Seventeen traditional American and Chinese songs are written in artist Xu Bing’s signature Square Word Calligraphy.
Look! What Do You See?
Music
Ossiri and the Bala Mengro
A Traveller girl creates her own musical instrument from a willow branch and lots of recycled objects. She plays it enthusiastically, but it sounds terrible! Ignoring warnings not to awaken the ogre in the hills, Ossiri goes there to practice playing her instrument.
Esquivel!
Juan Garcia Esquivel was born in Mexico and grew up to the sounds of mariachi bands. He loved music and became a musical explorer. Defying convention, he created music that made people laugh and planted images in their minds.
Echo
Lost in the Black Forest, Otto meets three mysterious sisters and finds himself entwined in a prophecy, a promise, and a harmonica–and decades later three children, Friedrich in Germany, Mike in Pennsylvania, and Ivy in California find themselves caught up in the same thread of destiny in the darkest days of the twentieth century, struggling to keep their families intact, and tied together by the music of the same harmonica.
Join the discussion of Echo as well as other books centered around relocation on our My Take/Your Take page.
See the review at WOW Review, Volume VIII, Issue 1.
Finding the Music
A young Latina girl accidentally breaks her grandfather’s vihuela and searches for someone in the community to fix the instrument, which leads her to discover her grandfather’s legacy as a mariachi. Includes an author’s note and glossary.
Music Everywhere!
Photographs from around the world celebrate the universal joy that kids get from making music, whether they’re playing instruments, clapping their hands, stomping their feet, or singing.
Summoning The Phoenix
Every musician knows that learning to play an instrument has its challenges and its rewards. There’s the embarrassing first day of rehearsal, but also the joy of making friends in the orchestra. There’s dealing with a slippery concert dress or simply getting swept up in the music. The twelve children in this book are just like any other musicians practicing their instruments and preparing for a concert. But what sets these music lovers apart is that they all play traditional Chinese musical instruments in a Chinese orchestra.
There’s A Hole In My Bucket
A retelling of a German folksong about a bear unable to water his flowers because every attempt to repair the hole in his bucket only leads to further problems.
The Chinese Violin
When Lin Lin and her father immigrate to Canada from China, they bring with them one of their most treasured possessions – a traditional Chinese violin. From the beauty of their new country to the uneasiness of not fitting in, this violin sees them through all their experiences, good and bad.
Herman And Rosie
Once upon a time in a very busy city, on a very busy street, in two very small apartments, lived Herman and Rosie. Herman liked playing the oboe, the smell of hot dogs in the winter, and watching films about the ocean. Rosie liked pancakes, listening to old jazz records, and watching films about the ocean. They both loved the groovy rhythm of the city, but sometimes the bustling crowds and constant motion left them lonely. One day, they lost their job and they lost the urge to play music. Finally they came to listen to each other’s music.