Silent Music: A Story of Baghdad

by James Rumford

WHEN BOMBS BEGIN TO FALL, Ali drowns out the sound of war with a pen.
 
Like other children living in Baghdad, Ali loves soccer, music and dancing, but most of all, he loves the ancient art of calligraphy. When bombs begin to fall on his city, Ali turns to his pen, writing sweeping and gliding words to the silent music that drowns out the war all around him. Gorgeously illustrated with collage, pencil and charcoal drawings and, of course, exquisite calligraphy, this timely and yet universal story celebrates art and history but also offers young children a way to understand all they see and hear on the news.
 

Silent Music is a 2009 Bank Street - Best Children's Book of the Year.

Genres: Picture Books, Cultural, War, Childrens, Art, Middle East, Realistic Fiction

32 pages, Hardcover

First published March 18, 2008

About the author

I have been writing, illustrating, and designing children's books since 1996. I am on the verge of self-publishing through books that are printed on demand and via the internet. For more on my children's books, see my website: http://www.jamesrumford.com. I also have a blog about writing and illustrating children's books at http://www.calabashcat.blogspot.com. Besides commercially published books, I run a private letter press company and do limited-edition, handmade books. See more at http://www.manoapress.com. I am interested in foreign languages and in poetry. See my blog "Horace et al." at http://www.jasrumford.blogspot.com. I live in Honolulu with my wife.

Reviews

[Yousra · Rating 5 out of 5]

أعاني من مشكلة شديدة الطرافة تجاه كل كتاب غلافه أزرق بدرجاته أو أصفر بدرجاته وصولا للبني الفاتح ... أشتري هذه الكتب فورا! ولدي مشكلة أكبر تجاه الكتب التي تحتوي على الخط العربي ... وقد حاولت في فترة ما التسجيل لتعلم الخط العربي أونلاين على يد فنان مصري شاب شهير أحتفظ ببعض لوحاته في الـ
cover photos
على حسابي واشتريت بالفعل الأوراق والأقلام المطلوبة ... ولكنني فشلت في عملية الدفع حيث كان حسابه في بنك به مشكلات! وأعلم أنني كنت سأواجه صعوبة في توفيق أوقات الدرس بسبب مواعيد مدرسة أولادي!

قرأت مراجعة جميلة للكتاب هنا على موقعي المفضل الجودريدز وأحالتني المراجعة لمدونة المحيط وفيها قرأت أكثر عن القصة والمدونة بدورها أحالتني لمدونة المترجمة ... وأعجبت بالقصة كثيرا وبتفاني المراجعين في إظهار جمالها فأرسلت في طلب الكتاب الصادر عن دار البستاني للنشر والتوزيع

الكتاب تحفة فنية ... جيمس رمفورد ... المؤلف ... أمريكي الجنسية ... تطوع في مهمات حفظ السلام في بعض الدول ... وهذا الكتاب عن العراق/بغداد كتبه في ٢٠٠٣ أي في بدايات الاحتـ*لال الأمريـ*كي للعـ*ـراق ... هي نفس السنة التي سافرت فيها لأمـ*ـريكا في منحة في السنة الثالثة من الكلية ... رحلة لتجميل منظرهم ربما أو تبرير مواقفهم للطلبة صغار السن دارسي السياسة! لم أر الكتاب هناك بالطبع لأنه لم يُنشر سوى في العام ٢٠٠٨ لأن المناخ العام وقت كتابة الكتاب كان داعما للاحتـ*لال مما صعب عملية نشره ... لم أر سوى إسم جيمس على الكتاب فتعجبت حينما علمت أنه هو أيضا الرسام وتعجب أولادي أيضا من ذلك! ... تعلم رسم الخط العربي على يد أحد أساتذة فن الخط في أفغانستان وأبدع في هذا الكتاب!

حينما طلبت من طفليَّ قراءة الكتاب وتلخيصه سألني ابني الأوسط: "هل أعطيتنا هذا الكتاب من أجل خطوطنا السيئة؟؟!!" قلت له: "لا، بل من أجل بغداد يا ذكي ... من أجل الفتى علي" ... نعم ... حان وقت إخراج الطفلين من صدفتيهما أو علبتيهما المخمليتان للحياة الحقيقية وما ألطف الكتب التي تفعل ذلك بدون أن تتسبب صدمات نفسية للقارئ الصغير

