Skip to main content

Itzhak: The Boy Who Loved the Violin

 


Written by: Tracy Newman
Illustrated by: Abigail Halpin
Abrams Books for Young Readers, 2020. Biography.

Before Itzhak Perlman became one of the world's best violinists, he was just a small boy who loved music. When he was four years-old he contracted Polio which left him crippled for life. Despite his many obstacles he never gave up on his love for the violin and music. He began studying the violin when he was five years-old. He would spend two to three hours a day practicing. During his practice he experimented with different bow techniques, bouncing his bow along the strings and seeing what kinds of sounds he could make plucking the strings. He would talk to the music and would imagine what the music would look like and what kind of personality it had. He became the music. By the age of 10 he was giving solo performances and when he was 13 he performed on the Ed Sullivan Show. After that performance "His life would never again be ordinary".

This is an inspiring story of a young man who was passionate about something he loved and who didn't let his disability keep him from sharing his passion with the world. This is a perfect introduction for anyone who wants to learn more about his life and rise to fame. The gorgeous illustrations and informative text along with the author's notes and timeline give readers a glimpse into his life. A perfect middle grade book for inspiring musicians.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Review: The Factory

The Factory By Catherine Egan New York, NY : Scholastic Inc., 2025. Fiction. 306 pages.  Thirteen-year-old Asher Doyle has been invited to join the Factory, a secretive research facility in the desert which ostensibly extracts renewable energy from the electromagnetic fields of its young recruits. But Asher soon realizes something sinister is going on. Kids are getting sick. The adults who run the Factory seem to be keeping secrets. And the extraction process is not only painful and exhausting, but existentially troubling. Asher makes a handful of new friends who help him with an investigation that turns into a resistance, which turns into...a cliffhanger! The Factory is a page-turning sci-fi with multidimensional characters, an intriguing plot, and refreshingly straight-forward writing. Egan weaves in detail about climate crises and social unrest, making the story's dystopian setting feel rich and plausible. With its sophisticated themes and accessible storytelling, I would recomm...

If You Like...KPop Demon Hunters

KPop Demon Hunters has been one of the most talked-about movies of the summer. If you loved this movie as much as I did, you don't want the magic (or the music) to stop. Try reading these books that touch on some of the same topics and themes as the animated hit! Brick Dust and Bones By M. R. Fournet New York: Feiwel and Friends, 2023. Fiction. 247 pages. Orphaned Marius works in the family business--as their cemetery's ghost caretaker. However, Marius also moonlights as a monster hunter in order to earn the costly Mystic currency he needs to bring his mother back from the dead. As the window to bring his mother back begins to close, Marius's exploits get more and more dangerous, and he may have set his sights on a monster too big to handle on his own. Like Mira, Marius longs for familial connection, and his work as a monster hunter will satisfy the thrill of demon hunting for fans the movie. Where's Halmoni? By Julie J. Kim Seattle, WA: Little Bigfoot, 2017. Comics. W...

Review: Finding Lost

Finding Lost By Holly Goldberg Sloan New York: Rocky Pond Books, 2025. Fiction. 208 pages. Middle schooler Cordy, along with her mom and little brother, Geno, are still learning how to adjust to their life after “The Accident,” a tragic boating accident that cost their father’s life. When Cordy is walking home from school one day, she finds a little stray dog who the family nicknames Lost, and as he joins their family, he helps them rediscover all of the beauty that life has to offer. Holly Goldberg Sloane delivers a heart-warming and poignant novel about loss, family, and perseverance. This was a well-written novel that could appeal to a wide range of readers. Any middle schooler will be able to relate to Cordy’s experience of dealing with change, and those who have experienced a similar loss will be sure to find solace in this beautiful story.