Hosea Plays On

Based on the true story of Hosea Missouri Taylor Jr., Hosea Plays On follows Hosea through a seemingly simple day: he leaves his house, greets a neighbor kid, takes the bus to the public market, and plays his saxophone outside his favorite coffee shop, wowing a crowd of onlookers who plop some tips in his velvet-lined case. But as the day and story ends, Hosea’s deeper contribution to the community emerges unexpectedly in a poignant act of kindness and generosity as he uses his earnings to gift a trumpet to the neighbor kid he first greeted, a selflessness readers realize he has actually repeated multiple times with other aspiring musicians. The skillful development of the storyline—complete with the suspense created by Hosea’s thought that “Maybe—just maybe—he would earn enough today” and culminating in a moment of epiphany and delight for the reader—stirs emotions and sparks inspiration. Rich descriptive phrases (“Hosea clomped down the steps and shuffled through brittle, dancing leaves.”) are hallmarks of the story and make for a beautiful reading experience. The illustrations, awash with vibrant colors and beautifully executed in a style distinctive to Evans, are playful and show that Evans remembers (as is forgotten too often in books based on true stories) that exact realism in illustrations can be overrated when presented with the opportunity to inspire and entertain.