{"product_id":"the-one-about-the-blackbird-isbn-9781774882665","title":"The One About the Blackbird","description":"\u003cb\u003eA gorgeous picture book about the connections created through music, and how music can reach loved ones with dementia.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eA young boy learns to play guitar from his grandfather, and the one about the blackbird is their favorite song. Years later, the boy visits his grandfather, and while his grandfather doesn't recognize him, now grown-up, he does still remember how to hold a guitar.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eA beautiful full circle moment ensues when the boy plays his grandfather their favorite song.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe moving text and dynamic, gorgeous art celebrate the connection that music can create between two people and the joy that music, and the shared love of it, can bring at any age.\u003cb\u003eOne of CBC Books' Best Canadian Children's Books of 2025\u003cbr\u003eA \u003ci\u003eGlobe and Mail\u003c\/i\u003e Best Kids Book of 2025\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"An instrument unites loved ones for a truly emotional effect across this time-spanning story. . . . With repeated phrasing and symbols, Florence’s careful prose captures the strength of the pair’s bond, and the way music can help to power memory, even amid its loss.\" \u003cb\u003e—STARRED REVIEW, \u003ci\u003ePublishers Weekly\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"Mature-enough elementary schoolers should be touched by this understated heart tugger, but readers of any age will appreciate James’ mixed-media art, centered on a couple of long-limbed, tan-skinned guys who share, along with a love of music, unkempt hairstyles across the decades. . . . A hymn to intergenerational ties.\" \u003cb\u003e—\u003ci\u003eKirkus Reviews\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\"[A] quiet and gentle picture book in which a young boy wishes to learn guitar from his grandfather. . . . Florence’s words are soothing, and James’s illustrations work wonderfully with the text; muted warm colors bring the simplicity a story like this needs to thrive. Perhaps this is best for the shelves intended to help grandparents seeking to connect with the young generation.\" \u003cb\u003e—\u003ci\u003eSchool Library Journal\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\"The mix of materials in the collage and acrylic paintings gives a dimensional appearance to some of the pictures, enhancing the visual interest. . . . This gentle story will be appreciated for the warm intergenerational bond it depicts.\" \u003cb\u003e—\u003ci\u003eBooklist\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\"Melanie Florence helps us see that change does not mean loss, just a reconfiguration that can be just as rich as the original. . . . Whether the boy is hanging out with his grandfather, struggling to hold a guitar, or showing his grandfather how to move his fingers into position, Matt James makes us feel the effort of their attachment. The emotion in their struggles and their joys jump from the page, reflected in their faces, their body language, and their actions.\" \u003cb\u003e—\u003ci\u003eCanLit for LittleCanadians\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003eMELANIE FLORENCE \u003c\/b\u003eis an award-winning writer based in Toronto. She is the author of the picture book \u003ci\u003eMissing Nimâmâ\u003c\/i\u003e, which won the TD Canadian Children's Literature Award, the Forest of Reading Golden Oak Award and was a finalist for the First Nation Communities READ award. Her other picture book, \u003ci\u003eStolen Words\u003c\/i\u003e, won the Ruth and Sylvia Schwartz Children's Book Award, was shortlisted for the Marilyn Baillie Picture Book Award, and was given a starred review by \u003ci\u003eKirkus\u003c\/i\u003e, who listed it as one of the best picture books of 2017 to give readers strength.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eMATT JAMES\u003c\/b\u003e has won many awards for his picture books such as the Boston Globe–Horn Book Award, the Marilyn Baillie Picture Book Award, the New Mexico Book Award and the Governor General’s Literary Award for Children's Literature. The books he has written include \u003ci\u003eTadpoles\u003c\/i\u003e; \u003ci\u003eNice Try, Charlie!;\u003c\/i\u003e and his author-illustrator debut \u003ci\u003eThe Funeral\u003c\/i\u003e, which was named a \u003ci\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/i\u003e\/New York Public Library Best Illustrated Children's Book. He also illustrated \u003ci\u003eWhen the Moon Comes\u003c\/i\u003e by Paul Harbridge; \u003ci\u003eThe Stone Thrower\u003c\/i\u003e by Jael Ealey Richardson; and \u003ci\u003eI’m Afraid, Said the Leaf\u003c\/i\u003e by Danielle Daniel.","brand":"Tundra Books","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":48233724018917,"sku":"NP9781774882665","price":18.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1842\/7735\/files\/9781774882665.jpg?v=1767740799","url":"https:\/\/k12savings.com\/es\/products\/the-one-about-the-blackbird-isbn-9781774882665","provider":"K12savings","version":"1.0","type":"link"}