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How Sweet the Sound
Contributors
Illustrated by Charly Palmer
Read by Karen Murray
Formats and Prices
Price
$4.99Format
Format:
- Audiobook Download (Unabridged) $4.99
- Hardcover $18.99 $24.99 CAD
Also available from:
Listen to the sound of survival, courage, and democracy—the soundtrack of America. Hear Billie Holiday’s raspy, mournful voice, and tap your foot to Louis Armstrong’s trumpet. Scream with James Brown and bop your head to Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five. Can you spot the 80+ references to artists like Robert Johnson, Ella Fitzgerald, Jimi Hendrix, Whitney Houston, Lauryn Hill, and Beyonce?
Come dance to Kwame Alexander’s melodious narrative of the history of Black music in America, accompanied by the vibrant illustrations of Charly Palmer.
The book includes extensive back matter, providing even more context and history about the music and musicians.
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* “Laced with powerful imagery, alliteration, and onomatopoeia…, [Kwame’s] verse begs to be sung…. Palmer’s distinctive illustrations offer the perfect accompaniment. A work whose lyrical and artistic genius only becomes more apparent upon rereads."Kirkus, starred review
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* “Palmer cranks up the visual energy with increasingly populous and sometimes kaleidoscopic images…. A “loud and proud” celebration of the roots and branches of a unique musical heritage.”School Library Journal
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Praise for An American StoryAn Indie Next List Pick
An NPR Best Book of the Year
A 2023 KIRKUS BEST CHILDREN'S BOOK
A 2023 PW BEST PICTURE BOOK*"Beautifully crafted and brutally honest, this offers a thoughtful introduction to a necessary topic."
– Booklist, starred review*"With powerful art from a bold new talent, this is a probing and sensitive take on a devastating chapter of U.S. history."
– Kirkus, starred review*"Alexander and Coulter have created a powerful counternarrative in their efforts to answer the question, “How do you tell a story about slavery?”
– Horn Book, starred review*"A layered, compassionate telling that considers how to relay difficult truths, and as the art converges into a visual of past and present together, stirring concluding lines suggest a route forward."
– Publishers Weekly, starred review
- On Sale
- Jan 14, 2025
- Publisher
- Hachette Audio
- ISBN-13
- 9781668647349
