBLE. / Hunger makes my tummy GRrruMBle. / The big bass drum goes "Bum! Brrrum! BRRRUMBLE!!!!" Rogers' digitally colored ink drawings depict a New Orleans setting. The narrator, an African-American boy in white high-tops, exudes curiosity and cool (and plays trumpet). Those onomatopoeic words, elegantly red-dressed in Caslon 540 Italic, will challenge readers and delight listeners. Marsalis' choices seem just right: "Chrrrick chrrrick chrrrick chrrrick--buttering my toast." An upright bass emits "Doom, Doom, Doom, Blap! Doom, Doom, Slap!" Rogers' hip, playfully cartoonish spreads pop with clever visual allusions to jazz tunes and players. Hand-lettered lyrics to a popular funeral song blow out of a church band's instruments; indeed, the tuba's bell forms the "O" for "O[h] didn't he ramble." An ambulance's side reads "U.M.M.G. Ambulance," a brilliant reference to the Billy Strayhorn tune whose titular acronym means "Upper Manhattan Medical Group." The final spread rounds up a cacophony of sounds, from "Squeak" and "Schuk-chuk" to "BAP!" Loud and clear, the creators show how tuning into everyday sounds can inspire music. Clap, clap, CLAP! (Picture Book. 3-7)

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Starred review from November 15, 2012
Preschool-G *Starred Review* Warm up those vocal chops and get ready for the swingingest read-aloud of the year. The creators of Jazz A B Z (2005) offer here an inventive and inspiring ode to the melodies and rhythms of everyday life. Using juiced-up onomatopoeia and spare rhymes that don't miss a beat, a young trumpeter (bearing a strong resemblance to the author) catalogs the musical sounds, from traditional instruments to neighborhood noise, of his life in New Orleans: the squeeeak of a screen door, the GRrruMBle of a cookie-craving stomach, the nervy brrrawmp of a jazz trombone slide. With sly nods to the city's musical heritage as well as jazz greats, Rogers' pitch-perfect, retro-cool illustrations pop against the white backgrounds and give the textwhich highlights the sounds in a red, varyingly sized, often undulating typefaceplenty of room to groove. A spirited entr'e into poetry, artistic inspiration, or the improvisational nature of jazz, this needs a little practice to get the cadence just right, but then it will be music to everyone's ears.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2012, American Library Association.)