Fiction

Thomas the Tank Engine: It is Great to Be an Engine (Interactive Music Book) (Thomas & Friends)

"It is Great to Be an Engine" plays five songs for children to sing while telling tales about Thomas the Tank Engine and the other trains in the station.

The Dog Who Sang at the Opera

The true story of a dog who outsang a diva at the Metropolitan Opera!

When Pasha, a vain wolfhound, gets a role at the opera house, she loves the limelight so much that she looks down her nose at Sluggo, a mutt clown dog. Lost in fantasies of herself as the true queen of the opera, Pasha begins to sing on stage! Reprimanded behind the scenes, Pasha finds that her only fans are Sluggo-and the newspaper that makes her, finally, the star she's always believed her-self to be.

Inspired by a true story from New York City's Metropolitan Opera, this enchanting book will appeal to dog lovers, opera lovers, and anyone with a sense of humor. It includes the original New York Times article and a letter from Renée Fleming, the prima donna who was upstaged by a pooch-but turned out to be a dog lover who thought the singing canine had given her a run for her money! AUTHOR BIO: Jim West and Marshall Izen are highly regarded puppeteers who were performing in the opera Manon when the incident that inspired this book took place. Jim continues to travel extensively, performing for children. Erika Oller is well known through her books with Lesléa Newman and her popular line of gift items featuring happy, rotund ladies.

Yellow Submarine

A whole new generation will be climbing aboard this sunny, psychedelic
storybook, while nostalgic Beatles fans of all ages will be clamoring for a ticket to ride.

Once upon a time (or maybe twice), some 80,000 leagues beneath the sea, there lay a colorful land of song and laughter called Pepperland, where Sergeant Pepper's Band was always playing your song — until the Blue Meanies burst on the scene and chased all the music and magic away. So began the classic 1968 film Yellow Submarine, inspired by a song and hailed as an avant-garde amalgam of pop art, Beatles music, and highly innovative animation. Now that film's dazzling images — and its lighthearted, witty tale — is showcased in a glorious picture book sure to be savored by fans and readers of all ages.

Bats on Parade

Up marched the saxophones,
all 25 --
sopranos and altos
they come five by five

The creators of Bat Jamboree, which School Library Journal called "a witty combination of counting book and theatrical experience," are proud to introduce -- 385 marching band bats!From the drum majorette, who marches 1 X 1, to the sousaphones striding 10 X 10, these bats march in multiples to the tune of Kathi Appelt's snappy text and Melissa Sweet's boisterous illustrations.

A Mother's Gift

Holly Faye Lovell sure can sing. Everyone in Biscay, Mississippi, knows that. And when at fourteen she becomes the youngest student ever to win a scholarship to the prestigious Haverty School of Music, her dream of pursuing a singing career is on its way. But for the first time in her life, Holly must leave behind her mother, Wanda. Although they don’t have much in the way of money, there’s always been plenty of love . . . and there’s always been Wanda’s birthmark, an ugly red scar on the side of her face that makes people who don’t know her turn away. Now that Holly's off with her posh new friends and new life, she’s ashamed to find herself embarrassed by her mom and their humble background. And Wanda finds herself wanting to reveal a long-hidden secret . . . a secret that could destroy their bond forever.

A portion of the proceeds from this book will go to The Britney Spears Foundation.


From the Hardcover edition.

Worst Band in the Universe

Australian author and illustrator Graeme Base's books are all musical, but The Worst Band in the Universe (with its accompanying 25-minute CD) clearly trumpets the loudest... in a Blippian sort of way. Like The Eleventh Hour, The Sign of the Seahorse, and Animalia, Worst Band takes place in a nonhuman context, this time in a dystopian planetary system far from Earth.

The premise is this: Sprocc, expert at the guitarlike splingtwanger, has the creative itch to write songs. But alas, his planet, Blipp, has strict creative rules about music. All songs must come directly from tradition, so Sprocc's desire to "call the tune... or else forsake the stage" leads to his exile from Blipp and a variety of galactic run-ins with authority. This includes the "Worst Band in the Universe" contest which, of course, is actually a best band contest that takes him deeper into dismal realms. Sprocc sharpens his musical delivery, hooks up with another long-time Blipp exile, and eventually the planet is freed from the rigorous creative restrictions with a mix of innovation and tradition.

In the tangle of rhyming couplets and fantastical illustrations is plenty of food for thought. On a purely musical level, The Worst Band in the Universe is an instructive volume, complete with a CD of Blippian music. It's a profound creation, conjured so that its ingredients will reward scrutiny. (Ages 7 and older) --Andrew Bartlett

Castigated for defying tradition and playing an original tune on his Splingtwanger, thirteen-year-old Sprocc leaves Planet Bipp in search of musical freedom and enters the annual Worst Band in the Universe Competition. Includes a CD of songs supposedly recorded by the bands in the story.

Winnie the Pooh: Sweet Dreams (Interactive Music Book) (Disney's Winnie the Pooh)

Make bedtime stories even more special with this glow-in-the-dark Winnie the Pooh nightlight book. When a song button is pressed the star-shape nightlight turns on and music plays. The star glows in the dark long after the song ends.

The Singing Chick

A newborn chick can't help but break into song. After all, the springtime world is just so beautiful. "The sky is so blue!" he sings. "The sun is yellow! The trees are so green! And I'm a happy fellow." The singing chick barely peeps the last peep of his perky little song when he encounters a lip-smacking fox who swallows the fluffy bird in one gulp. Suddenly, the fox's tummy feels funny and, much to his dismay, a song bursts forth from his throat, "The sky is so blue! The sun is so yellow!..." Why did I say that? he wonders. And on it goes with the fox meeting (and being eaten by) a hungry wolf, who in turn is eaten by a grumpy bear. Each animal finds itself with a song not in its heart but in its belly. Children love this breed of food-chain folly, especially when all the animals tumble out alive and whole. Narrators, too, will adore mimicking the chick's squeaky little song that erupts from each increasingly gruff beast. Illustrator Randy Cecil (Dear Dr. Sillybear and Little Red Cowboy Hat) provides just the right colorful, expressive, and funny-faced artwork to accompany Victoria Stenmark's clever and silly springtime story. (Ages 3 to 6) --Gail Hudson

The Song of Six Birds

When Lindiwe's mother first presents her with a flute, the young girl can hardly wait to play beautiful music on it. What a disappointment that the flute is empty and can only make a sound that causes the dog to howl! Fortunately, Lindiwe knows where to find music for her flute. She catches the trumpeting mahem of the crane, the bright tock-tocki-tock of the hornbill--even the soft doo-doo-doo of the shy rainbird. With the song of six birds filling her new flute, Lindiwe hurries home, gathering the people of her village with the irresistible tune that she plays.

Rene Deetlefs, one of South Africa's most beloved children's book authors, has given this story an authentic voice and a lively rhythm that make it perfect for reading aloud. The lyrical text is complemented by Lyn Gilbert's brilliantly colored paintings of a busy, loving community and a soulfully musical young girl who knows exactly how to capture the sweet melodies of her homeland.

Sylvester, The Mouse with the Musical Ear

Displaced from his meadow home, a musical mouse finds unusual lodging and a new career.