Violin

April 1, 2014

Gr 1-5-Everything about these books, each highlighting a single type of instrument, is beautiful. Poetic language describes the imagery each instrument's sound evokes ("Rumbling thunder. Waves crashing against rocks."), while well-composed photographs of details or performers take up the entirety of every facing page. Simple, declarative sentences place the instrument within its family, describe its physical aspects, and break down the parts of the instrument. Readers will learn the mechanism by which the instrument is played and creates sound and meet a musician (e.g., Elton John in Piano, David Gilmour in Guitar). A page of history highlights a precursor or early example, such as the dizi, a bamboo flute from China, or an early European instrument such as the pianoforte. Brief but well-edited back matter (e.g., a YouTube video of James Galway demonstrating embouchure in Flute) provides fascinating further exploration.

Copyright 2014 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.