علي طفل حساس وجميل ... يحب لعب كرة القدم في الشارع مع أصدقائه والموسيقى الشعبية والرقص وله شغف خاص بالكتابة أو رسم الخط العربي ... يكتب ويشخبط في كل الفراغات على الأوراق والجرائد والإيصالات وحتى على المرآة مستغلا بخار الماء مما يفاجئ والده وهو يحلق ذقنه حينما تظهر شخبطاته للأب ويضحك ... يجد علي كتابة بعض الكلمات سهلا والبعض صعبا ودائما ما ترافقه موسيقى في عقله أثناء الكتابة ويشبه الكتابة بالموسيقى الصامتة أحيانا وبمهارة لاعبي كرة القدم أحيانا أخرى

كانت أمه تناديه بياقوت نسبة إلى الخطاط والكاتب والأديب ياقوت المستعصمي الذي عاش في بغداد أيضا وشاهد غزو المغول وعزل نفسه في مئذنة وقاوم كآبة الاحتلال وحصل على سلامه الداخلي بالكتابة الجميلة الأنيقة ورآه علي كبطله الخاص

هكذا فعل علي أيضا فحينما اشتد القصف اعتكف بغرفته وظل يرسم الكلمات حتى يجد فيها الأمان والطمأنينة ... يدهشه سهولة كتابة كلمة حرب وصعوبة أحرف كلمة سلام وهو ما يعني المفارقة بين سهولة خوض الحرب وصعوبة الحصول على السلام! وما يزال عليا يكتب الكلمات السهلة والصعبة حتى الآن ولا يزال يحلم باليوم الذي تكون فيه كلمة السلام كلمة يسيرة

أعجب ابني الأكبر بهدف الكتاب ورسالة كاتبه وإهداء الناشر ... وأعجب ابني الأوسط بكل من ياقوت المستعصمي وعلي وأعجب بفكرة حصول علي على السلام والطمأنينة بالنشاط الذي يحبه ويمكن ممارسته في المنزل بعيدا عن الأهوال خارجه

جدير بالذكر أنهما كانا يقرآن ويلخصان للحصول على وقت أطول للعب على موبايلاتهما فحزنت حينما قرأت تلخيصاتهما وشعرت بتسطيحهما للقصة وتفريغها من معانيها فهددت - وغالبا لم أكن لأنفذ تهديدي للحفاظ على سلامة رأسي من زنهما - بالمنع من الموبايل اليوم تماما ... وفوجئت بعدم قرائتهما للمعلومات في آخر صفحات بعد انتهاء القصة ... فأعادا القراءة بتمهل وكذلك التلخيص فأجادا

الترجمة ممتازة من الأستاذة لبنى شكري

القصة مناسبة لسن ١٠+

[Jasmine from How Useful It Is · Rating 4 out of 5]

Borrowed this book from the library and read it for my son before nap time. This is an amazing book! It introduced us to calligraphy and arabic writing. The illustrations is awesome! The story is moving yet too violent for kids because it talks about bombings in Baghdad in 2003 and mentioned about killing a number of people in another attack from the Mongols. I might not read this book to a 5 year old had I known of the violence.

[Melki · Rating 5 out of 5]

A powerful story of a boy trying to live a normal life during wartime. The author's illustrations are simply stunning.







A beautiful, thought provoking book.

[Jaffar Ali · Rating 4 out of 5]

أن نبين وجها مشرقا لبغداد؛ وللعراق؛ باعتباره مصدرا مهما ومنبعا عظيما لمواهب الخط العربي عبر التاريخ .. رغم القصف وهجوم المغول؛ بقي القلم يكتب ويخط أجمل الحروف وعازفا أعذب الكلمات

[Sara · Rating 5 out of 5]

واو!

[Enas · Rating 4 out of 5]

كتاب موسيقى الحروف..قصة عن بغداد لمؤلفه الأمريكي جيمس رمفورد يقدم صورة مختلفة عن بغداد وحياة الناس فيها ، خاصة الأطفال وكيف يعيشون أيامهم تحت رعب الحرب ، من خلال حكاية "علي" و هو طفل عراقي يعيش فى بغداد يحب لعب كرة القدم و الرقص و الموسيقي الشعبية الصاخبة ، و فن الخط العربي الذي يحتمي به من مآسي الحرب مستلهما ً مثال لمقاومة الحرب بالفن من الخطاط البغدادي الشهير ياقوت الذى عاصر غزو المغول لبغداد قبل قرون ، "علي" كولد صغير يستعمل الخط العربى كي يخلق عالم جميل يهرب إليه من عنف الحرب وشراستها ، فيصف مشاعره وهو ممسك بالقلم راسما ً الحروف على الورق وكأنه يرقص على أنغام الموسيقي الصامتة داخل رأسه ، وعندما يقع الغزو الامريكي وتبدأ ليالى القصف ينهمك فى الكتابة ليملئ غرفته بصفحات من الخط العربي تبث فى نفسه شعوراً بالسلام المفقود ، ولم يتوقف "علي" عن رسم حروف الخط العربي رغم استمرار الحروب فى بلده .

