Tag: music

Caramel reviews Pokko and the Drum by Matthew Forsythe

Today Caramel reviews a neat picture book first published in 2019: Pokko and the Drum by Matthew Forsythe. As usual Sprinkles is taking notes and asking questions.

Caramel reviews Pokko and the Drum by Matthew Forsythe.
Caramel reviews Pokko and the Drum by Matthew Forsythe.

Sprinkles: So Caramel, I see we have a neat picture book to talk about today.  

Caramel: Yes we do! It is about a frog named Pokko. 

S: Okay, so tell us a bit about Pokko. 

C: Pokko is a frog who was gifted a drum by her parents (bad idea on their part).

S: Why would that be a bad idea? And I think that is actually the very first sentence of the book, right?

C: Yeah, it was something along the lines of “The biggest mistake Pokko’s parents made was giving her a drum”. And it is later said (two pages later) that the reason is because the drum kept them from focusing, or really doing anything.

S: So the mom keeps trying to read, right? And a drum would be kind of loud I suppose. Remember how you played the trumpet for a while. That was loud. 

C: I at least had a thingy to make it quieter. I don’t think you can make drums quiet. 

S: That is true. Okay, so she is loud and so her dad suggests that she take it outside, right? 

C: Yes. And she does. But then she starts making some noise,or music I suppose. Then another animal joins her, and she plays louder. Then another joins her, again, and again, and by the time the sun sets, she has a whole band of animals following her and making music together, and they are so loud, the noise reaches her parents, all the way back in their home.

S: That sounds cool! So she makes friends with her music, right?

C: Yeah, it sounds cool, until a band member, a wolf, eats another one, a bunny.

S: Wait, that sounds kind of worrisome. 

C: Yes, it could be but in the book it is rather funny. Pokko scolds the wolf, saying that he can’t keep eating band members. The book is really funny. 

S: Wait, a wolf eats a bunny and you find that funny? 

C: Hmm, when you put it that way, as a bunny I should feel a bit concerned about the bunny who is eaten. But in the book Pokko scolds the wolf and the wolf behaves after that. And we move on. 

S: I see. I guess bad things happen in other books, too, and this is meant more as a funny thing rather than a tragedy.. 

C: Yep. 

Caramel is reading Pokko and the Drum by Matthew Forsythe.
Caramel is reading Pokko and the Drum by Matthew Forsythe.

S: Alright. So I read in another review that this book was about the power of “marching to the beat of your own drum”. Do you agree?

C: Yeah, I could see that. She is after all playing her own drum as she likes, and she keeps walking, and others join her beat. It is exactly like that actually!

S: So do you think there is a moral to the story?

C: I did not read it for a moral, it is really funny, and I did not tell you half of all the funny lines. But if I need to think about a moral, hmm, let me think… Maybe it is like you said, march to the beat of your own drum and you will find your friends and your own place in the world?

S: That makes sense.

C: And maybe your parents might try to hold you down, and just don’t let them?

S: Okay, maybe that is going a bit too far. After all the parents were the ones who got her the drum. 

C: Yeah, you’re right, that was maybe a little ridiculous.

S: But then again, they did try to suppress her music, so you do have a point Caramel. Sometimes even usually supportive parents might feel the children are going too far, making too loud music, and so on. And then maybe it is okay to push a little. Maybe. 

C: Maybe. And she does not disrespect the parents. Just continues to play her drum. She is making music. And music is beautiful. 

S: Yes. Agreed! Okay, so you thought this was really funny, you even read some of the lines out loud to me. Tell me now a bit about the illustrations. It seems the author is also the person who illustrated the book.

C: Yes. They are really funny. And they are very good at showing the characters’ feelings. You see how happy Pokko is when she gets the drum, for example.

S: I looked through the pages of the book, and thought the illustrations were funny and very lively. The colors are warm, and each page is quite a lot of fun to look at. So all in all, you enjoyed this book, right?

C: Very much so. I don’t get to read too many picture books anymore, but when I do, this is the kind of book I love. Funny and fun!

S: Okay, Caramel. I think this is a good place to end our review. 

C: Sure. 

S: What do you want to tell our readers?

C: Stay tuned for more book bunny reviews!

Caramel enjoyed reading Pokko and the Drum by Matthew Forsythe and recommends it to all little bunnies looking for a fun story about a little frog who loves music.
Caramel enjoyed reading Pokko and the Drum by Matthew Forsythe and recommends it to all little bunnies looking for a fun story about a little frog who loves music.

