One sweet song

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One sweet song

Title:

One sweet song

Author:

Gopal, Jyoti Rajan, author.

Sánchez, Sonia, 1983- illustrator.

Summary:

In a quiet neighborhood, a single note trills through the air. Another note joins, and then another. One by one, curious people are drawn to their windows, doorways, and balconies to support the medley. Professional musicians play instruments from around the world, while others bang pots and pans. All are welcome as the notes swirl and dip and crescendo, coming together to make one sweet song. And when the music fades and this diverse neighborhood is once again silent, the reverberations of unity remain. -- Amazon.

Edition:

First edition.

Physical Description:

1 volume (unpaged) : color illustrations ; 24 x 27 cm

Genre:

Picture books.

Stories in rhyme.

Subject Term:

Community life -- Juvenile fiction.

Music -- Juvenile fiction.

Counting -- Juvenile fiction.

Author(s):

Sánchez, Sonia, 1983-

Publisher:

Candlewick Press,

Publication Date:

2024

ISBN:

9781536219814

Publication Information:

Somerville, Massachusetts : Candlewick Press, 2024.

Call Number:

P GOPAL

Holds: Copies:

Available:*

Item Barcode	Collection	Call Number	Status	Item Holds
33607003702001	New Picture Books	GOPAL	Searching... Unknown	Searching... Unavailable

Bound With These Titles

On Order

Summary

In an ode to the power of music and community, this vibrantly illustrated picture book steps out on the balcony for a shared moment of spontaneous joy and celebration.

In a quiet neighborhood, a single note trills through the air. Another note joins, and then another. One by one, curious people are drawn to their windows, doorways, and balconies to support the medley. Professional musicians play instruments from around the world, while others bang pots and pans. All are welcome as the notes swirl and dip and crescendo, coming together to make one sweet song. And when the music fades and this diverse neighborhood is once again silent, the reverberations of unity remain. Written by a kindergarten teacher and inspired by the balcony singing in Italy during the pandemic--with a countdown from one to ten and back gently woven in--this rhythmic synergy of text and art is a buoyant, global-minded celebration of how music connects us, even in the darkest of times.

Author Notes

Jyoti Rajan Gopal is a kindergarten teacher and the author of American Desi , illustrated by Supriya Kelkar, and My Paati's Saris , illustrated by Art Twink.
She was born in India but grew up all over the world, from Thailand to Indonesia to Myanmar to China. More than twenty-five years ago, she moved to New York City with her husband and raised her two daughters in Yonkers in a very old house with an amazing porch, where she still lives.

Sonia Sánchez is the illustrator of Evelyn Del Rey Is Moving Away by Meg Medina; Dog Says , Cat Says by Marilyn Singer; Here I Am by Patti Kim, for which she was nominated for a Will Eisner Comic Industry Award; and many other acclaimed picture books. She lives in Barcelona, Spain.

Reviews (2)

School Library Journal Review

PreS-Gr 2--From windows, balconies, and rooftops, a neighborhood joins an impromptu symphony in Gopal's warm, endearing picture book that begs to be read aloud. A young city girl at home hears a flute playing in a nearby building, inspiring her to join in with her triangle. Their two-person concert builds and builds until 10 different instruments from the surrounding blocks join in, using a variety of musical styles from around the world. A tender, smooth verse then counts readers back down from ten, as the day ends and the participants return to their homes. Sánchez's illustrations give the story an additional inviting, lived-in feel, as if someone from that neighborhood has been sketching the event as it unfolds. Preschool and kindergarten teachers will find this title to be an easy fit for math lessons, and music teachers may even use One Sweet Song with students to identify the many instruments featured. This would work particularly well for a lesson on South Indian Carnatic music, elements of which appear throughout. VERDICT A twist on the usual counting book that emphasizes community and the ways that music can bridge the distance between people.--Alexandra Quay

Publisher's Weekly Review

Propulsive rhymes unite neighbors in this counting picture book featuring a collaborative musical performance that expands and contracts. Across an architecturally varied city, apartment dwellers of various skin tones spend time within their homes. Hearing one note "floating in the air"--a flute played from a nearby balcony--a child seizes a musical triangle, dashes out to her own balcony, and "rings a chime,/ soft and true./ One note trills, and/ now there are two." As the people and instruments (a violin, a pot and spoon, a ghatam, and a morsing, among others) join in the count and the music-making, faces lift to "one sweet song/ that fills the space,/ one sweet song,/ a warm embrace"--before slowly counting down to quiet. Driving rhythms and clear rhymes by Rajan Gopal (American Desi) tug with a gentle beat, while energetic illustrations from Sanchez (Evelyn Del Rey Is Moving Away) render a sun-washed cityscape with texture and vigorous scribbles in this work about how individuals retain the warmth and support of connection. Ages 3--5. Author's agent: Wendi Gu, Sanford J. Greenburger Assoc. Illustrator's agent: Teresa Kietlinski, Bookmark Literary. (Jan.)