13th December World Violin Day

Unfortunately there is no one at school to celebrate Violin Day. We are already on summer holidays, but at my school all of Year 2 take part in a 'strings program' where they learn to play the violin or cello. When they first begin, being in the room next door at school, is excruciating but by the time the end of year concert comes round I am amazed at how good they sound, so next year when the Year 2 students are allocated their new instrument I am going to do a display in the library of all these wonderful 'violin' books.
• Patrick by Quentin Blake. When Patrick plays his violin extraordinary things happen.
• Zin! Zin! Zin! A Violin by Lloyd Moss and Marjorie Priceman among other things this is a fun introduction to the orchestra
• A Violin for Elva by Mary Lyn Ray and Tricia Tusa. Elva wants a violin but her parents say no.
• The Pear Violin by Bingbo and Gumi. A clever squirrel turns half a pear into a violin and makes beautiful music in the forest.
• Hana Hashimoto: Sixth Violin by Chieri Uegaki and Qin Leng. Hana has had three violin lessons when she decides to enter a talent quest.
• The Man with the Violin by Kathy Stinson and Dusan Petricic tells the story of Joshua Bell, a famous classical violinist who gave a free concert in a subway in Washington.
• The Violin Man  by Colin Thompson is about Oscar who plays his violin outside a theatre but longs to play inside the theatre.
• The Anzac Violin by Jennifer Beck and Robyn Belton is the true story of New Zealand soldier, Alexander Aitken who took his violin everywhere he went.
• Ada's Violin by Susan Hood and Sally Were Comport tells the amazing story of a group of children who play musical instruments built from recycled rubbish in Paraguay.
• The Magic Violin by Victor Kelleher. Jimbo plays the violin just like Year 2 do at the beginning...terribly.
• Kizmet and the Case of the Smashed Violin  by Frank Woodley is a short chapter book that has Kizmet trying to find out who is smashed a priceless Stradivarius violin.

9th December Jean de Brunhoff (1899 - 1937) Jennifer Beck (1939)

Jean de Brunhoff is the French writer and illustrator responsible for the beloved green elephant, Babar. His wife, Cecile told a story to their second son, Mathieu when he was sick and Jean took it and turned it into a book. It was considered radical in 1932 when it was published. He went on to write five more Babar stories before dying a very early death in 1937 aged only 37. His older son Laurent then continued the Babar series of books. Some of the Babar stories have been in print ever since, their cursive writing and unique storytelling either being loved or considered controversial. The television series have helped to popularise Babar with modern children.

Jennifer Beck is a New Zealand author who has worked as both a teacher and a psychologist. She has written many books worth exploring, but three that I have used this year are The Bantam and the Soldier, a story I often give to children who have really enjoyed In Flanders Fields, as it too looks at the human side of war and how soldiers feel about things other than fighting. It won the NZ picture book of the year award in 1997. A good read for now is The Christmas Caravan. It is about Simon, a boy who lives in a caravan park. The local council is hosting a competition for the best decorated house. Simon decorates the caravan using found objects as his mother cannot afford to buy decorations. This is a lovely Christmas story because it emphasises how Christmas is about more than material possessions. And

lastly, a more recent book, Stefania's Dancing Slippers which is a beautiful multi-layered book about Stefania, a Polish orphan who is sent to NZ in 1944. It is illustrated by Lindy Fisher.