يقول "علي" أن كتابة جملة طويلة تشبه مشاهدة لاعب كرة قدم بالحركة البطيئة وهو يركل الكرة من الملعب حيث يترك وراءه أثرا ً من النقاط والحلقات ، ويعتبر كتابة بعض الكلمات أسهل من بعضها الآخر فتتشابك الحروف لتُكون أشكالا ً جميلة دون أن يبذل جهد كبير كأسم شقيقته الصغيرة .

لايتوقف "علي"عن رسم الكلمات والحروف رغم استمرار الحروب فى بلده ، إذ يقول "مازلت أكتب كلمات يسيرة وأخري عسيرة ، فكلمة (حرب) تنحدر من قلمي بسهولة عبر الانحناءات الطويلة الحادة ، بينما كلمة (سلام) تدهشه مقاومتها له عندما يكتب التعاريج الصعبة والألف المائلة ، تري كم يلزمني من تدريب حتي تنساب كلمة سلام بحرية من قلمي" .

http://almuheet.blogspot.com/2016/12/...

[booklady · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very enjoyable book about a little Iraqi boy who loves to write as much as I love to read. I could relate to his passion and fascination with letters, words, seeing their shapes on a page and feeling their differences inside. The illustrations were also bright, colorful, compelling and worth the book in themselves. Thanks Krista!

[James Govednik · Rating 4 out of 5]

In this book, Ali, from Baghdad, tells of his love of writing. Ali loves the calligraphy part of writing, the artistry of his native Arabic langauge that becomes his "silent music." Simply by sharing his likes and interests, and his challenges in trying to write beautiful words, Ali teaches us about his family, his culture and how he coped with bombs falling on Baghdad by...reaching for his pen. The author/illustrator has created a beautiful book that draws the reader in and also gives numerous examples of Arabic text (which reads right to left) in an easily accessible format. For younger readers growing up during our distressed relationship with Iraq, this text immediately pulls you into Ali's stor--as a child like many other children. The cultural differences are presented in a way that will be attractive and interesting to children and will arouse their curiosity. As we warm to Ali and his love of writing (and soccer), we gently learn of the difficulties he now faces, and how he writes the words "war" and "peace."

Each time I have read through this book, I have found something new. The background illustrations are rich with details that offer a glimpse into life in Iraq. The Arabic text takes center stage, beautifully flowing over, around and amongst the other images. Teachers could also call attention to Ali's interest to an earlier writer who also endured war in Baghdad and make connections to how we all look to friends, adults, ancestors and historical figures as we try to find our place in the world.

[أميرة · Rating 5 out of 5]

Rumford is a genius!

[𓆩♡𓆪]

It’s funny how easily my pen glides down the long, sweeping hooks of the word HARB - war…

how stubbornly it resists me when I make the difficult waves and slanted staff of SALĀM - peace…

how much I have to practice until this word flows freely from my pen.

[(NS) Lauren · Rating 5 out of 5]

Grade Level: K-3 read-aloud

This is a moving story about a child in modern-day Iraq, coping with life in a war-torn country through his love of caligraphy. The author uses a powerful analogy as he describes the ease of writing the word war, relative to the difficult formation of the word peace. The illustrations in this book are intriguing layers of texture and design, with beautiful, caligraphy overlays. The story itself gives a real face to the Iraqi people, especially meaningful as an American today. With students, this book could be used to discuss similarities with children across cultures, and coping methods in times of stress. It might also be an interesting book to read aloud as students first begin working on handwriting or cursive. Students could explore writing on different surfaces and compare letter formation to other images, such as "a soccer player in slow motion as he kicks the ball down the field" just as Ali does in the story. Perhaps Ali's artistic vision of handwriting would be contagious, or at least inspire kids to look at letters through a different lens.

[Joselyn Whitney · Rating 2 out of 5]

Silent Music is a 2009 Bank Street - Best Children's Book of the Year.

Audience: This book would be great for grades K-3. The illustrations in this book were absolutely beautiful but I can't help but think that this book would be hard to maintain the attention span of younger readers. It may be a good book to introduce when you are introducing cursive into the curriculum.

Appeal: The appeal for this book would be good if your students are really into writing and learning how to write. The book is also a good one to pull out when you are bringing in diversity to your curriculum. When you are able to bring different cultures and flavors into the classroom it is good to have different books from different children's perspectives.

