The Maestro Plays - Hardcover

BILL MARTIN JR is the creator of many beloved picture books, including the classic Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? and Polar Bear, Polar Bear, What Do You Hear?, both illustrated by Eric Carle. Among his Harcourt titles are A Beasty Story, illustrated by Steven Kellogg, and The Happy Hippopotami, illustrated by Betsy Everitt.

VLADIMIR RADUNSKY has illustrated many books for children, including his own The Mighty Asparagus and Manneken Pis: A Simple Story of a Boy Who Peed on a War, as well as Bling Blang, Howdi Do, and My Dolly, all by Woody Guthrie. He lives in Italy.

PreSchool-Grade 2-While a maestro can be considered a master of any art, in the field of music, the term usually reserved for a composer, teacher, or conductor. Here, he is the actual musician, playing a variety of instruments during a rather unusual concert in which the multitalented virtuoso rides animals, swings on a trapeze, and walks a tightrope while playing. Radunsky's wonderfully bizarre illustrations, created from hand-colored cut paper, are a visual delight. His two-page spreads, sometimes horizontal, sometimes vertical, use a variety of bold colors and shapes. His constant change of scale keeps things lively. Radunsky does an amazing job of conveying the various emotions, from the introspective depiction of the maestro seated at the piano to his joyous marching as he "sweepingly" plays an accordian. Just as important to the success of this book is the text. Martin achieves most of his rhymes by using adverbs ending in "ly." Thus the musician plays at various times "proudly," "loudly," "dizzily" or "wildly." An infectious rhythm builds, at times lapsing into nonsense, but resulting in an almost perfect coupling of text and illustration.
George Delalis, Chicago Public Library
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.