Ballet for Martha: Making Appalachian Spring

Author: Jan Greenberg and Sandra Jordan

Illustrator: Brian Floca

Peach's Picks Rating:
 


Year of publication: 2010

City of Publication: New York

Publisher: A Neal Porter Book: Roaring Brook Press

ISBN: 9781596433380

Author website:
Jan Greenberg available at http://mowrites4kids.drury.edu/authors/greenberg/
Sandra Jordan available at http://us.macmillan.com/author/sandrajordan
Jan Greenberg and Sandra Jordan available at http://www.jangreenbergsandrajordan.com/

Illustrator website: http://www.brianfloca.com/ChildrensBooks.html

Media used for illustration: Watercolor and pen and ink

Annotation: The story explains the collaborative creation of the ground-breaking ballet “Appalachian Spring”. It describes how Martha Graham’s choreography, Aaron Copland’s composition and Isamu Noguchi’s set design melded to create an American classic.

Personal reaction to the book: Personal reaction to the book: Beautifully crafted book that explains how three great artists were in the right place at the right time to create a classic dance performance. Some background information is give on each artist, but the focus is the creation of “Appalachian Spring”. The text reads like free-verse poetry and lends itself to being read aloud. The illustrations are clear, showing the strength of the dancers and the meaning of the ballet. A group of students can easily view the illustrations in a group setting. They can be enjoyed individually and examined for objects unique to the time period; e.g., seams down the legs of the hose worn by the woman on page 22. The dancers’ power is captured through the illustrations. Pair this book with a recording of Copland’s music. The pages are numbered, making it easy to reference pages. Extensive back matter is included at the conclusion of the story. This is a very interesting book giving the reader a glimpse into the creative process.

Further discussion of artwork:

In the book Children’s Literature in the Elementary schools, under the heading “The Picture Book Defined”, the authors states “These are books in which images and ideas join to form a unique whole. In the best picture books, the illustrations extend and enhance the written text, providing the reader with an aesthetic experience that is more than the sum of the book’s parts” (page 168). The illustrations created by Brian Floca for the book Ballet for Martha: Making Appalachian Spring extend and enhance the text offering an aesthetic experience. While the text alone tells the story of the creation of “Appalachian Spring”, the illustrations are necessary to complete the account. The ink and watercolor artwork flow with energy, extending and enhancing the text. They capture the fluidity and movement of the dancers and the drama of the performance. Floca capably shows the dancers’ postures and movements and the physicality of the dance by using ink lines and washes of watercolor. The reader feels as though they can hear the dancers’ breathing with emotion as they move about the stage, their feet hitting the floor keeping time to the rhythm of the music. The lines convey the movement and emotion of Graham’s chorography. The energetic artwork on page 29 uses lines to suggest the quick movement of the dancers illustrated through the flow of their clothing from their skirts to their sleeves. Through the illustrations the reader feels as though they were present at the October 30, 1944, presentation of the dance.

Reference

Huck, C. S., Helper, S., Hickmanm, J., & Kiefer, B. Z. (2001). Children’s literature in the elementary school (7^th ed). Boston: McGraw Hill.

General curricular connections:

• Dance classes – discussion of dance genres
• Martha Graham
• Aaron Copland
• Isamu Noguch
• Theater – set design

Specific example of curricular connection matched to State Standards:
Subject: Visual and Performing Arts / Dance
Grade level: 9-12

Standards:

California State Standards

California State Board of Education, Visual and Performing Arts: Dance Content Standards

Grade Nine through Twelve: Proficient

3.0 Historical and Cultural Context

History and Function of Dance

3.3 Explain how the works of dance by major choreographers communicate universal themes and sociopolitical issues in their historical/cultural contexts (e.g., seventeenth-century Italy, eighteenth-century France, the women's suffrage movement, dance in the French courts, Chinese cultural revolution).

Grade Nine through Twelve: Advanced

3.0 Historical and Cultural Context

3.2 Analyze the role dancers and choreographers play in the interpretation of dances in various historical and cultural settings.

Recommended grade levels:
School Library Journal recommends the book for grades 2-6
Booklist recommends the book for grades 2-4
Peach's Picks recommends the book for grades 3 and up

Awards/Recognitions:
 Booklist starred review
Horn Book starred review
Kirkus Review starred review
Library Media Connections starred review
Publishers Weekly starred review
School Library Journal starred review
ALA Notable Books for Middle Readers, 2011
NCTE Orbis Pictus Award, 2011
Sibert Honor, 2011 

Note: This entry applies to the assignment criteria to review books published during  2010-2011.

Simile: Page 20; “To the dancers the stage is like an obstacle course.”

Book cover picture retrieved from http://www.jangreenbergsandrajordan.com/