[Cindi · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book addresses to some extent, the war in Iraq and looks through a child's eyes at the horror of war. I've been glad my kids could hear about it (books and classmates from Iraq) without having to live it. Some of the stories we've heard from first-hand accounts are so, so sad.

The Silent Music spoken of in the title is the written Arabic language. I had never realized just how beautiful it is. I love how the author discusses the calligraphy and displays it. Loved it! The patterns in the clothing and backgrounds are exquisite. A must read.

[Mary Joy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Response: This is a beautifully illustrated book. The pictures are captivating and the story is beautiful. I like how with the fiction the author ties in several true facts. At the end of the book is an author’s note detailing more facts about calligraphy and Yakut.

Teaching Implication: This would be a great opportunity for students to practice calligraphy. I would research the correct way to write each of their names and make a project out of it. They could each write their names on a piece of construction paper and hang it on the bulletin board.

[Monique Clem · Rating 3 out of 5]

Age group 7-10
James Rumford

This book was about a young boy living in Baghdad that loved to do things to take his mind off the fact that there was a war going on. His favorite thing to do above everything was calligraphy. He would practice and practice so that he would be able to be like his secret hero Yakut, a world famous calligrapher. He told stories of Yakut and how he wanted to be just like him.

[Shaeley Santiago · Rating 5 out of 5]

Delightful book with beautiful pictures. Tells the story of a boy in Baghdad during the war who continues practicing his Arabic calligraphy working hard to write the word "peace." The book shows Roman characters in conjunction with the Arabic script. Reading around the world challenge - Middle East #bookaday

[Chad · Rating 5 out of 5]

From the same author as one of my favorite books on travelers, Traveling Man: The Journey of Ibn Batutta, James Rumford not only creates great art, but simple beauty with words and a great entryway into Arabic culture.

[Crystal · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great picture of a young boy in Baghdad. It shows the rich culture of the boy and includes a legend. The war is part of the story, but not the main focus.

[Solley · Rating 5 out of 5]

A must read with your kids!

[Brandon Khan · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5

[Destiney Dickson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Literature Requirement: Picture book for older readers
Number of pages: 32
Grade level: 1-5
Age level: 6-10
Genre: Fiction
Copyright: 2008 James Rumford
Book Format: Hardcover/picture book

Ali lives in Baghdad and he enjoys soccer, music and dancing. However, more than anything he loves calligraphy. He practices his calligraphy every single day all day long. He practices writing on everything that he can. Some words are harder than others to write but he does not give up. Like the great calligrapher Yakut, calligraphy helps him find peace and comfort during times of destruction, sadness and war.
This book was beautiful. The writing was incredibly descriptive and allows the reader to truly understand how Ali feels when he writes in calligraphy. The details and designs in the book were almost overwhelming but they were also gorgeous. Most of all, this book was sobering. I did not expect the war to be mentioned. Ali mentions how "one frightening night in the year 2003, as bombs and missiles fell on my city, and death and destruction once again filled the streets, I, like Yakut, wrote." Ali goes on to say how the word war (Harb) is easier to write, while peace (Salam) is harder. I thought this spoke volumes. I would definitely recommend this book. It gives great insight into Islamic culture and what it feels like to live in a war zone.

[Bella · Rating 4 out of 5]

Teaches kids about coping with war and practicing to become better

[Rachael Fricke · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Silent Music" tells a story of a young boy who prefers to work on perfecting his calligraphy over playing soccer. Although he loves soccer, he compares writing calligraphy to playing soccer, and the "dance" the players do on the field is like writing calligraphy. This story is simple to read and has some really good information about it regarding calligraphy and Baghdad. Those features would make this story a great book to use in a history lesson. I would definitely recommend this short children's book.

[Jordan Croom]

Silent Music: A Story of Baghdad, tells the story of Ali, a boy that is much like other boys in his city. He likes to play soccer in the streets, listen to music and dance, but there is one thing that sets Ali apart from the other kids, he enjoys the art of calligraphy. Ali gets lost in his art of writing calligraphy, and uses it as a form of escape. Calligraphy is his silent music that drowns out the war going on outside his door. This story brings together many different elements, connecting cultures, as well as connecting the past to the present. The book is filled with lively images of Ali and his family, as well as pictures and diagrams that give the reader a better idea of his culture. The background images were filled with example of Arabic text and give the reader a better understanding of their writing system. For many students this type of text is completely new and different. The letters used in Arabic are different than what we see here in the English language. Also, they write from right to left, where as we write from left to right. I really enjoyed the fact that there were so many little cultural details given throughout the story. There were images of different aspects of their culture such as, soccer, their money, different words.

