Publishers Weekly
07/05/2021
A pale-skinned child with wavy red tresses visits their grandparents’ Lower East Side apartment—a photograph in the dynamic, brightly colored collage art indicates the cross streets of Ludlow and Grand. The reason behind the visit is soon revealed: a klezmer jam session, featuring family and friends from around New York City. Upon the child’s arrival, a light tan bassist accompanies a pale fiddler with flowing white hair and a brown-skinned accordionist; soon, yarmulke-wearing Grandpa joins the narrator on the clarinet, and Bubbe provides snacks. Throughout, text describes klezmer playfully: “oldish, and newish,/ like jazz, but it’s Jewish.” Teis’s metaphors may not be clarifying for readers unfamiliar with klezmer, but anyone who’s felt the power of a group jam will appreciate this rhythmic, community-centered tale. Back matter includes an author’s note and a QR code, which links to a video of contemporary klezmer. Ages 4–8. (Nov.)
From the Publisher
"A delightful, deliriously happy introduction to an unusual and too-little-known musical form." — Kirkus Reviews, STARRED
Kirkus Reviews
★ 2021-08-11
A young Jewish child finds connections to past and present in the sounds of klezmer during a visit to grandparents on the Lower East Side of New York City.
At Bubbe and Zayde’s, there are family and friends with whom to share good food, memories of long ago, and a bit of history. Text and illustrations are completely interwoven as the exuberant child leads readers through the visit while focusing on the music itself. The tale is told in joyful bursts of expressive verse set in very large, bold print amid collages of old photos, lines of music notation, and bright, exuberant illustrations filled with movement and whimsy. The grandparents are seen both as hosts and participants in the music. There are also other, racially diverse musicians playing the clarinet, accordion, and violin—the instruments that make up a traditional klezmer band—with a bass added in, to bring it into the 1970s, when klezmer had a rebirth. Much of the language reflects the musical jargon of that era, as in “rock out,” and “strive to jive with new riffs.” The protagonist describes the musical sounds while listening, dancing, and twining around the instruments and their players, taking some turns on the clarinet. The music leaps across the pages, evoking old and new in a kind of jazz that is married to its Eastern European Jewish roots. “L’Chaim! To life!” Klezmer represents it all. A QR code on the back jacket leads readers to a delightful klezmer video.
A delightful, deliriously happy introduction to an unusual and too-little-known musical form. (afterword) (Picture book. 4-8)
