From the Idea Box: Books about the Beatles
This past week, I pulled an anonymous suggestion from the Idea Box in our Children’s Room asking that we get more books on The Beatles. The writing was clearly a child’s, and I took an instant liking to this youngster who, it seems, has excellent taste in music. It’s one of those suggestions I wanted to respond to right away.
Sadly, there aren’t a lot of books in the system about The Beatles for kids, nor is there much currently in print that I can add to the collection. Still, we have a few things worth mentioning.
John’s Secret Dreams: The Life of John Lennon by Doreen Rappaport, illustrated by Bryan Collier
I’m a big fan of Doreen Rappaport’s picture book biographies. She does an excellent job of finding what a child can understand in a complex adult personality, and she creates a book that is faithful to the individual’s spirit while also being engaging and appropriate for children. That’s certainly what she’s done in this book about John Lennon. Combined with Bryan Collier’s lovely illustrations, it’s a nice read for children and adults alike.
The Beatles (Getting to Know the World’s Greatest Composers series) by Mike Venezia
I like the Getting to Know the World’s Greatest Composers series from Children’s Press. They aren’t artful, but they are carefully written and engaging. Judging from handwriting alone, it’s probably a good choice for the youngster who asked the question.
All You Need is Love: Beatles Songs for Kids
This is a CD, actually, one that has circulated like crazy here at WPL, and, I should note, one I don’t particularly like. It’s by Music for Little People, a company that specializes in producing recordings of children singing songs–in this case, some of The Beatles greatest hits. The recordings are okay, I guess, but why wouldn’t you just play The Beatles singing their own songs? I mean, they’re kid-appropriate. They’re widely available. They’re awesome. I can’t wrap my mind around this one, but I thought I’d mention it even so.
April 1, 2008 at 10:18 am
Hi, Adrienne,
GREAT blog! Y’know, the lack of children’s books about the Beatles is still a mystery to me. Even when I was a little kid in the mid-70s, there was exactly *one* book on the Fab Four in my hometown library, one of those generic info books that kinda dumbed down the information and used grainy black-and-white photos … blech! Hey, little music fans wanna know!
April 6, 2008 at 2:11 am
Oh, thanks Warren–right back at you. I find a lot of great CDs for our collection through Children’s Music that Rocks.
It’s funny that there are approximately four hundred million books for kids on, say, sharks, but then there are so few on so many other topics–like The Beatles–that would be really interesting. Not to knock the shark books, but I think a lot of kids like nonfiction more than is reflected in what winds up getting published.