Strike up the band, dear friends! It’s time to celebrate a new book!!! And how perfect that today, on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, we are sharing a book about community and coming together through music and song. I think Dr. King would have loved this book!

What a beautiful book! Written by one of my favorite kidlit peeps, Jyoti Rajan Gopal, and lovingly illustrated by Sonia Sanchez, and published by Candlewick.

Here’s a little bit about the book from the Amazon sales page:
In an ode to the power of music and community, this vibrantly illustrated picture book steps out on the balcony for a shared moment of spontaneous joy and celebration.

In a quiet neighborhood, a single note trills through the air. Another note joins, and then another. One by one, curious people are drawn to their windows, doorways, and balconies to support the medley. Professional musicians play instruments from around the world, while others bang pots and pans. All are welcome as the notes swirl and dip and crescendo, coming together to make one sweet song. And when the music fades and this diverse neighborhood is once again silent, the reverberations of unity remain. Written by a kindergarten teacher and inspired by the balcony singing in Italy during the pandemic—with a countdown from one to ten and back gently woven in—this rhythmic synergy of text and art is a buoyant, global-minded celebration of how music connects us, even in the darkest of times.

It’s a story about community and helping each other, with a counting layer added in…what could be better for our youngest lovers of stories!

I know that Jyoti is at Books of Wonder in NYC, celebrating the launch of this fabulous book. And I’m sorry we can’t all be there to support her. But we can help this book succeed! We can:
Buy the book
Review the book
Place the title on our Goodreads WANT TO READ shelf
Tell friends about the book (PLEASE share on social media)
Ask our local library to purchase copies for their collection.

I’ve put it on my Goodreads WANT TO READ shelf and I’ll review it on Amazon and I’m sharing it on my social media.
What can you do?

I hope you all have a beautiful week! Thank you for spending your precious time with us.