Blues Singers, The
Publication Information
Author:  Lester, Julius	Illustrator:  Cohen, Lisa
Title:  Blues Singers, The	Date:  2001
Publisher:  Hyperion	City:  New York
ISBN, paperback:  0-7868-0463-7	ISBN, hardback:
Recommended audience:
ABE/ABLE:   Yes	ESOL:
Family:	Young Adult:   Yes
Picture:   Yes
General Information:
Book Type(s):    essays, biography and autobiography, nonfiction
HSE Descriptor(s):    language arts - reading
Summary:
The author tells his granddaughter about the origin of blues in America through 10 stories of great blues musicians he and his father had known. The interesting illustrations are done in a thick line, solid color style. A bibliography and a recording list encourage readers to extend what they learned in the book.
Teaching Ideas:
Teachers can encourage learners to develop a matrix to compare and contrast the contributions of African Americans to music using a text set that includes I Live in Music, Ray Charles, I See the Rhythm, Duke Ellington, Mysterious Thelonius, and Keep on Singing. Students may want to discuss why the author wants to tell these stories to his granddaughter, something he talks about in the forward. Looking at the rich connections between the style of the illustrations and the interpretive nature of blues music may help readers understand the nature of blues and jazz, even before listening to the music. The book can serve as a model for students to write about what music and musicians they will want to tell their grandchildren about.
Keywords: select any link below for a list of resources which also have that keyword
Art and Photography > art > painting Ethnic Groups > African-American Family > grandparents > grandparent-child relationships Literature and Language > storytelling Music > blues Family > family heritage Music > musicians > Smith, Bessie Music > musicians > Jackson, Mahalia Music > musicians > Holliday, Billie Science > biology > zoology > mammals > zebra

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