Trombone Shorty

Coretta Scott King Award Winner

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Justification: I chose this book for it's brilliantly rendered illustrations and wonderful message to children that you're never too young to try something new. If you dedicate yourself to your craft, you can master it. I'm also somewhat obsessed with brass jazz musicians is this blog series. I want to draw focus and attention to multicultural individuals in a way that represents cultural authenticity. This picture book is actually an autobiography written by Grammy-award winning artist Troy Andrews about his young life. It's rewarding for children to see a "real life" story in order to believe that something can be true and achievable.

Evaluation: Bryan Collier employs pen and ink, watercolor and collage in this stunning book about the life of Trombone Shorty in Tremé, New Orleans. The images elevate the text and tell a story all their own, as good illustrations should. The use of collage defines and develops the characters and the texture gives a three-dimensional quality to the illustration. Spectacularly, there are images that look like snippets of photographs, in particular Collier's images of balloons. Balloons feature frequently in this story: first we see small rubber helium balloons like the kind children would get at a park or a fair. As the story unfolds and Trombone Shorty grows in fame, notoriety and age, beautifully rendered hot air balloons are displayed across the page. These balloons are powered not by fire, but by the force of Trombone Shorty's horn. The first hot air balloon takes him high up in the sky over New Orleans and then, as he continues to grow more famous, the balloons take him all over the world as the reader sees the Eiffel Tower on the ground. The balloons in this story serve as a visual metaphor for growth and the lightness of being.

One of my favorite illustrations is on page 3. At the top of the page there are antiqued buttons which spell out "Tremé"----one letter for each button. Upon closer inspection, the buttons are actually repeating valve buttons on a trumpet. (Even though there are only three valve buttons on a trumpet, Collier takes creative license and expertly weaves musical imagery throughout the book). You can "see" the music in a form of literary synesthesia; there tightly coiled snakes emanating from the bell of the trombone representing the sound waves.

This book is an important one as it fills a need for more culturally diverse books. Written as an autobiography about his experience as an African American boy growing up in Tremé, New Orleans, Trombone Shorty and his friends fashioned their own instruments. They decided you don't need a "real instrument" to play music. Trombone Shorty is writing about his experience in a culturally authentic way that reflects his point of view. He shows that with dedication, perseverance, and a dream, children from any background or circumstance can achieve their dreams, too.

Conclusion: A historically accurate, culturally and musically rich book, Trombone Shorty

sets a good example for children to practice hard to achieve their dreams. A true story that provides an excellent role model for budding musicians and curious young minds alike, the picture book is a beautifully illustrated piece of art perfect for a read-aloud.

APA Reference: Andrews, T., Collier, B., (2015). Trombone Shorty. New York : Abrams Books for Young Readers.