April is in full swing. Let’s make it musical! Looking for something fun and uplifting to enjoy this season? Turn up the tunes, try a new instrument, or explore the .stories behind your favorite songs. Check out these music-themed books and let the rhythm of a good book carry you away. Let’s make April sing!
YOUTH
These picture books may just inspire your little ones to clap along, sing some tunes, and discover the joy of music!
How to Sing a Song by Kwame Alexander and Randy Preston
Part poem, part song, all gorgeous picture book, How To Sing a Song by Kwame Alexander and Randy Preston invites the reader into the music from the first indrawn breath and the listening pause before the music begins to the upwelling of music from deep inside. Poetry lovers will love this book. Musicians will love this book. Families will love how this book captures so many everyday musical moments and makes the reader want to
hum along!
The Animal Song by Jonty Howley
With an upbeat sound and rhyming text, The Animal Song by Jonty Howley invites listeners to clap along as Crocodile, Bear, and Weasel try to find a place to play their music while all their friends want to sleep. Families with night owls will feel both sides of the story and love the twist at the end!
This beginning reader book will have young readers singing along as they dive into a fun, musical adventure with Clark the Shark!
Clark the Shark and the School Sing by Bruce Hale
Clark the Shark has a big problem! His class is going to sing one of his favorite songs for the school program, but his music teacher wants them to dance, too! Clark can sing. Clark can dance. But will Clark be able to figure out how to sing and dance at the same time in time for the big day?
Kids will discover melody and music in this exciting graphic novel—full of rhythm, songs, and toe-tapping fun!
Pizza and Taco: Rock Out! by Stephen Shaskan
Best friends Pizza and Taco have decided to start a band. They’ve got a plan—what else could they need? Oh wait…what about instruments, bandmates, music…Oh no, this may be more complicated than they thought!
Readers will dive into a world of music in this lively, easy-to-read chapter book.
Undercover in the Bow-Wow Club by Walker Styles
Famous dog detective, Rider Woofson, has a nose for clues and two ears perked for wrong notes in this awesome mystery adventure! When the instruments of famous musician David Bow-Wowie and his band are stolen right out of the club, the only thing to do is call for the best dog detective! Rider will have to brush up on his guitar skills if he is going to go undercover as a musician and catch the instrument thief!
Making music isn’t hard when you have help from these non-fiction titles!
And There Was Music by Marta Pantaleo
From childhood recorder lessons to neighborhood block parties, from stages to space stations, we sing, we dance, and we find music! And There Was Music is a vibrantly illustrated celebration of how music moves people and brings them together across the globe and beyond!
The Purple One: A Story of Prince by Matthew Burgess
Rock and roll through this fast moving, fascinating picture book biography of music legend Prince! From a childhood writing songs for friends to his smash hit record deal at 19, Prince’s life skyrocketed! Read all about his incredible triumphs in this fun kids’ biography.
TWEENS AND TEENS
From bands and concerts to discovering their own rhythm, these teen reads hit all the right notes.
Clayton Byrd Goes Underground by Rita Williams-Garcia
Clayton feels most alive when he’s playing music with his grandfather, Cool Papa Byrd, and the band of Bluesmen. He can’t wait to join them just as soon as he has a blues song of his own, but then the unthinkable happens.
Dropping Beats by Nathanael Lessore
Thirteen-year-old Growls (aka Shaun) is an aspiring (awful) rapper who hopes to enter this year’s Raptology competition with his best friend, Shanks (aka Zachariah). After all, what better way to land his crush (Tanisha) and get the respect he finally deserves than winning the contest and going viral? But when a livestream practice goes epically wrong, the two friends do go viral—and not in the way they’d hoped.
Boy Seeking Band by Steven Brezenoff
Terence Kato is a prodigy bass player, but he’s determined to finish middle school on a high note. Life has other plans. In eighth grade, he’s forced to transfer from a private arts school to a public school, where the kids seemingly speak a different language. Luckily, Terence knows a universal one: music. He sets out to build a rock band, and in the process, make a few friends. However, great music and great friendships aren’t always in harmony.
