I am very conscious that household budgets are getting tighter and tighter all the time, that is certainly the case in my household. So, for this year when I review books about music, I am going to include as many books as possible that I found in the library, or in a charity shop. I have found a number of books both in charity shops and at the library, and it is a rich and affordable source of finding books to read with your children. So this month I have read and reviewed a book from the Little People, Big Dreams series of books about Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart written by Maria Isabel Sánchez Vegara and illustrated by Lia Visirin. Starting off this review with the blurb from the back of the book (the bit in bold is about the series as a whole and the bit in normal type is about this book specifically).
Discover the lives of outstanding people, from designers and artists to scientists. All of them achieved incredible things, yet each began life as a child with a dream.
As a child, little Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart learned how to play the keyboard by watching his older sister. His extraordinary talent shone through, and he began delighting audiences with his music. He played many instruments and wrote groundbreaking work that is still enjoyed by music-lovers today. This inspiring story of the legendary classical musician features a facts and photos section at the back.
Many, many authors have written about Mozart, one of the most famous composers in the Western Classical Music tradition. Thousands of pages and hundreds of thousands of words must have been written about this composer. This book is not the most fulsome biography of the composer, but it is a book aimed at young children. As you will know if you have a small child in your house, their attention spans are often rather short. So the author purposely does not overwhelm the book with lots and lots of information about Mozart’s life. She tells his story, particularly the story of his young life when he was a child prodigy being toured all over Europe with his sister Nannerl, but gives just enough information so that your small child doesn’t get bored and wander off.
Now this biographical information is actually given twice. The first time Mozart’s life story is told in story format, almost as if she were a fictional character. And it is accompanied by beautiful, cartoon style illustrations by Lia Visirin. The story and illustrations together will surely capture the imagination of your child as they are reading this book. This biography, together with a little more information about Mozart’s life, is then repeated on the last couple of pages in a Facts and Photos section. I like the fact that the “story” focusses as much on Mozart as a child as it does on Mozart the adult composer – making it more relevant for its audience.
The book is great for young children and is a very cute book. It is part of a series of books about inspiring people, and we have read a couple of the books in our house with both of the children. My children both love a non-fiction book, especially my little boy, so the series is always a hit in our house. The Little People, Big Dreams series covers a huge range of people from famous musicians, like Mozart here, or Dolly Parton (I read and reviewed the book about Dolly Parton from this series last year, and you can read this review by clicking on the link below) to artists like Frida Kahlo; fashion designers like Coco Chanel, to people like footballer/campaigner Marcus Rashford and American Vice President Kamala Harris. It’s a great series of books with the simple message that if you have a dream and you work hard, then you, too, could achieve that dream.
Music Book Review: Little People, Big Dreams: Dolly Parton
Now, this book is available to purchase from book retailers, and I will give you information about that in the next paragraph, but last time I was in the library with my children (my husband and I are both big readers, and so our children – my eldest especially – are also keen readers so we visit the library regularly) I saw this book and thought I must get it to review for you all here. It is obviously a little more hit and miss with a library’s stock – if you are inspired to read this book from this post I cannot guarantee that you will find it in your local library this month, whereas when I review books I have purchased then I know they will be in stock in at least some book shops right now. However, if you go into the library looking for this book and it is not there, chances are you will find at least 6 other books that look fun to read. And the library we use offers word-based treasure hunts where children solve the treasure hunt in return for a sticker, and that treasure hunt has been different every time we go in. It offers activities like story time, some offer music classes for babies and toddlers, or rhyme time activities. It offers events and activities for school-age children after school and in the holiday. And most importantly, the books are free to look at in the library and to borrow. Books about music can be on the expensive side, so if you have a rather voracious reader in your house, like I have in mine, the library is absolutely essential for keeping plenty of books in your house for them to read.
The downside to library books is that you do have to give the books back, though, and there have been several of the books I have reviewed here that one or other of my children have wanted us to read over and over again and would have been very sad to hand them back to the library. So if you would prefer to purchase this book, Little People, Big Dreams: Mozart, then at the time of writing this book can be purchased from Amazon (or your local bookshop) priced at £7.69, but be aware that prices on Amazon do go up and down depending on demand for the book. Amazon suggests 4-7 as the appropriate age range for this book, and while I largely agree with this age range, I would probably recommend it for readers towards the younger end of that range as it is quite simple, with only a bit of biographical information. I personally would recommend the book for ages 4 – 6, with a recommendation that proabably you would get this book for a 6 year old who was reading the book to you, or with you, rather than you reading the book to them.
If you have enjoyed reading my blog post, thank you. I am always looking for ideas for the blog, so would love to hear from you with suggestions for topics you would like me to cover in the future. Also, if you would be interested in supporting me to keep this blog running, buying the books to review here, and supplies to make the DIY instruments, for example, I would be absolutely delighted if you would consider buying me a coffee using the following link: Buy Me A Coffee Thank you!!
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