N
 
Nana Hannah's Piano
                                         Barbara Bottner     ISBN 0-39922-656-7
 
Submitted by Cindy T.  This is a story about a boy who loves baseball....and can't stand the piano he has to take!  The only person who seems to understand is his grandmother.  When she hurts her ankle during a tango class, he moves in to stay with her to keep her company and cheer her up.  And, in the process learns that piano isn't all that bad when you have the right teacher.  This is a short little book that is a quick read and it would be a good lead in to the song, Take Me Out to the Ballgame.
 

The Napping House
                                         Audrey Wood    ISBN 0-15201-062-9

Submitted by Jean Strickland.  Jean just finished in-servicing the Music Specialists in PSUSD and this is one of the books she presented a lesson for.  This book has no direct correlation to a music program, but as a Music Specialist I was very impressed with Jean lesson for this book.  The book goes through several characters who are sleeping (and, presumably, snoring).  Jean suggested that by giving one child a different percussion instrument to quietly play to represent  each characters snoring.  I thought it was a great way to introduce the sounds of the instruments, teach the children to play quietly, show the children how even quiet sounds can build up, and a great way to incorporate tactile and kinesthetic learning into a piece of literature that kids like!  I would definitely take a look at this book~  Jean actually used a pop-up version of this book.  It's out-of-stock through Amazon.com, but they suggest that you check back with them periodically to see if it has been reprinted...to do so, click on the following title:  The Napping House Wakes Up!

The Night Before Christmas
                                ill. Stephanie Ryder    ISBN 0-86112-892-3

This beautifully illustrated book includes both the classic poem, `Twas the Night Before Christmas, by Clement C. Moore and the traditional Christmas song, Jingle Bells.  I bought this book not only for the illustrations and the poetry and song, but because in the very back of the book there is a word review and a "What can you see?" page with matches some of the harder words with their pictures.  And, for students who are building their literacy skills, this is an excellent resource.  So, for those of your students who celebrate the holidays, this is a good book to get your hands on.
 

Niñez:  Spanish Songs, Games and Stories of Childhood
                      Virginia Nylander Ebinger    ISBN 0-86534-175-3

This book was the winner of the "Southwest Book Award from the Border Regional Library Association," and it's obvious to me why!  Over forty games, songs and stories from Spanish culture, some traced directly back to Spain.  most of the material was gathered from interviews archived in the 1930s, but it's amazing how many of the songs the Latino students already know and how many of the stories they recognize from their families telling them.  This book is a neat resource for younger students, and a great book to give the older students time to read.
 
 
 

No Mirrors in My Nana's House
                       Ysaye M. Barnwell               ISBN 0-15-201825-5

I'll admit:   I only got this book because I'm a fan of a cappella music and accompanying the book is a CD with the song "No Mirrors in My Nana's House" as performed by Sweet Honey in the Rock.  So, while the book is not directly about music, it does have a CD that comes with it (in a handy, plastic case on the inside front cover) that has the women of Sweet Honey in the Rock singing the song with the same name as the title of the book, but also includes a reading of the book.  The reading on the CD, while not exactly in sync with the book, is done with power and emotion by the author and is very enjoyable.  The book deals with ideas of beauty as experienced by a young, black girl.  It is simply written, and powerful in its poetry.  Definitely a songbook that I will keep in my growing library!