Timeless Tune

You don't have to be a member of a band, orchestra or choir to have music be a part of your life.  Music surrounds us everyday; there are rhythms in our world whether we live in a city or the country.  Music marks moments in our lives; hearing a song can recall a time period or exact event.  Music can match or change a mood.

Some melodies are catchy enough, they may stick with us for days or even weeks.  During his time as musical director for Sesame Street, Joe Raposo wrote the words and music for a song which has and will continue to endure for decades and decades to come, Sing.  Sing is a tune known by people all around the world, sung in many languages thanks to Joe Raposo.  It has now been pictured with a story by author/illustrator, Tom Lichtenheld, Sing (Christy Ottaviano Books, Henry Holt And Company).

As if the lyrics and melody are not cheerful enough, Tom Lichtenheld illuminates them with his sunny complimentary colors beginning with the captivating cover, a small purple bird on the golden background, head and beak raised in song.  Beneath the jacket the darker purple from the bird clothes the cover, the bird and notes embossed in a darker shade.  Opening and closing endpapers (with jacket flaps aligned) illustrate the closing notes in a wave with the words beneath.

The two pages showcasing the title feature a landscape with a line of trees, a close-up of a single leafy branch with three charming little birds, one a darker hue of the sky, another a rusty brown and the third, the purple bird.  With a turn of page the first sings a single note of blue and flies from the nest.  On the following two pages the second sings his own note and takes wing.  But on the third set of two pages, no note comes from the purple bird, not a single sound despite his trying.

With each attempt he gives it his all, to no avail.  He hangs his head in sadness, alone in the nest.  But wait...a boy with a guitar comes strolling along, sitting on a rock under the tree branch.  The words and notes of Sing float upward as he strums the strings and gives voice to the song.

The notes focus on a straight path, building beneath the nest.  With each line of the tune, there are more and more, elevating the bird in the nest.  As the lyrics of the song speak of goodness and happiness, the magic found in music happens.


Tom Lichtenheld using ink, watercolor, pastels and colored pencil has created a story which highlights the soul of the song.  His pictures are paced perfectly with the words.  In the characters of the three birds and boy with his guitar, the exhilaration, their complete zest for singing is evident in their features.  You can't help but feel laughter bubbling up and singing happily along with them.

Liberal use of white space directs the reader's eye to the soft washes around the tree branch first, then to the boy singing.  It also serves to shift emphasis to the notes.  When the purple bird flies into the sky dotted with soft clouds, the colors reflect those on the title page, until he joins his nest mates.  A colorful joy drifts into the white, then the soft blue; three birds on a wire, singing from their hearts.  Sing a song!


It is impossible to read Sing lyrics and music by Joe Raposo, story in pictures by Tom Lichtenheld without humming along or bursting into song.  You will feel your heart fill with joy as the little purple bird finds his voice.  The words in English and Spanish appear at the end.  In any language it's beautiful.  The final two pages contain a note from Nick Raposo, Joe's son, a picture of the original handwritten lyrics and chords by Joe Raposa, and dedications from Nick Raposo and Tom Lichtenheld which are uplifting themselves.

Here is a link to the publisher website for a peek at more illustrations.  Tom Lichtenheld provides an activity guide linked here.  This wonderful essay appeared at Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast nearly a month ago with Tom Lichtenheld speaking about his process in creating the story for this song.  It's loaded with artwork.

And I've included several videos.  If there is any tune I want rolling around in my mind it is this one.

To Find Your Place

When you listen to someone speaking you know a pause usually means a thought has been completed.  By the volume of their voice you know the importance of what they are saying.  Body language, eye contact and inflection can convey a considerable amount to a listener.

For writers word choice plays heavily in expressing their thoughts but punctuation does for the page what intonation does for the speaker.  Placement of specific types of punctuation can change the very meaning for the same set of words.  In a creative collaboration readers have come to appreciate author Amy Krouse Rosenthal's and illustrator Tom Lichtenheld's newest title, Exclamation Mark (Scholastic Press) delightfully delivers a perfect point.

He stood out from the very beginning.

Exclamation mark is in a quandary; feeling like he sticks out and up more than his period partners.  It's fine when they're all sleeping but blending in when they're awake, despite his every attempt, is not working.  He even toys with the idea of running away.

Then, when he least expects it, the answer appears in the form of a question.  The asking is being done by none other than a question mark.  Does he stop at one? Nineteen nonstop queries later our punctuation pal is feeling overwhelmed, to say the least. 

STOP!

He's astonished at what came out of his mouth and pleased as punch.  His new friend asks (naturally) if he can do that again.  And he does...again...and again....and again....and again.  

He can hardly contain his excitement! He tears off to share the news with his period partners as his questioning buddy beams with pride.  Sticking out and up has never been better; finding your place is not necessarily being like everyone else.

