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Our Marching Band
When all the girls and boys in the neighborhood take up musical instruments, at first they produce awful tones, but after much practice they are able to come together as a marching band that brings brassy, classy fun.
32 pages, Hardcover
First published July 23, 2001
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
September 12, 2018
This is a cute book with bright colored illustrations. The story is a fun way to introduce music and a passion to make a dream come true. The children in the town all had a similar goal, they wanted to play an instrument and be in a band. Each child was different and wanted to play something different. At first they did not sound good but after practicing and not giving up, the music came together and they made their dream come true. The town was so excited, the children were able to march through town with matching uniforms. I thought this was a great book to read to children just starting out in band. It taught them with practice, working together and dedication they can make their dream come true. The story brought back memories of when I first began band and the challenges I had to overcome.
August 1, 2017
A fun way to introduce children to various instruments in a marching band. And if your kids get inspired and want to learn how to play one, this book appropriately conveys that it takes a little practice to be good too. *wink*
Ages 5+
Cleanliness: one picture spread is a Halloween scene with trick-or-treating, ghosts, vampires etc.
Ages 5+
Cleanliness: one picture spread is a Halloween scene with trick-or-treating, ghosts, vampires etc.
February 7, 2014
Booklist (August 2001 (Vol. 97, No. 22))
Ages 4-8. Moss, irrepressible host of New York City's WQXR's afternoon classical radio, once again beguiles, as he did in Zin! Zin! Zin! A Violin (1996). This rhymed tale catalogs the children and their instruments: Belinda on the trombone, Harry on the clarinet, Calvin on the drum, Mae with her baton. "One house away, Shavaun O'Shea, / In mapping out her life, / Had planned to blow a piccolo / (Which some folks call a fife)."The ensuing cacophony does not endear them to the grown-ups, but the kids persevere and practice. Finally, things come together, and the mayor invites the marching band to perform in the Fourth of July parade. "Shavaun is on the piccolo, / Ralph's tuba booms with zeal. / Sam's sax extends its notes and blends / With Betsy's glockenspiel."The children are multihued but have the similar wide dot eyes and gangly little bodies. The band's gold-trimmed, white uniforms contrast nicely with the exuberant and colorful crowds cheering their holiday debut. This guilelessly imparts musical information in delectable rhymes. A fanfare, please, for Moss, Bluthenthal, and the marching band.
Publishers Weekly (June 25, 2001)
Moss's (Zin! Zin! Zin! a Violin) occasionally strained yet spirited rhyming narrative introduces 10 youngsters, most with alliterative monikers (Belinda Blore, Calvin Crum, Mel Mackelroy, etc.), who aspire to play different instruments. Practicing at their open windows in neighboring houses, the kids create quite the cacophonous clamor: "Throughout the start, each person's part/ Just didn't sound too good;/ The girls and boys produced a noise/ That stunned the neighborhood." But practice makes nearly perfect, and the mayor proclaims them a "dandy band." The mayor's words, in fact, demonstrate the unevenness of Morse's verse, which intermittently scrambles tenses and stumbles rhythmically (e.g., "It's my intent they'll represent/ The town, and I will try/ To see they've played our big parade/ The next Fourth of July!"). Bluthenthal's (Molly's in a Mess) cheerful, detailed cartoon art conveys the spunk of the young musicians and the townsfolk's evolving reaction to their music-making, as dismay at the kids' beginning efforts turns to jubilation during their polished performance in the parade. Given the characters' energy and enthusiasm, young readers are likely to turn a deaf ear to any of the book's discordant notes. Ages 4-8. (July) Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.
School Library Journal (August 1, 2001)
K-Gr 3-How do the young instrument-toting hopefuls who appear on the front endpapers of this musical story transform themselves into the energetic, smartly uniformed band racing across the back endpapers? "By never veering,/Persevering, early morn 'til late," from fall to spring. At first the efforts of Harry Horner, Shavaun O'Shea, Ralph Rosenstock, and their friends to learn to play their instruments disturb the neighbors, as, sobbing and tearing their hair they complain, "Confound that noise!/Those girls and boys are driving us insane!" But finally, their long hours of practice pay off and their melodious sounds so impress the mayor that she invites them to play in the Fourth of July parade. The silliness of the rhyming text, replete with alliteration and assonance, is echoed in Bluthenthal's zany cartoon watercolor illustrations. The pictures are large, many of them double-page spreads, and feature notes dancing across pages, exasperated neighbors covering their ears with their hands and even newspapers, and, in the end, an exuberant crowd proudly cheering its young people on. Observant readers will find many comical touches in these pictures, including a runaway drum that its player never does get under control. For more musical merriment, pair this title with Harriet Ziefert's Animal Music (Houghton, 1999).-Marianne Saccardi, Norwalk Community College, CT Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.
