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Music for Alice

ebook
1 of 1 copy available
1 of 1 copy available

As a girl, Alice loved to dance, but the rhythms of her life offered little opportunity for a foxtrot, let alone a waltz. World War II erupted soon after she was married. Alice and her husband, along with many other Japanese Americans, were forced to leave their homes and report to assembly centers around the country. Undaunted, Alice and her husband learned to make the most of every circumstance, from their stall in the old stockyard in Portland to the decrepit farm in the Oregon desert, with its field of stones. Like a pair of skilled dancers, they sidestepped adversity to land gracefully amid golden opportunity. Together they turned a barren wasteland into a field of endless flowers. Such achievements did not come without effort and sacrifice, though, and Alice often thought her dancing days were long behind her. But as her story testifies, life is full of changes . . .
In this striking book, Allen Say introduces readers to the remarkable story of the life of a woman whose perseverance and resilience serve as an inspirational reminder that dreams can be fulfilled, even when least expected.

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  • Reviews

    • Publisher's Weekly

      January 26, 2004
      Once again, Say (Home of the Brave
      ) practically takes one's breath away with the understated beauty of his watercolors. With a photo-like realism, he depicts Alice, an elderly Japanese-American woman, capturing every age spot and laugh line and making her radiant skin almost tactile. Her portrait telegraphs an inner peace and elegant beauty. Alice's story begins in California where, as a girl, she "loved dancing more than anything else." But after marrying, she embarks on a life of farming that allows little time for dancing. Say traces her uprooting during WWII, her ups and downs in the fields and the death of her husband. The narrative ends abruptly as the widowed, grieving Alice finds closure when she visits the farm she and her husband left 30 years before, finding it neglected and dilapidated. She declares, "Now I can dance!" The last image shows her dancing with a younger man, a scene that could profit from a bit more fleshing out ("And dance I do—all that I can"). Adults may respond best to this documentary-style life story. For example, the meaning of Alice's comment about their bustling farm ("What good is success if we can't enjoy ourselves?") may escape the picture-book audience. Nevertheless, fans of Say's artwork should relish these paintings. He accentuates the historical milieu with a palette of faded, often sepia tones and still, composed subjects who stare frankly at the audience—as though fully aware of the camera turned on their ordinary but eventful lives. All ages.

    • School Library Journal

      April 1, 2004
      Gr 3 Up-Life changes drastically for Alice when World War II breaks out. Like many other Japanese Americans living on the West Coast, she and her husband are forced from their home. They choose to work as farm hands rather than be sent to an internment camp. Together, they overcome every indignity and challenge that come their way, and eventually build the largest gladiola bulb farm in the country. Say relates the true story of Alice Sumida in an understated and eloquent style. Alice's childhood love of dancing is deftly woven into the imagery of the text. As in much of his work, the masterful illustrations provide an emotional depth not always evident in the narration. The overall design, resembling a family photo album, accentuates the book as personal history. The detailed portraits and soft colors of the farm give way to drab hues and figures with nondescript features and wide-brimmed hats that hide their eyes and their identities-symbolic of the plight of Japanese Americans during the war. The final pictures of a now elderly Alice depict the spirit and dignity that her life story suggests. Although the book has much to recommend it, it may have more limited appeal than some of Say's earlier works. It is not as personal as Grandfather's Journey (1993) or Tea with Milk (1999, both Houghton). Many young readers may lack the perspective to relate to a tale that spans decades and deals with such complex themes. Still, with proper introduction, this offering will be appreciated by sensitive and sophisticated youngsters.-Heide Piehler, Shorewood Public Library, WI

      Copyright 2004 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

    • Booklist

      February 1, 2004
      Gr. 4-7. From the close-up jacket portrait of an elderly Japanese American woman to the final view of her ballroom dancing before a black-tie audience, this picture book, based on a true-life story, will appeal more to adults than kids, though some young readers will respond to the history and the understated, first-person account of trouble and courage. The first painting, repeated on the back cover, is a sepia-tone view of Alice as a Japanese American child, dreaming of music and dance on a California farm. She marries, and the World War II roundups follow, with a haunting view of her and her husband in the crowd, labeled like luggage. Instead of being sent to internment camp, they are allowed to grow food for the war effort. Their first harvest is "a harvest of stones," but they go on to make the desert bloom and eventually become the largest gladiola bulb growers in the country. One glorious picture shows them in a huge field of flowers. The drama is quiet. As always with Say, the exquisite watercolors tell an American story.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2004, American Library Association.)

    • The Horn Book

      July 1, 2004
      The fortitude of Japanese Americans uprooted during World War II takes an unusual form in this story of Alice Sumida, who becomes the largest gladiola bulb grower in the country. In this book, there is more variety of pictorial expression than is usual in Say's work, and a telling conjunction of his feeling for character and for the landscape of the American West.

      (Copyright 2004 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)

Formats

  • OverDrive Read
  • EPUB ebook

Languages

  • English

Levels

  • ATOS Level:4
  • Interest Level:4-8(MG)

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