Word choice and pacing radiate with perfection in the hands of author Amy Krouse Rosenthal.  In this story she begins with a series of simple sentences; a sense of anticipation building.  The contrast between those, the rapid-fire questions upon the new mark's arrival and the exclamation point's outburst  provide a liberal dose of humor (as does the word play).  Our character's expressed joy is contagious.      Here are a couple of sentences between the question mark and the row of periods.

Isn't he something?

There was never any question in our minds.


Without a doubt the sunny yellow jack and matching cover with the smiling face of the exclamation mark are a definite lure.  The opening and closing endpapers in a reddish, maroon resemble the texture of a composition notebook cover.  Spread across two pages, turning the book to read it vertically, is a huge exclamation mark along with the title, author and illustrator names.

Moving into the body of the book, Tom Lichtenheld has chosen to place his ink rendered punctuation personalities on the same pale creamy paper with faded blue lines used in teaching children how to form their letters.  The type used to begin the tale (when a narrator is speaking) is larger and simple.  When the two marks meet the font changes style in italics.  As the exclamation mark gains confidence in using his new skill the type size is varied and changes color with each new phrase he exclaims.

It's amazing to me how skillful Lichtenheld is conveying emotions with his circles, two dots (lines) for eyes and a line for a mouth.  With the slightest change in placement, shape and curvature a new feeling is featured.  It's his extra touches that matter too; the red and white polka-dotted bag on the end of the exclamation mark's tail top when he thinks about running away, the lines and smudges for fast motion, or the clever conversation between the two marks in miniature in the lower right-hand corner on the last page.  One of my favorite illustrations is when exclamation mark goes to show the periods his new- found ability.


Exclamation Mark by Amy Krouse Rosenthal with illustrations by Tom Lichtenheld is punctuation with pizzaz.  Choosing the title to read Exclamation Mark rather than exclamation point is another indication of the cleverness exhibited by both Rosenthal and Lichtenheld.  This is a story not about making a point but about finding your place, to make your mark.  This book has something for everyone.  I love that about it.

Please follow the links embedded in both the author and illustrator names to their official web sites.

This is a link to an interview of both Amy Krouse Rosenthal and Tom Lichtenheld at Scholastic.

Here is a link to the BrainPOP site for a page on punctuation.

John Schumacher, teacher librarian, 2011 Library Journal Movers & Shakers, member of the 2014 Newbery Committee and blogger at Watch. Connect Read. featured this title in a Book Trailer of the Week.  Check out his review and the trailer.

Game On!

Most people like games.  Children love games.  Games in some form or other have been around for...well, when haven't they been around?  Whether with a group or as an individual, as a contest or just for fun, people like to play.

Two well-known members of the children's book community, author, Amy Krouse Rosenthal, and illustrator, Tom Lichtenheld, have combined their significant gifts to bring forth an original book, Wumbers (Chronicle Books) that challenges in a most delightful way. I can almost imagine a whispered conversation with numbers going over to letters and saying, "Hey guys, we love the magic you create with words.  Can we try too?"  Obviously the letters responded in the affirmative.

As the pooch confirms on the front cover--

It's words cre8ed with numbers!

Covers, endpapers and all the pages in-between spell out phrases displaying a fresh way at looking at words and the way we use them.  Children making cozy domains, pretend tea parties, picnic boo-boos, music class, friendly tussles, under-the-sea and up with the angels, even penguins parading, all are part and parcel to the challenge.  Rosenthal's depiction of characters, their everyday activities (some straight out of her fruitful mind's eye) and what might be said, moves the narrative at a cheerful tempo giving each reader an opportunity to participate.

Right away the cover catches the reader's eye with its use of primary colors and slight variations with an occasional blast of purple.  Tom Lichtenheld's bold, black ink outlines are softened with his use of PanPastels throughout.  Endpapers are awash in red with colorful speech bubbles in blue, yellow and white displaying Wumber questions?

What is the lati2ude and longi2ude of where you live?

Readers will not be able to contain smiles at his illustrative interpretation of the text Rosenthal has fashioned; characters are usually grinning or at the very least exuberant in the display of their emotions.  Every illustration spreads across two pages capturing a special moment.  It's hard but my favorites are the children on the swings, shoes aloft,  a freckle-faced boy, huge grin displaying a missing tooth and a boy, arm hugging his dog, both curled in sleep.

Wumbers wri10 by Amy Krouse Rosenthal and illustr8ed by Tom Lichtenheld is a huge success on all counts.  The best part is this volume offers possibilities other than the norm. As a read aloud-splendid but for generating writing and reading activities-superb.

This is the link to a nine page activity kit at Chronicle Books. A very useful four page teacher's guide also at the Chronicle Books site is linked here.  Be sure to visit each of the artists's websites for information; Lichtenheld has more illustrations from the book posted at his.