Caramel reviews Somebody to Love by Valerie June

The book bunnies’ household is very rarely without music, but the bunnies have not really reviewed too many books that engage with it. The one main exception is Change Sings: A Children’s Anthem written by poet Amanda Gorman and illustrated by Loren Long, which was reviewed by Caramel about a year ago, and involved music at its heart. Today Caramel reviews another picture book, Somebody to Love, written in 2022 by the singer Valerie June and illustrated by Marcela Avelar, which has music all throughout.

The book bunnies received this book as a review copy.

Caramel reviews Somebody to Love written by Valerie June and illustrated by Marcela Avelar.
Caramel reviews Somebody to Love written by Valerie June and illustrated by Marcela Avelar.

Sprinkles: Caramel, here we are. Yet again, talking about a new book. What do you want to tell us about this one?

Caramel: This is a book about a banjolele.

S: What’s that?

C: It’s like a ukulele mixed with a banjo. It is a small musical instrument with four strings. And there is a girl in the book named Valerie June who is given one of these instruments.

S: So this is the author, right?

C: I think so. She is a singer and she wrote this book about a song she sings with her banjolele called “Somebody to Love”. Can we put a video of her singing her song here?

S: Sure Caramel. Here it is:

Valerie June sings “Somebody to Love” (2013, YouTube).

S: Do you like the song Caramel?

C: Yes she has a beautiful voice.

S: How about the banjolele?

C: Yes. It has a very distinctive voice.

S: I know you are a lot more musical than me Caramel. But even I could appreciate her voice. And the single instrument makes the piece focus a lot more on her voice I think. But do you think she wrote the book to just have more people learn about her and her song?

C: Maybe. Who knows? But I think she wrote it because she wanted to tell people the story of her banjolele.

S: How so?

C: In the book Valerie takes the banjolele to a park to play music with other people. But the banjolele is too weak and cannot sing a whole song. But technically she should be able to strum and make the sounds she wants so it cannot be the banjolele who is not able to sing so I am not sure I understand.

S: Well, I think it is a bit more symbolic than that.

C: I guess that makes a lot more sense. But what could she mean by the banjolele not being able to sing long enough? Only humans and birds can sing.

S: Well, tell us what happens when the banjolele cannot sing. Maybe that will help us figure it out.

C: She gets embarrassed and puts it away for a very very long time.

S: But then …

C: She finds it again and somehow it plays then and a whole song too. And finally Valerie and the banjolele can sing together.

S: And that is the “Somebody to Love” song, right?

C: Yep.

Caramel is reading Somebody to Love written by Valerie June and illustrated by Marcela Avelar.
Caramel is reading Somebody to Love written by Valerie June and illustrated by Marcela Avelar.

S: So the banjolele had a dream, a song to sing, but at the beginning it could not live up to its dreams. And nobody stood up for it, everyone made fun of it. Right?

C: Yes, but in the end, Valerie gave it another chance and they could sing together.

S: So what happened to the dream of the banjolele?

C: It became a reality. The banjolele became famous. And now people listen to it and Valerie sing together.

S: So what do you think the book is really about?

C: Dreams! You can have dreams and people do not always support you, but you can still hold on to them!

S: Yes, I think so!

C: Hmm, and it makes a lot more sense now, because at the end, there is a whole page listing proverbs about dreams from many different places. My favorite is the Mexican one, which is Soñar no cuesta nada. It means dreams don’t cost a thing.

S: I like that!

C: Yes. So dreaming does not cost you anything, so you can have as many dreams as you want, and some of them will come true as long as you believe in them.

S: I like that too!

C: At the end of the book there is a part where the author talks to the reader about Martin Luther King Jr. and his “I have a dream” speech.

S: What do you know about that speech?

C: I know it moves a lot of people and people should have listened to him more. But he does talk about dreaming for a better America.

S: And Valerie June says that as a black woman artist she learned the power of dreams from him. So she wrote this book to tell young bunnies all about having dreams and believing in them.

C: I think I understand the book much better now.

S: I think we both do. So how would you describe the book in three words?

C: Colorful, musical, and dreamy.

S: I like those words Caramel! So I think this is a good time to wrap up this review. What do you want to tell our readers?

C: Stay tuned for more book bunny reviews!

Caramel enjoyed reading Somebody to Love written by Valerie June and illustrated by Marcela Avelar and listening to the song with the same name. He recommends the book to all little bunnies who have a dream but are scared they won't be able to achieve it.
Caramel enjoyed reading Somebody to Love written by Valerie June and illustrated by Marcela Avelar and listening to the song with the same name. He recommends the book to all little bunnies who have a dream but are scared they won’t be able to achieve it.