The Arts Picture Books

I often find wonderful arts books at the library, so I decided it's time to share. I only wish I could go back and list all those we've enjoyed over the years! I'll try in the coming months. Keep checking back if you love the arts.

Draw What You See: The life and art of Benny Andrews
by Kathleen Benson, published February, 2015


Overview: Benny Andrews loved to draw. He drew his nine brothers and sisters, and his parents. He drew the red earth of the fields where they all worked, the hot sun that beat down, and the rows and rows of crops. As Benny hauled buckets of water, he made pictures in his head. And he dreamed of a better life—something beyond the segregation, the backbreaking labor, and the limited opportunities of his world. Benny’s dreams took him far from the rural Georgia of his childhood. He became one of the most important African American painters of the twentieth century, and he opened doors for other artists of color. His story will inspire budding young artists to work hard and follow their dreams.

LuiGi at the Opera 
by Ellie Alldredge-Bell published January, 2015


Synopsis by School Library Journal:  Gr 1–3—Luigi and his grandpa Rigoletto are aficionados, and when they go to see Wagner's The Flying Dutchman, "an opera about a ghost ship," Luigi is totally enthralled. He admires the elegant lobby, views the orchestra through his opera glasses, and is enchanted by the music, singers, and scenery that bring the masterpiece to life. Under his grandfather's guidance, he learns appropriate dress, opera etiquette, and even a bit of Italian to complete the experience. Alldredge-Bell's text is clear, concise, and instructive without being dry, and while the action is limited, the duo's enthusiasm for the opera is contagious. Primary-grade audiences will delight in seeing the twosome singing arias while driving and the piccolo player scratching her nose with her instrument. Williams-Ng's watercolor cartoons range in size from a quarter-page to full spreads, with the larger illustrations proving most effective in terms of detail and color. The pictures are generally playful—the beehive hairdos are especially fun. Some, unfortunately, as in the case of the soprano, have too much white space, and pages with text alone have a sterile feel. Still, the illustrations of the author and her husband in the lobby scene add a bit of fun. Endnotes explaining Wagner's opera, vocabulary definitions, and Italian pronunciations will assist budding opera lovers. Luigi can be paired with Gary Clement's The Great Poochini (Groundwood, 1999) for a lighthearted look at this musical art form.—Nancy Menaldi-Scanlan

A Violin for Elva 
by Mary Lyn Ray, published February, 2015


Synopsis by Publisher's Weekly: Elva, a girl with an upturned nose whose hair is never quite tidy, hears a neighbor’s enchanting music through the hedge and asks her parents for a violin. Ray’s (Go to Sleep, Little Farm) prose softens their refusal by giving it lilt and rhythm: “She asked them both. She asked with please. But they hadn’t heard what Elva heard. And they said no.” Elva, undeterred, continues to dream. She grows up, works, loves her dog, grows gray—and buys, at last, a violin. Ray’s story is not a fairy tale—Elva never masters the instrument—but Tusa’s (Marlene, Marlene, Queen of Mean) image of the earnest woman standing amid much smaller child students at their first recital has a deep sweetness. Quiet humor (Elva’s dog lying belly-up on the floor, defeated by his mistress’s terrible intonation) provides a tender accompaniment to this meditation on fulfilling one’s dreams. The last spread, in which Elva soars into the air with her violin, borne aloft on strains of music, offers a vision of the only kind of success that really matters. Ages 4–8

Harold and the Purple Crayon
by Crockett Johnson


Synopsis"One night, after thinking it over for some time, Harold decided to go for a walk in the moonlight." So begins this gentle story that shows just how far your imagination can take you. Armed only with an oversized purple crayon, young Harold draws himself a landscape full of beauty and excitement. But this is no hare-brained, impulsive flight of fantasy. Cherubic, round-headed Harold conducts his adventure with the utmost prudence, letting his imagination run free, but keeping his wits about him all the while. He takes the necessary purple-crayon precautions: drawing landmarks to ensure he won't get lost; sketching a boat when he finds himself in deep water; and creating a purple pie picnic when he feels the first pangs of hunger.

The Dot 
by Peter H. Reynolds


Synopsis: With a simple, witty story and free-spirited illustrations, Peter H. Reynolds entices even the stubbornly uncreative among us to make a mark - and follow where it takes us.

Her teacher smiled. "Just make a mark and see where it takes you."

Art class is over, but Vashti is sitting glued to her chair in front of a blank piece of paper. The words of her teacher are a gentle invitation to express herself. But Vashti can’t draw - she’s no artist. To prove her point, Vashti jabs at a blank sheet of paper to make an unremarkable and angry mark. "There!" she says.

That one little dot marks the beginning of Vashti’s journey of surprise and self-discovery. That special moment is the core of Peter H. Reynolds’s delicate fable about the creative spirit in all of us.

 Mouse Paint 
by Ellen Stoll Walsh

SynopsisMouse Paint is a lighthearted introduction to color concepts for young children. Three white mice find three jars of paint - red, blue, and yellow. They jump in and out, dance in the puddles, and discover some amazing things - things like green...and orange...and purple

Yet they never forget about the cat.

Ellen Stoll Walsh's mice are enchanting. Their antics will delight children learning colors - and their parents as well.

Three white mice discover jars of red, blue, and yellow paint and explore the world of color.

Linnea in Monet's Garden
by Christina Björk


Synopsis: Linnea has been in Paris. And she has visited the painter Claude Monet's garden! She even stood on the same little Japanese bridge that Monet painted so often in his pictures. In Paris, Linnea got to see many of the real paintings. Now she can understand what it means to be called an Impressionist, and she knows a lot about Monet's life in the pink house where he lived with his eight children. Twenty-five years after its original publication, this celebration of the wonder of art is available once again in an enlarged keepsake edition.

The Bay Boy & His Violin by Gavin Curtis 


Synopsis: Reginald loves to create beautiful music on his violin. But Papa, manager of the Dukes, the worst team in the Negro National League, needs a bat boy, not a "fiddler," and traveling with the Dukes doesn't leave Reginald much time for practicing. 

Soon the Dukes' dugout is filled with Beethoven, Mozart, and Bach -- and the bleachers are filled with the sound of the Dukes' bats. Has Reginald's violin changed the Dukes' luck -- and can his music pull off a miracle victory against the powerful Monarchs? 

Gavin Curtis's beautifully told story of family ties and team spirit and E. B. Lewis's lush watercolor paintings capture a very special period in history.

How Jelly Roll Morton Invented Jazz by Jonah Winter, July, 2015


Synopsis: In this unusual and inventive picture book that riffs on the language and rhythms of old New Orleans, noted picture book biographer Jonah Winter (Dizzy, Frida, You Never Heard of Sandy Koufax?) turns his focus to one of America's early jazz heroes in this perfectly pitched book about Jelly Roll Morton.

Gorgeously illustrated by fine artist Keith Mallett, a newcomer to picture books, this biography will transport readers young and old to the musical, magical streets of New Orleans at the turn of the 20th century.

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