This book would be great for K-3 grade readers. It is interesting and engaging enough to keep their attention, and the illustrations were insightful and provided a lot of extra information that wasn’t detailed in the text. This would be a good book to look at if you were going into a unit on cursive or calligraphy. It gives students a better understanding of different styles of writing.

Rumford, J. (2008). Silent music: A story of Baghdad. New York: Roaring Brook Press.

[Michael · Rating 3 out of 5]

Text Set: Social Tragedy
Content Matter: War and its effect on the innocent
Published: 2008
Book 8

Silent Music is about a boy named Ali, from Baghdad, and love of writing in calligraphy and soccer. I think this was a clever move by the author, who knows that many students will not identify with calligraphy but will be able to relate with Ali through soccer. Through Ali's love of writing we meet his family, we learn about his culture, and he even introduces us to his cultural history. The illustrations of the book truly bring these words to life as the calligraphy flows across the pages Ali brings them to life by giving them context and meaning.

Teachers should draw students attention to the story of Yakut, who uses writing to spread beauty during an old war, and what Ali endures when the bombing of Baghdad starts. The tragedy in this book is not just war, but how war effects everyone -- even those not directly involved. At the end of the book Ali talks about the how easy it is for him to write the word 'war' and how difficult it is to write the word 'peace' -- saying that he needs to practice peace before it becomes easy. This poetic lesson is an excellent starting point for the effects of war on civilians. From there I would ask students about how Ali has been affected and what his actions of writing mean.

This book offers students a great chance to discuss America's involvement in the Middle East, a different culture, and the effects of war. I think Rumford does a great job of creating similarities between children across cultures, which allows for a discussion of understanding. You might even be able to relate the effects of war on Ali to how students cope with stress.

[Mindy Hall · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a BEAUTIFUL book -- both the story and the illustrations. It is appropriate for any age -- from young children to adults. I used this book when I taught 7th grade Medieval World History during my unit on the rise and spread of Islam. It ties the old with the new. I recommend it for anybody!

[Caroline Hancock]

This book depicts a very vivid image for students. It’s one of the more realistic books I’ve read.

[Sarah Sammis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Silent Music by James Rumford tells the story of Ali who lives in Baghdad, loves loud music and soccer. When the bombings get too scary, he turns to the art of calligraphy, the "silent music" for comfort. His art is inspired by the words of master calligrapher Yakat who lived and worked 800 years ago.

Accompanying the text are intricate illustrations that weave together Ali's calligraphy with pictures from his life and that of Yakat's. It's done in a style evocative of Arabic mosaics. They appear to be multimedia collages but were apparently done in pencil and finished on the computer.

Although it's a picture book, it would best be suited for upper elementary grades. Besides the history and language lessons of Arabic script, the book covers the invasion and bombing of Baghdad. The book could be used in tandem with a social studies or history unit.

Before using the book in class, read the Blogs Burt Lit post. It has an in depth analysis of the book in terms of language, themes, and historical context.

[Yesenia Sepulveda · Rating 4 out of 5]

The author, James Rumford, uses analogies to compare the calligraphy written by the main character. He compares the writing to a soccer ball gliding and looping around. This is sure to appeal to those children who are familiar with the sport. The book uses descriptive words to describe the setting of Baghdad and give you the feel of being there. Some descriptions used are: sand being kicked around, the sounds of bombs/war going on, the gliding of his pen when he makes calligraphy on his paper. Readers will be transported to Baghdad and will learn about how a kid, just like them, copes with the challenges of his country through calligraphy. The theme of coping and war is the focus. THe main character reveals how, despite war and pain, he can distract himself by being a kid. Readers may feel a connection to the main character with the description of how he writes calligraphy on the bathroom glass and as it fogs up, his father reads what he has written. It is a delightful book with an optimistic view on how to cope despite the devastations of war happening so closely.

[Kara Roberts · Rating 4 out of 5]

"WHEN BOMBS BEGIN TO FALL, Ali drowns out the sould of war with a pen. Like other children living in Baghdad, Ali loves soccer, music and dancing, but most of all, he loves the ancient art of calligraphy. When bombs begin to fall on his city, Ali turns to his pen, writing sweeping and gliding words to the silent music that drowns out the war all around him. Gorgeously illustrated with collage, pencil and charcoal drawings and, of course, exquisite calligraphy, this timely and yet universal story celebrates art and history but also offers young children a way to understand all they see and hear on the news."

LOVE LOVE LOVE!!!
I will use this book when we talk about cultures, letters, and even when we talk about September 11th. Many people have chosen a path of racism when talking about 9/11. I will show that the innocent are just as we are in America. They play, learn, and have fear just like us. This book will do wonders in a classroom and I'm glad I read it.