Just a Lucky So and So

April 25, 2016
Despite impoverished beginnings, music and a prevailing joie de vivre carried young Louis Armstrong from the streets of New Orleans to the stages of New York City, Hollywood, and Europe. The Ransomes swiftly trace Armstrong’s musical development, acquiring his first “pawnshop cornet” and apprenticing with mentor Joe Oliver; an unwelcome stint at the Colored Waif’s Home for Boys provided additional training. Quotations from Armstrong float across the pages (“When I pick up that horn, that’s all. The world’s behind me, and I don’t concentrate. On nothing but it. I love them notes”) as Ransome’s fluid watercolors bring to life both the New Orleans neighborhood Armstrong called home and his musical passion—he’s holding or playing his horn in nearly every scene. A detailed author’s note dives deeper into the performer’s life, rounding out a solid introduction to Satchmo. Ages 6–10.

February 15, 2016
Cline-Ransome traces Armstrong's storied arc, from an impoverished New Orleans childhood to his apex as a giant of jazz. The episodic narrative, studded with place names, locates in "Little Louis' " tough early days the keys to his musical education. Louis helps his family by hauling coal, selling newspapers, and picking through garbage. New Orleans' omnipresent music permeates his being: "Every day, outside his window, Little Louis listened up and down the streets, to the music of brass bands, funeral marches, honky-tonks on Saturday nights." Captivated by brilliant cornetist Joe "King" Oliver, Louis buys a pawn-shop cornet, harmonizes in a street band--and runs afoul of the police once too often. Sent to the Colored Waif's Home for Boys, Louis "missed his mama, his sister, and his cornet." The facility has a performing band, however--and Louis wins over its teacher. In one of several interspersed (but undocumented) quotes, Armstrong quips: "Me and music got married at the home." Released at 14, he apprentices with Oliver, plays in his bands, and follows him to Chicago and beyond. Ransome's vivid, saturated paintings depict cityscapes and riverboats, framing Armstrong in windows and rectangular insets, and capturing the music's joy in paradegoers' faces. A nuanced author's note features a detail about Louis' uncorrected embouchure, and resources include eight well-annotated websites for multimedia study. Upbeat and celebratory--like Pops himself. (Picture book/biography. 6-9)

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February 1, 2016

PreS-Gr 3-The iconic and groundbreaking musician gets a gorgeous picture book biography from the wife-and-husband team who created Benny Goodman and Teddy Wilson: Taking the Stage as the First Black-and-White Jazz Band in History (Holiday House, 2014). The mostly lyrical work touches upon the jazz performer's humble beginnings in New Orleans, his musical influences, and his career highlights. The watercolor illustrations elevate the narrative; ranging in color from murky browns to gem-toned hues. Ransome's depictions are reminiscent of Jerry Pinkney's artwork in Marilyn Nelson's Sweethearts of Rhythm: The Story of the Greatest All-Girl Swing Band in the World (Dial, 2009). The variation of design, with square-shaped insets, joy-filled profiles, and vivacious dance scenes, makes the paintings reverberate off the page. The sometimes dry text doesn't shy away from the not-so-lucky moments of the entertainer's early life, including his scrapes with the law, which landed him at the Colored Waif's Home for Boys. One scene, in which a young Armstrong holds a gun at a New Year's Eve celebration, may shock sensitive readers. It was at this home where Armstrong found his true calling as a musician. Quotations from Armstrong are sprinkled throughout, but, unfortunately, source notes aren't provided. However, the detailed author's note offers more background information for young researchers, and the back matter includes age-appropriate further reading and links to websites that feature archive photos and sound recordings. Armstrong's connection to the "Just a Lucky So and So" referenced in the title, a song written by Duke Ellington and David Mack, which Armstrong and Ellington performed on a famous 1961 recording, is fleshed out in the author's note but doesn't receive much elaboration in the text. VERDICT A solid choice for school libraries and collections looking to freshen up biography collections for school-age readers.-Shelley Diaz, School Library Journal

Copyright 2016 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

April 1, 2016
Grades 1-4 It may well be that Louis Armstrong was just a lucky so and so, as the title of this biography proclaims, but between the covers of this book is the tale of a life of optimism, persistence, and resourcefulness. Little Louis Armstrong was born in the poor part of New Orleans and got his start listening to the music of his neighborhoodbrass bands, honky-tonk combos, and church songs. Louis first started tooting his tin horn at age seven while working with Morris, a scrap collector who bought the boy his first horn and encouraged him to play. Louis' optimism never wavered, even in the face of heartbreaking setbacks, and his broad smile earned him the nickname, Satchel mouthSatchmo, for short. The narrative is dense with biographical details about his rise to fame and quotes from Satchmo himself. Bold watercolor illustrations infused with light and movement add the perfect complement to this sweet tale of one of America's musical treasures. Can be paired with Troy Andrews' Trombone Shorty (2015).(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2016, American Library Association.)