The Arts

Trombone Shorty by Troy “Trombone Shorty” Andrews, illustrated by Bryan Collier

~ Janet Dawson ~ 1 Comment

Published by Harry N. Abrams

Summary:  Bryan Collier has illustrated books by famous African Americans such as Martin Luther King, Jr., Rosa Parks, and Langston Hughes.  Now he has collaborated with musician Troy Andrews to tell the story of Troy’s early life.  From a very young age, Troy looked up to his musician brother James and made music with whatever he could find.  When he was four, he found a broken-down trombone and taught himself to play, taking it with him wherever he went, and earning himself the nickname Trombone Shorty.  When his mother took him to the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, he took his trombone and played along with Bo Diddley.  Bo stopped and asked who was playing.  The crowd passed young Troy up to the stage and the two played together.  Now Trombone Shorty has his own band, as well as a foundation to help other young musicians in New Orleans.

Pros:  Troy tells his story with a distinctive voice influenced by his New Orleans childhood.  Collier’s watercolor collage illustrations really capture the feel of New Orleans jazz.  Back matter includes more information about Andrews’ life and a note on how the illustrations were created.

Cons:  A person born the year I graduated college is an award-winning musician with his own foundation.

Swing Sisters: The Story of the International Sweethearts of Rhythm by Karen Deans

~ Janet Dawson ~ 1 Comment

Published by Holiday House

Summary:  Piney Woods Country Life School was a remarkable school for African-American orphans in Mississippi.  In 1939, the school’s director organized an all-girl band to raise money for the school.  He called the group the Sweethearts, and they played big band music at schools and churches around the state.  When the girls graduated, they decided to move to Washington, DC to try to make a living.  Eventually, they traveled all over the country, playing for crowds as large as 35,000.  Their biggest concern was making great music; when some of the women left, their replacements were of different races, which made for some complications when touring in the south.  The Sweethearts went on a six-month USO tour of Europe during World War II.  After the war, it was hard for them to make a living with their music, and the group broke up, but they had opened doors for women of all races in the music business.  Recommended for grades 2-4.

Pros:  This inspiring nonfiction picture book reminded me of the movie A League of Their Own about women baseball players from the same era.  It would be fun to share some of the Sweethearts music after reading this.  Here’s a YouTube clip that looks just like one of the illustrations: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WczP3PyHt20

Cons:  Too bad these women couldn’t make enough money to keep the band alive after World War II.

Elvis: The Story of the Rock and Roll King by Bonnie Christensen

~ Janet Dawson ~ 1 Comment

Published by Henry Holt

Summary:  This picture book biography focuses on Elvis Presley’s early years, growing up in extreme poverty in the south.  From a very young age, Elvis was drawn to music, and he was surrounded by a wide range of influences.  Even though his town was segregated by race and class, the music of jazz, blues, and gospel was everywhere.  When Elvis was 13, his family moved from Mississippi to Memphis, and he learned to play guitar.  A few years later, he managed to get a recording session with Sun Records.  It was turning into a disaster, when Elvis started singing “That’s All Right”, a Delta blues song he infused with country and gospel.  That song became a hit, and Elvis Presley was on his way.

Pros:  Kids today may see Elvis Presley as something of a joke, and this story really humanizes him, portraying him sympathetically as a nervous kid who loved music.

Cons:  Elvis looks a lot better in these illustrations than he did when I saw him in the candy aisle at Walmart last week.

Drum Dream Girl : How One Girl’s Courage Changed Music by Margarita Engle, illustrated by Rafael Lopez

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Published by HMH Books for Young Readers

Summary:  Millo Castro Zaldarriaga, a Chinese-African-Cuban girl growing up in 1930’s Cuba, dreamed of playing drums.  But only boys were allowed to be drummers.  She kept dreaming, though, and practicing any way she could, until finally her father allowed her to take drum lessons.  By the age of 15, she was good enough to play at President Franklin Roosevelt’s birthday celebration, and she went on to perform with many of the great jazz players of her time.

Pros: This is really a poem inspired by the story of Zaldarriaga.  It’s a celebration of following your dream, illustrated with eye-popping neon colors that perfectly capture the celebrations and street cafes where Millo hears the music she loves.

Cons: You’ll need to give some context for kids to understand what this book is about. The historical note at the end is a good place to start.

Gordon Parks: How the Photographer Captured Black and White America by Carole Boston Weatherford, illustrated by Jamey Christoph

~ Janet Dawson ~ 1 Comment

Published by Albert Whitman and Company

Summary:  Born in 1915 in Kansas, Gordon Parks grew up hearing from his white teachers that he was destined to be a porter or a waiter.  He did indeed become a waiter, but the purchase of a $7.50 camera put him on the road to a new career as a photographer.  He worked for the Farm Security Administration, Life, and Vogue, and was the first African American to direct a feature film.  He used his photos to work for human rights, exposing the plight of African Americans in big cities like Chicago and Washington, D.C.

Pros:  The lyrical writing and colorful illustrations are a perfect match.  I love biographies like this that teach about a little-known person who made contributions to both art and humanitarianism.

Cons:  The spare text gives only the bare bones of Parks’ life.  Be sure to read the author’s note at the end.

Draw What You See: The Life and Art of Benny Andrews by Kathleen Benson, illustrated by Benny Andrews.

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Published by Clarion Books

Summary:  Born in 1933 to sharecropper parents in Plainview, Georgia, Benny Andrews started drawing at the age of three.  He was able to finish high school, attend college, and eventually studied at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago.  He worked as an artist and a teacher, illustrated children’s books, was an activist to get museums to include more works by artists of color, and started a prison art program.  In 2006, he traveled to New Orleans to help children to use art to express what they had seen.  In an age of abstract art, Andrews believed in the power of “drawing what you see”, focusing his work on people and scenes from his own life.

Pros:  Not only does this story bring to life a man who contributed to the world in many positive ways, but it’s illustrated with his own works.  Since Andrews died in 2006, it doesn’t appear that he actually illustrated the book, but the artwork chosen vividly illustrates the text, and provides many examples of his interesting work.

Cons:  This seems to be the only biography in existence about this interesting and inspiring artist.