“Fill your house with stacks of books, in all the crannies and all the nooks.” Dr. Seuss

Books about women musicians

  • A biography of African American jazz virtuoso Melba Doretta Liston, a pioneering twentieth-century trombone player, composer, and music arranger at a time when few women, of any race, played brass instruments and were part of the jazz scene.

  • Two women chasing after their dreams and each helping the other to achieve them. This is the inspiring, true story of two incredibly talented women who came together to help each other shine like the stars that they are.

  • Nina: Jazz Legend and Civil-Rights Activist Nina Simone. This poignant picture book offers a melodic tale that is both a historic account of an iconic figure and an extraordinary look at how far we've come and how far we still need to go for social justice and equality.

Books about Jazz

  • Hailing from the Tremé neighborhood of New Orleans, where music always floated in the air, Troy "Trombone Shorty" Andrews didn't always have the money to buy an instrument, but he did have the dream to play music. This is the story of how he made his dream take flight.

  • A stunning picture book biography of a prominent twentieth-century African-American in the arts, from the creative team behind Alvin Ailey.

  • Back in 1909, not far from Jackson, Mississippi, Dr. Laurence Clifton Jones opened a special place for orphans. There he started a school band that was just for girls, and he called it the Sweethearts. The music the girls played was called swing.

Books about the Orchestra

  • This wonderfully illustrated story follows a conductor who is auditioning each instrument for his orchestra, building to a performance of two pieces of classical music. With links to downloadable music, follow our conductor on his journey and discover the beautiful music of an orchestra.

  • Meet the rabbit with her flute... The koala cellist...the tuba-playing warthog...the alligator on the drums. Playful illustrations show the animal musicians as they gather for an evening's performance.

  • This wonderfully illustrated story follows a conductor who is auditioning each instrument for his orchestra, building to a performance of two pieces of classical music.

Books with sound

  • Discover the spellbinding magic of Swan Lake in this musical retelling of the ballet - push the button on each beautiful scene to hear the vivid sound of an orchestra playing from Tchaikovsky's score.

  • Discover what it would be like to travel through the four seasons in one day in this musical story based on the classical masterpiece The Four Seasons--push the button in each breathtaking scene to hear the vivid sound of an orchestra playing from Vivaldi's score.

  • Travel along with Poppy the dog as he discovers the sounds of orchestral instruments. Press the button in each enchanting scene to hear the vivid sound of a real instrument playing classical music.