Customer Reviews

Jazz Baby

5 star:		(15)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This exuberant, high-flying kids' book is a toe-tapping, body-shaking, joyful book for kids and the grown-ups who read to them. It swings rifht from the start, coming straight on with verve and energy. Let me excerpt a little here so you can see (and hear, and feel) what I mean:

Grandpa TOOT-TOOTS,
Granny sings scat.
BItty boppin'Baby goes
RAT-TAT-TAT!

Mama sings high,
Daddy sings low.
Snazzy-jazzy Baby says "Go, Man, Go!"

THere's more dancing and singing and bebopping, and then, just like song returning to its chorus, there's a return (only slightly modified) to some of the earlier words and actions:

Momma swings high.
Daddy swings low.
Swingin'=singin' Baby says "Go, Man, GO!"

Wow--this is easy, fun reading, all natural and rhythmic and nothing forced in meter or rhyme. It's a lot like a jazz piece--SOme central ideas (The Baby as the central person, dancing, singing), with some riffs that broaden and extend those themes (e.g., the extended family as subtext, a brief exploration of some jazz instruments and their sounds, the baby getting drowsy and going to sleep...)

This sort of spontaneity extends to the gouache illustrations by award-winning illustrator R. Gregory Christie. It may take several readings for one to fully appreciate his casual style and how well it fits the rhythm and feeling of the book. The emphasis is on motion and tempo, on the dancer/singer and his or her ability to fill up space with movement and sound. Christie treats us to views of the elongated dancers' limbs, bright, sometimes surprising colors, and even long shots of buildings swaying to the beat. In a sequence that recalls "Fantasisa, the notes dance off a musical cleff, grow daces, and dance around "Baby."

I've found that too many kids' "jazz" books really focus on the blues--usually the rural blues, seen through an awkward sentimentalism--or solely on dance. Sometimes they confuse eras, portraying any jazz singer as a combination of Bessie Smith, post-WWII hep cats, and 1950's beats.

Jazz Baby does mention such non-jazz genres as the blues and hip-hop, and (of course) focuses more concretely on dance than on the music, yet the spirit of jazz pervades the entire book. The prose and pictures coalesce into a stylistic/emotional sister to jazz music. It's a fine achievement, that conveys all this without effort or strain. Most of all, it's just a lot of fun!

"Daddy sings blues.
Mama sings sweet.
While that snoozy-woozy baby... lllsleeps deep, deep, deep.

OH YEAH!"

This book is a wonderful rhythmic short story about a baby and his family. The rhythm of the words encourages the reader and listeners to get involved and to enjoy the musical nature of the story as told and in terms of content. It is one of our children's favorites and is frequent in our bedtime rotation. I highly recommend it to parents who arent afraid of getting a little creative with the stories they read and for children who are musically inclined.

After borrowing this book from the library, I had to buy it. My 2 yr old was so delighted by the rhythm of the book that she can almost read the whole thing herself. She loves to complete the sentences for me. As a parent reading many books to two toddlers, this is my favorite. Its never boring and so jazzy!

Very short, simple book. Not many words per spread, which makes it suited for even little-little ones.

I love how the text is largely done with sound words (there's a word for that, but I can't for the life of me remember how to spell it!) or scat singing. Very bouncy, very great, wonderful way to teach basic wordplay for little ones.

I'm not a huge fan of the illustrations. They're not ill-suited for the text, they just aren't a style I happen to like. What you see on the cover is pretty much what you get inside, either you like it or not. However, even though they're not my taste, I can see why the illustrator chose to do it this way - the pictures almost seem to move with the rhythm of the music in the words. It works. (Even if it's not my favorite style ever.)

All in all, I highly recommend this one.

The rhythms in this book are great for kids to hear. The only problem is that some people are too square to read it right!

This book is my classroom's favorite. The illustrations are very "jazzy" and fun to experience and the text is very fun to clap and move along with. Do I think "Jazz Baby" is a great book? "OH YEAH".

This book definitely should come with a warning about its extreme cuteness! I couldn't help myself, I had to read it aloud and was thankful I wasn't in the library at the time! The text is pure fun and my feet starting longing to dance around as well.

At first glance, the illustrations weren't normally what I like but by the end of the book, I wouldn't want to see them changed, they fit the text so well.

I bought this book for my 2 nephews and 1 niece, all around 18 months at the time, and they have all fallen IN LOVE with it. One of my nephews, now turning 2 next month, NEEDS to read it every night before bed. Same with my niece who is turning 2 as well - and her sister is 4 and loves it too! So it's a book that truly spans the ages. On top of that, my fiance and I truly enjoy reading it. It has this melodic tone throughout and since we are both from musical families, we all relate even more. If you are considering a book for children from 18 mos to 5 years old, this is your book. You won't regret it!

We borrowed Jazz Baby from our local library and, having renewed it and re-borrowed it several times, I've decided that we finally needed to buy our own copy. My 20-month-old is obsessed with the book. She asks for it too, just repeating "jazz baby, jazz baby, jazz baby..." until we get it. Love the rhythm and the illustrations. It's a fun book for parents to read as well.

This is a really wonderful book, and one that I really don't mind reading over and over again. I highly recommend it.