What a Song Can Do: 12 Riffs on the Power of Music - Hardcover

ARMSTRONG, JENNIFER

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0375824995 ISBN 13: 9780375824999

Publisher: Knopf Books for Young Readers, 2004

Synopsis

This compelling collection of stories explores the powerful impact that music has in our lives—especially in the lives of teens. Each story strikes a new note: Ron Koertge introduces us to the boys in the band—the marching band; Joseph Bruchac contributes a Native American boy with no rhythm whatsoever; Jennifer Armstrong writes about what was perhaps the first battle of the bands—during the American Civl War; and David Levithan offers up a love song that speaks powerfully to an unintended audience. But while each story is different, they combine into a harmonic song of praise—for the depths music can reach in us, and the power it has to bind us together.

About this title

About the Author

Jennifer Armstrong is the author of many award-winning books for young readers. She plays the piano (moderately well) every day. She lives in Saratoga Springs, NY.

Reviews

Grade 7 Up–Armstrong offers a dozen perspectives on music's life-altering possibilities in this short-story collection. Ron Koertge's "Variations on a Theme" cleverly gives voice to what motivates various students to join a school band and how that decision affects their lives. A gay teen shares his inner struggle to accept his own sexuality in David Levithan's sensitive "What a Song Can Do." The pain of being forced into the role of child prodigy in one musical form until one's own true voice can be heard underlies Jude Mandell's verse selection. Music's connection to life is seen from myriad angles without overpowering the stories, which all have interesting plots and well-developed characters. Brief biographical sketches of the authors are appended and include a description of the importance of music in their lives. This collection will certainly speak to many teens on a very personal level and will open the eyes and the ears of its readers.–Renee Steinberg, formerly at Fieldstone Middle School, Montvale, NJ
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Gr. 8-10. "Music is like the air: invisible and indispensable," writes Armstrong in her introduction to this music-themed anthology. Many YAs, who inhale MP3 tracks like oxygen itself, would passionately agree. Armstrong has gathered a diverse chorus of voices that speaks from many perspectives: players in a school band in Ron Koertge's "Variations on a Theme;" a gay singer-songwriter in David Levithan's title story; several committed violinists and pianists; and, in the collection's most unusual entry, a young woman whose rare condition, called synesthesia, causes her to see music as well as hear it. The overall package may connect only intermittently to any one reader's personal music preferences; only 3 of the 12 stories deal with genres likely to tug at the contemporary YA soul. However, where the stories address universal issues facing teens, such as anxieties about measuring up to peers, conflicts with parents, and the difficulty of finding one's voice, they show the power of both words and music to express the turbulent emotions of growing up. Jennifer Mattson
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Edition details

• Publisher: Knopf Books for Young Readers
• Publication date: 2004
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0375824995
• ISBN 13: 9780375824999
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 208