How Sweet the Sound

Name: How Sweet the Sound
Brand: Hachette Audio
Availability: InStock
Author: Kwame Alexander
ISBN: 9781668647349

Author: Kwame Alexander

Narrator: Karen Murray

Unabridged: 47 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Little, Brown Young Readers

Published: 01/14/2025

Categories: Children's Nonfiction, Music, History, African American & Black Nonfiction, Jazz

Synopsis

Featuring artists ranging from Miles Davis to Kendrick Lamar, dive into this stunningly illustrated celebration of the history of Black music in America by the award-winning author of The Undefeated.

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.

About Kwame Alexander

Kwame Alexander is a poet, an educator, and the New York Times bestselling author of more than thirty-five books, including his Newbery Medal–winning middle grade novel The Crossover. Some of his other works include Booked, which was longlisted for the National Book Award; The Playbook: 52 Rules to Aim, Shoot, and Score in This Game Called Life; Swing; the picture books How to Read a Book and How to Write a Poem (coauthored with Deanna Nikaido), both illustrated by Melissa Sweet; and The Undefeated, illustrated by Kadir Nelson, which was longlisted for the National Book Award and won the Caldecott Medal, a Newbery Honor, and the Coretta Scott King Illustrator Award. He is a regular contributor to NPR’s Morning Edition, currently serving as their poet ambassador. He lives in Virginia with his family. Visit his website at kwamealexander.com.

Reviews

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Quotes

* “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

* “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

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