Jazz Baby

The second book in our 'music' Special Double Issue (see below) is Jazz Baby, by Lisa Wheeler and illustrated by R. Gregory Christie. Now here's a book you can dance to. There was another book about jazz on the shelves when I picked this one up, but that one totally lacked rhythm or swing. Not a problem here.

Here's a sample: "So they TOOT-TOOT-TOOT/and they SNAP-SNAP-SNAP/and bouncin' baby bebops with a CLAP-CLAP-CLAP!" As you can see there are a lot of big bold words to point out as you read/sing. And the words your baby can move to are at the end of the rhyme where they're easy to hear.

Different types of music like bebop, swing, and hip-hop are alluded to in the rhyme. The art pays homage to Harlem Rennasaince, with those great, long legs that move on the page.

This book is made to make you move. This isn't a cozy-up-in-a-chair read. It's a get-off-your-chair-and-dance read.

"GO, MAN, GO!"