Blues Journey

Discover the blues' journey through love, loss, and hope in a vibrant artistic tribute.

4.1/5 Goodreads · 242 ratings

48 pages· 734 words· Est. 6 min read-aloud

$18.99Save 5%

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Bookroo's summary

Explore the soulful journey of the blues with a father-son duo. Through vivid art and poetic verses, they capture the essence of African American experiences from post-slavery to civil rights. Each page reveals a new layer of struggle, love, and resilience, inviting readers to feel the rhythm of history. What stories do the blues tell, and how do they resonate today? This book offers a rich tapestry of emotions and history, perfect for music lovers and art enthusiasts alike, deepening appreciation for this unique art form.

From the publisher

The blues aren’t all sad. There’s joy in the blues as well as heartbreak. Love discovered. Love lost. Love just around the corner. In this beautiful tribute to the poetry and art of the blues, renowned author Walter Dean Myers collaborates with his son, award-winning illustrator Christopher Myers, in a true masterpiece of picture book creation filled with struggle, grief, hope, joy, and love. Each original blues-style verse on a page calls out a response from the artist in striking tones of brown, black, white, and blue. Together, father and son weave an enchanting story of the creation of the blues through the experiences of African Americans from the end of slavery through the beginning of the civil rights movement. This book is for older children who love music and their parents who will appreciate the layered sophistication of the striking artwork and interplay between art and text. Includes an author’s note explaining the birth and development of the blues, a timeline of blues milestones, and an explanatory glossary of terms in the blues. Together this content deepens the appreciation for the blues as a truly original art form. A Lee Bennett Hopkins Poetry Award Honor book An ALA Notable bookHorn Book Fanfare SelectionKirkus Reviews Editor’s ChoiceNew York Public Library Book for the Teen AgeA Children’s Book of the Year, Child Study Children’s Book Committee at Bank Street College