Turn! Turn! Turn!

by Pete Seeger, Wendy Anderson Halperin (Illustrator)

A song, based on Bible verses, which proclaims that there is a season for everything, as well as the original music by Pete Seeger, The Byrds' version of the tune, and notes by Seeger about writing the song.

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens, Music, Poetry

40 pages, Hardcover

First published March 1, 2000

About the author

Peter Seeger, better known as Pete Seeger, was a folk singer, political activist, and a key figure in the mid-20th century American folk music revival. As a member of the Weavers, he had a string of hits, including a 1949 recording of Leadbelly's "Goodnight Irene" that topped the charts for 13 weeks in 1950. However, his career as a mainstream performer was seriously curtailed by the Second Red Scare: he came under severe attack as a former member of the Communist Party of the United States of America. Later, he re-emerged on the public scene as a pioneer of protest music in the late 1950s and the 1960s.

He was perhaps best known as the author or co-author of the songs "Where Have All the Flowers Gone?", "If I Had a Hammer (The Hammer Song)", and "Turn, Turn, Turn!", which have been recorded by many artists both in and outside the folk revival movement and are still sung throughout the world. "Flowers" was a hit recording for The Kingston Trio (1962), Marlene Dietrich, who recorded it in English, German and French (1962), and Johnny Rivers (1965). "If I Had a Hammer" was a hit for Peter, Paul & Mary (1962) and Trini Lopez (1963), while The Byrds popularized "Turn, Turn, Turn!" in the mid-1960s. Seeger was also widely credited with popularizing the traditional song "We Shall Overcome", which was recorded by Joan Baez and many other singer-activists, and became the publicly perceived anthem of the 1960s American Civil Rights Movement soon after musicologist Guy Carawan introduced it at the founding meeting of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) in 1960.

Reviews

[Melody Schwarting · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pete Seeger's "Turn! Turn! Turn!" (recorded by The Byrds) made the ancient lyrics of Ecclesiastes hit the Billboard #1. Wendy Anderson Halperin's illustrations picture the many different ways there are to inhabit a time to cast away stones, sew, embrace, et c. This is one of those books that is technically a speedy read-aloud but is really a book to study each page. I thoroughly enjoyed Seeger's note at the end. Sheet music is included in a fold-out (and there's the CD too!). The book begins with the words from Ecclesiastes, without Seeger's additional six words and one word repeated three times. As the daughter of an '80s DJ, I love having an iconic folk rock song in a picture book format, because my dad has been playing this song for me long as I can remember.

The images are intense in a safe way: weapons, people behind barbed wire, et c. are shown, but not blood or gore. "Turn! Turn! Turn!" is a war protest song ripe for revival, and this book is a way to introduce children to not only the song, but also the Biblical passage, the social upheaval of the 1960s, the tradition of nonviolence, anti-war demostration, and more.

[Betsy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Marvelous. Halperin's illustrations are amazing, detailed, and invite contemplation. Based on Ecclesiastes 3, there are some concepts included that may trouble some readers (war, hate, etc.), but Halperin does such a lovely job of including the opposite side to these emotions as well that I think the book will promote some really great discussion with children.

[Linda · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's an older book, arranged & adapted by Pete Seeger in 1961, from the words of Ecclesiastes in the King James version of the Bible. There is a long note from Seeger telling how it came about. Later Simon & Schuster decided to publish as a picture book. It was illustrated by Wendy Anderson Halperin in 2003. Each line, like "a time to plant/a time to reap" is illustrated with a circle on a double-page spread, which has beautifully imaginative pictures with a circular line of small ones surrounding the inner part. And, it comes with a CD of Seeger's singing! You could read it aloud, showing those listening the rhythm of the words, then teach how the song sounds, then sing! Perhaps it's a great book to start a new year? However it is used, it will also be a book to savor, and to look and look at the incredibly prolific illustrations by Halperin.

[Shoshanna · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was really good. The words are simple, they are Pete Seeger's song based on words from Kohelet, though many will know the song as performed by the Byrds. The illustrations are really the most amazing part. Each page opening has a large circle with illustrations of the two opposing elements set against each other. It's so much fun to look at all the images! Some are quite topical and some are quite dark but they are all very important! :)

[Karen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful!

[Nancy · Rating 5 out of 5]

We read this yesterday in honor of Pete Seeger, who died this week. What a great book. We also listened to both song versions that came with the book--Seeger's own and The Byrds. I personally love Seeger's note at the end about how the song (and the book) came to be.

From his note:

"Now a fantastic illustrator has made this book out of the song. How grateful I am to her; to book designer Greg Stadnyk; and the Jessica Schulte, our editor at Simon & Schuster. And though I don't usually feel grateful to corporations, I do feel grateful to Simon & Schuster for organzing things so that these words, music, and pictures hopefully will reach many people in many places.

Let's also thank the printers, papermakers, truckers, and salespeople who've done their jobs. Let's thank the trees, water, and sunlight."

Rest in peace, Pete Seeger, a good old soul.

[Bruce · Rating 4 out of 5]

A song, based on Bible verses, which proclaims that there is a season for everything, as well as the original music and recording by Pete Seeger, The Byrds' version of the tune, and notes by Seeger about writing the song.

Seeger’s song is a lovely adaptation of the verses, and Roger McGuinn’s arrangement adds a bit of Beatles beat to it. Halperin’s pictorial version is of an appropriately circular composition filled with small scenes sometimes at right angles to each other illustrating the lyrics. It’s a delightful package.

[Jack · Rating 5 out of 5]

This famous verse from the Book of Ecclesiastes is delightfully illustrated includes a CD with the Pete Seeger composition/rendition and the Byrds rendition of Turn! Turn! Turn!. I have never tired of Pete Seeger's song and grew up hearing the Byrds lyrical version of it. The illustrations provide inspection and contemplate of the verse. The book is a lovely presentation all in all.
Recommended.

[Tessa Napolitano · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing illustrations that pulled my eyes in the entire story...loved how Seeger added Bible verse messages into the story, perfect for young children!