Before John Was a Jazz Giant

Before John Was a Jazz Giant is written by Carol Boston Weatherford and illustrated by San Qualls. It was a Coretta Scott King winner.

Weatherford, C.B. & Qualls, S. (2008). Before John Was a Jazz Giant. New York: Henry Holt and Company.

This story takes place in the South during the 1930s and describes John Coltrane before he was a jazz legend. Young John hears many sounds that guide him to music: family members playing instruments, sounds in nature and the world surrounding him, singing in choirs and the music on the radio. One day John picks up a saxophone and begins to blow; turning all of the sounds he has heard into music. The text has a repetitive “music in the language” that lulls you while you read.  

Illustration:

The illustrations are vibrant and bold, yet simple. They enhance the text on each page  by offering  the reader and wonderful visual image of what the text is describing.