Jazz is an absolutely glorious feast for the eyes, ears, and body! Walter Dean Myers manages to capture the sultry rhythm, staccato beat, and languid purr of good jazz music. His poems are perfectly paired with the fantastic art of his son. I love this book! To me this is an example of literature, music, and art combined to bring out the best of all three. With the free flowing verse that ebbs and flows like the jazz you would hear on Bourbon Street, students will feel the give and take of the verse. They will see that poetry doesn't have to rhyme and most importantly, it isn't always boring! I was curious to see what grade levels this book is recommended for and tended to find grades 5-9. I decided to look at the Ohio music standards to see if I could incorporable Jazz into the high school curriculum. With little effort I found benchmarks in Historical Culture and Social Contexts, Analyzing and Responding, Valuing Music/Aesthetic Reflection, and Connections, Relationships, and Applications from grade K-12 where this book could be easily used to supplement instruction. Who knew a picture/poetry book could pack such a punch!
Myers includes a very nice, concise history of jazz music, glossary of jazz terms, jazz music timeline to round out the book. I think this book would appeal to all ages from middle to high school, especially to those music kids, those interested in African American music and history, and history buffs in general. Jazz could easily be used as a supplemental text in an English/Language Arts class, Social Studies and History classes, art, and music classes. I just think this is an all around gem of a book!
I think I would read any of the poems and share the artwork to help hook students. Pairing the book with recordings of some good jazz music, and/or videos of famous jazz men and women would help seal the deal. Who can resist the puffed out cheeks of Louis Armstrong, the amazing Wynton Marsalis, or the dulcet tones of Ella Fitzgerald, to name a few of the greats? This book can really open some doors!
The first poem in Jazz is aptly titled, Jazz.
Start with rhythmStart with the heartDrumming in tonguesAlong the NileA black man's drumSpeaksLOVEStart with RHYTHMStart withthe HEARTWorksongsGospeltriumphDespairVoicesLiftedFrom the soul
This author was a favorite of Jack's (the narrator of "Love that Dog," which I read this week). What fun to see you review his work after I just read a book praising him. Your research into music standards will really be helpful for both librarians and music teachers, too. Great post!
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ReplyDeleteAnother great book, another great post. Walter Dean Myers is so versatile: Right now I'm reading Sunrise over Fallujah & listening to Fallen Angels in the car for my project.This is definitely a title I will share with the music & art teachers at my school. We try to coordinate units/ themes if at all possible so this will be a good one for us to feature next April during poetry month. Thanks!
I like the tie in to music. Students love music and will be drawn to anything that involves music and rhythm. It would be great to work this book into the music curriculum.
ReplyDeleteGreat idea making the music connection and finding the standards that work. I think teachers in general focus so much on reading and math and forget about some of the "special"/related/fine art courses and unfortunately these classes are the first on the chopping block. As librarians we can make sure to always weave these classes in through the literature we encourage students to read.
ReplyDeleteThis book is one I would definitely want to buy in the "read along" format (book with CD). From the SLJ review, "Walter Dean Myers's fabulous book is even better in this audio version. Winner of the 2008 Odyssey Award for excellence in children's audiobook production". Original music was composed for each poem and performed by a live jazz ensemble. ERC has a copy - I'll bring to class.
ReplyDeleteI love that this book can be incorporated into so many different content areas. I agree that the audio version would be an even better way to experience the book to be able to hear the sounds of the jazz music.
ReplyDeleteI can't wait to hear a clip from this book! What a neat way to capture a student's attention-words AND music!
ReplyDeleteI tried to find this one to read for this week but had a hard time locating it. I was excited to read your review...and it definitely sounds like this one is a winner. I love how you were able to tie the content to music standards. Another great way to begin working with all the teachers in your building. Great post! =)
ReplyDeleteI love the cover of this book! It gives a preview of the book incorporating literature, music, and art. I also really like the poem you included. It's great that this can tie in with the curriculum. I grew up listening to a lot of jazz (it was my mom's favorite), so I think I could easily get lost in this book.
ReplyDeleteI really like the idea of tying in music and cross curriculum standards. I love Louis Armstrong and would enjoy seeing that love passed down to students.
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