jazz written by walter dean myers and illustrated by christopher myers

Myers, Walter Dean. Jazz, Illustrated by Christopher Myers. New York: Holiday House Publishing, 2006. ISBN: 9780823415458

Plot Summary:
     Jazz is a compilation of fifteen poems that celebrate and explore the unique elements of this musical genre. Throughout this compilation, Walter Dean Myers describes the elements and history of jazz depicted through the usage of poetry. Each poem encompasses the unique elements of jazz while recounting an essential period of time during African American History; the Harlem Renaissance.

Critical Analysis:
     Jazz is attributed as an individual poet compilation comprised of fifteen poems written by Walter Dean Myers. Every poem included in this compilation is based around the history and progression of the Harlem Renaissance. From the inclusion of Louie Armstrong, an influential figure in jazz, to the inclusion of specific elements directly related to this genre of music, the author conceptualizes this era through the usage of vivid poetic language and illustrations. There's an abundant amount of onomatopoeia used throughout the poems that bring life and rhythm to these poems, such as Be-Bop, Twenty-Finger Jack, and It's Jazz, which play in the role of demonstrating the sound and feel of jazz. Not only does Myers utilize onomatopoeia, but he also utilizes sound patterns such as an end rhyme within the poems Stride and Three Voices. The usage of the end rhyme directly contributes to the positive rhythm found within these writings.
     Not only does Walter Dean Myers incorporate vivid language within this compilation, but he collaborated with his son, Christopher Myers, to illustrate and visually bring life to his poetry. Christopher Myers incorporates a color pallet attributed to the Harlem Renaissance including: purple, green, black, brown, yellow, and red. Not only is each color utilized within the illustrations, but Myers also uses each color as the main background that corresponds with the tone of the individual poem. Also, the father and son collaboration adequately pairs the illustrations with the era depicted with Christopher's illustrations of the clothing worn during this period of time. For example, in the illustration for Twenty-Finger Jack, the choice of dress attire consists of a black and red pin-striped suit that was considered trendy during this era. Christopher and Walter Dean Myers do a great job conceptualizing this period of time through their collaboration for the book Jazz.

Awards Won:
Coretta Scott King Award for Authors (1997), ALA Notable Books for Children (2007), Coretta Scott King Illustrator Honor Award (2007), Golden Kite Award (2007), Odyssey Awards Winner for Excellence in Audiobook Production (2008)

Review Excerpts:

"The father-and-son team behind blues journey creates a scintillating paean to jazz. Walter Dean Myers infuses his lines with so much savvy syncopation that readers can't help but be swept up in the rhythms…Visually, the page's typography evokes long white and short black piano keys. Christopher Myers lays black-inked acetate over brilliant, saturated acrylics. The resulting chiaroscuro conjures the deep shadows and lurid reflections of low-lit after-dark jazz clubs. The artist dynamically enlarges key compositional elements: a massive bass, a long ago drummer's muscular back, and fingers-poised over keys, plucking strings, splayed along a flute. Design sings here, too: Louis Armstrong's spread upends, befitting that jazz giant. A cogent introduction, selective glossary and chronology round out this mesmerizing verbal and visual riff on a uniquely American art form."- Publishers Weekly

 "Fifteen poems give a unique spin to music history in this title. The highly acclaimed author opens with a title poem that speaks of the African origins of jazz and "[d]rumming in tongues along the Nile," then swings to an exuberant tribute to Louie Armstrong in which that legendary trumpet player spanks a bad tune "like a naughty boy." The rhythm and word-play of poems such as "Be-Bop" and "Three Voices" will have kids bouncing and repeating lines like "[a] bippety-bop snake can't bite my style" and "[t]hum, thum, thum, and thumming/I feel the ocean rhythm coming." The illustrator brings the intensity of fluid lines and saturated color to his portraits of the jazz world. Fittingly, this creative father-son team dedicates their book, in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, to "the children of New Orleans," birthplace of jazz. A wonderful book to celebrate Kwanzaa's principle of creativity." - Children's Literature

 "Expanding on Blues Journey (Holiday House, 2003), this talented father and son have produced new poetry and paintings to explore a wider repertoire of jazz forms. An introduction provides historical and technical background, briefly touching on influences, improvisation, rhythm, and race. Spreads then pulsate with the bold, acrylic-and-ink figures and distorted perspectives that interpret the multiple moods and styles set forth in the text. The poems begin "Along the Nile" with a drumbeat and conclude with the heat of a Bourbon Street band. The Myerses experiment aurally and visually with the forms themselves; thus, "Stride" alternates long, fast-paced lines in a white font with two-word percussive phrases in black, calling to mind a period piano score. "Be-bop" unleashes a relentlessly rhyming patter in black, punctuated by a blue cursive font that "screams." The 15 selections also celebrate vocals, various instrumental combinations, a funeral procession, and Louis Armstrong; New Orleans as spirit and place is woven throughout. The expressionistic figures are surrounded by high-contrast colors in which the visible brushstrokes curve around their subjects, creating an aura that almost suggests sound waves. Wynton Marsalis's Jazz A B Z (Candlewick, 2005) offers an interesting comparison and complement: varied poetic forms and stylized, posterlike visuals present the lives of jazz musicians. Interaction with each inspired title informs the other and awakens interest in listening." -School Library Journal

" A cycle of 15 poems and vivid, expressive paintings celebrate that most American genre of music: jazz. Myers pŠre presents readers with poems that sing like their subject, the drumming of African rhythms leading into a celebration of Louis Armstrong, an evocation of stride piano, a recreation of a New Orleans jazz funeral and a three-part improvisation among bass, piano and horn. A script-like display type appears sparingly, guiding readers to the sound of jazz embedded in the poems' syncopated rhythms. Myers fils uses bold colors and lines straight from the muralists of the '30s to create his illustrations, dramatic foreshortening and exaggerated angles a visual complement to the pulsing sounds being celebrated. It's a very different look and treatment from that given to their earlier blues journey (2003), although equally successful at giving readers a visceral sense of its musical subject. A lengthy introduction, glossary and timeline give background to the whole. This offering stands as a welcome addition to the literature of jazz: In a genre all too often done poorly for children, it stands out as one of the few excellent treatments." -Kirkus Reviews

Connections:
Customers who purchased this book also purchased the following titles also written by Walter Dean Myers: Blues Journey, Harlem: A Poem, and Brown Angels: An Album of Pictures and Verse.

Interactivity:  

• Have children describe an instrument with a sound.
• Ask children to demonstrate how to play the instrument included in the poems. 
• Give a small lesson on the Harlem Renaissance.