Ages 4-8. Moss, irrepressible host of New York City's WQXR's afternoon classical radio, once again beguiles, as he did in Zin! Zin! Zin! A Violin (1996). This rhymed tale catalogs the children and their instruments: Belinda on the trombone, Harry on the clarinet, Calvin on the drum, Mae with her baton. "One house away, Shavaun O'Shea, / In mapping out her life, / Had planned to blow a piccolo / (Which some folks call a fife)."The ensuing cacophony does not endear them to the grown-ups, but the kids persevere and practice. Finally, things come together, and the mayor invites the marching band to perform in the Fourth of July parade. "Shavaun is on the piccolo, / Ralph's tuba booms with zeal. / Sam's sax extends its notes and blends / With Betsy's glockenspiel."The children are multihued but have the similar wide dot eyes and gangly little bodies. The band's gold-trimmed, white uniforms contrast nicely with the exuberant and colorful crowds cheering their holiday debut. This guilelessly imparts musical information in delectable rhymes. A fanfare, please, for Moss, Bluthenthal, and the marching band.
Publishers Weekly (June 25, 2001)
Moss's (Zin! Zin! Zin! a Violin) occasionally strained yet spirited rhyming narrative introduces 10 youngsters, most with alliterative monikers (Belinda Blore, Calvin Crum, Mel Mackelroy, etc.), who aspire to play different instruments. Practicing at their open windows in neighboring houses, the kids create quite the cacophonous clamor: "Throughout the start, each person's part/ Just didn't sound too good;/ The girls and boys produced a noise/ That stunned the neighborhood." But practice makes nearly perfect, and the mayor proclaims them a "dandy band." The mayor's words, in fact, demonstrate the unevenness of Morse's verse, which intermittently scrambles tenses and stumbles rhythmically (e.g., "It's my intent they'll represent/ The town, and I will try/ To see they've played our big parade/ The next Fourth of July!"). Bluthenthal's (Molly's in a Mess) cheerful, detailed cartoon art conveys the spunk of the young musicians and the townsfolk's evolving reaction to their music-making, as dismay at the kids' beginning efforts turns to jubilation during their polished performance in the parade. Given the characters' energy and enthusiasm, young readers are likely to turn a deaf ear to any of the book's discordant notes. Ages 4-8. (July) Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.
School Library Journal (August 1, 2001)
K-Gr 3-How do the young instrument-toting hopefuls who appear on the front endpapers of this musical story transform themselves into the energetic, smartly uniformed band racing across the back endpapers? "By never veering,/Persevering, early morn 'til late," from fall to spring. At first the efforts of Harry Horner, Shavaun O'Shea, Ralph Rosenstock, and their friends to learn to play their instruments disturb the neighbors, as, sobbing and tearing their hair they complain, "Confound that noise!/Those girls and boys are driving us insane!" But finally, their long hours of practice pay off and their melodious sounds so impress the mayor that she invites them to play in the Fourth of July parade. The silliness of the rhyming text, replete with alliteration and assonance, is echoed in Bluthenthal's zany cartoon watercolor illustrations. The pictures are large, many of them double-page spreads, and feature notes dancing across pages, exasperated neighbors covering their ears with their hands and even newspapers, and, in the end, an exuberant crowd proudly cheering its young people on. Observant readers will find many comical touches in these pictures, including a runaway drum that its player never does get under control. For more musical merriment, pair this title with Harriet Ziefert's Animal Music (Houghton, 1999).-Marianne Saccardi, Norwalk Community College, CT Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 19, 2016
A bunch of kids each take up different instruments and resolve to create a marvelous marching band. At first the adults around them are driven crazy by the dissonance, but with practice and perseverance, the kids make themselves into a first class marching band.
Great illustrations - Dex (2 years old) loved the boys with the big drum. He marched around the room banging on his own big drum after reading this.
Great illustrations - Dex (2 years old) loved the boys with the big drum. He marched around the room banging on his own big drum after reading this.
November 30, 2012
This book is so cute! The rhymes are well thought it and detailed while teaching childrn instruments. I like this book because it not only teaches about the instruments but also about dedication and hard work.
Learning Experience: I'll bring in a nuñber of instruments and let the.children play with them and learn about them. They will then choose an instrument to practice with and make a song.
Learning Experience: I'll bring in a nuñber of instruments and let the.children play with them and learn about them. They will then choose an instrument to practice with and make a song.
February 1, 2011
This is Isaac's all time favorite book right now. We keep checking it out again and again - I think it may be time to invest in our own copy. :) I like it too - but I am not obsessed like he is. He loves the pictures and all of the instruments.
October 12, 2012
When all the girls and boys in the neighborhood take up musical instruments, at first they produce awful tones, but after much practice they are able to come together as a marching band that brings brassy, classy fun.
July 12, 2016
Joyous story of the genesis of a community marching band. The tone is matter-of-fact; the feeling is that there is an unstoppable momentum that leads to a marching band composed of individuals, each pursuing an instrument of choice.
April 20, 2010
Set in verse and fun and funny to read- what's not to love?
October 14, 2012
A fun book in verse about a group of kid musicians. Perfect for bringing literature into music class.
May 1, 2015
As a former marching band member, I thought this book was pretty cute. It could apply to about an band I've been a part of, with starting by sounding horrible and gradually getting better.
September 14, 2018
I loved how this book rhymed. It was a clever incorporation because usually music rhymes which was fitting for a book about musical band. I enjoyed this book because it introduces what instruments may be found in a band and the importance of being a group instead of individuals on their instrument. It was a cute story that included many roles and their importance to a successful performance. I also really enjoyed how the author incorporated diversity, not only in the multiple instruments discussed, but portrayed by the students. There were both girls and boys of all races and all were talented in the band. I would love to read this to children who may be interested in playing an instrument or curious about the marching band.
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews