Children's
Literature Final Project
by Sara Douglass
TOPIC:
JAZZ
Children's
Literature Final Project
TOPIC:
JAZZ
Here is a collection of children's literature that relate to jazz.
Elmhurst College is a wonderful place to sing, play, and hear jazz...especially
during the Elmhurst College Jazz Festival that takes place each February.
The following books can be used by everyone- in an elementary school classroom
as well as used as an enhancement to a collegiate course. Enjoy!
~Sara
BIOGRAPHIES
Duke Ellington: The Piano Prince and His Orchestra
Pinkney, Andrea Davis. Duke Ellington: The Piano Prince and His Orchestra. New York: Hyperion Books for Children, 1998. A biography that focuses on the career of this jazz musician and composer. With his orchestra, Duke Ellington created music that was better than anything heard before.
Kliment, Bud. Ella Fitzgerald. New York: Chelsea House, 1988. This is the story of the famous black American jazz singer, Ella Fitzgerald, who served society through the excellence of her achievements and service to others. It includes an introduction by Coretta Scott King and many wonderful photographs.
Venezia, Mike. George Gershwin. Chicago, IL: Children's Press, 1994. This book is a biography of George Gershwin that is very easy to read. It progresses through his entire life and focuses on his piece Rhapsody in Blue and other marvelous compositions.
Once Upon a Time in Chicago: The Story of Benny Goodman
Winter, Jonah. Once Upon a Time in Chicago: The Story of Benny Goodman. New York: Hyperion Books for Children, 2000. This book is a simple biography of the great jazz musician, Benny Goodman. It explains how his extraordinary musical ability was originally encouraged by his immigrant father, and how he grew up to be a jazz legend.
Schroeder, Alan. Satchmo's Blues. New York: Doubleday Book for Young Readers, 1996. This book is a fictional recreation of the childhood of trumpeter Louis Armstrong. It describes how he grew up in New Orleans and earned money to buy his first trumpet.
POETRY
Igus, Toyomi. I See The Rhythm. San Francisco, CA: Children's Book Press, 1998. This beautiful book uses poetry and wonderful paintings to explain the history, mood, and movement of African American music. It begins with its origins in Africa and continues through blues, jazz, gospel, and even contemporary rap music. Each page includes dates with specific historical information that relates to the music of the time.
Weatherford, Carole B. The Sound That Jazz Makes. New York: Walker & Co., 2000. This book is a wonderful illustrated history of the origins and influences of jazz, from Africa to modern America.
London, Jonathan. Who Bop? New York: Harper Collins, 2000. In this story, Jazz-bo is a saxophone player who plays swinging music while hip hares and cool cats dance. All of the animals don't think of their differences, but just enjoy the music together.
London, Jonathan. Hip Cat. San Francisco: Chronicle Books, 1993. This is a story of a black cat who plays the saxophone. He is first rejected by the big clubs that are owned by dogs, but keeps practicing and playing until he has made it to the top. The text contains a lot of rhyme and jazz slang,even including some unexpected meter shifts that model jazz licks.
REALISTIC FICTION
Collier, James Lincoln. The Jazz Kid. New York: Puffin Books, 1996. Paulie Horvath plays the coronet, and it is the first thing that this twelve-year-old has taken seriously. He loves jazz and is very talented, but his desire with becoming a jazz musician leads him into conflict with his parents and into the tough underworld of Chicago in the 1920s.
Bud,
Not Buddy
Curtis, Christopher Paul. Bud, Not Buddy. New York: Delacorte
Press, 1999. Bud Caldwell is a 10-year-old orphan who is in search
of his father, a famous bandleader and bass player. He has many adventures
along the way, and throughout the novel Bud's determination and strength
are shown.
PICTURE BOOKS
Raschka, Chris. Charlie Parker Played Be Bop. New York: Orchard Books, 1992. This book introduces the famous saxophonist, Charlie Parker, and his style of jazz known as bebop. The words were inspired by Night in Tunisia, a bebop tune that he helped make famous.
McConduit, Denise W. D.J. and the Jazz Fest. New York: Pelican Pub. Co., 1997. Although he does not want to go at first, D.J. has a good time and learns a lot when he joins his mother and godmother at the annual jazz festival in New Orleans.
Gollub, Matthew. The Jazz Fly. Santa Rosa, CA: Tortuga Press, 2000. The fly is lost and speaks in scat as he tries to ask other animals how to get to the town. Arriving at the jazz club, Jazz Fly plays the drums and receives a wonderful audience response. This book also includes an audio cd.
Arrhenius, Peter. The Penguin Quartet. Minneapolis, MN: Carolrhoda Books, 1998. In this hilarious story, four penguin fathers are tired of watching over their soon-to-be-hatched eggs, so they form a jazz band and travel to New York to play at all the coolest clubs.
