BARN DANCE! - Hardcover

Bill Martin Jr.

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0001955918 ISBN 13: 9780001955912

Publisher: William Collins Sons & Co, 1987

Synopsis

In an old farmhouse, bathed in the light of a full moon, a young boy creeps to his bedroom window and looks outside. Was that a voice he just heard, or the hooting of an owl? There it is again:

Come a little closer...
Come a little closer...
Listen to the night...
There's music in the air...

Beckoned by the voice, the boy sneaks downstairs, out the door, and walks toward the barn. As he gets closer he hears the sweet sound of a country fiddler and the rhythmic thumping of dancing feet. But who could possibly be having a barn dance in the middle of the night?

About this title

About the Author:

Bill Martin, Jr. (1916-2004) was an elementary-school principal, teacher, writer, and poet. His more than 300 books, among them the bestselling classics Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?; Polar Bear, Polar Bear, What Do You Hear?; Panda Bear, Panda Bear, What Do You See?; and Chicka Chicka Boom Boom, are a testament to his ability to speak directly to children. Martin held a doctoral degree in early childhood education. Born in Kansas, he worked as an elementary-school principal in Chicago before moving to New York City, where he worked in publishing developing innovative reading programs for schools. After several years, he devoted himself full-time to writing his children's books. He lived in New York until 1993, when he moved to Texas. He lived in the east Texas woods, near the town of Commerce, until he passed away in 2004.

John Archambault is a poet, journalist, and storyteller who has collaborated with Bill Martin Jr. and Ted Rand on several books, including The Ghost-Eye Tree and Knots on a Counting Rope.

Ted Rand (1915-2005) was a prolific artist whose illustrations appeared in several magazines and newspapers, as well as in numerous books for children. He collaborated with both Bill Martin, Jr. and John Archambault on many books, including Here Are My Hands.

From School Library Journal:

Kindergarten-Grade 3 With a rhythmic cadence Martin and Archambault build their story from a quiet moonlit night when ``there's magic in the air'' to a very special foot stompin' party and back again. On this eerie night everyone is asleep except for the ``skinny kid with questions in his head.'' With him readers sneak out to the barn and hide just in time to see all the farm animals kick up their heels to the scarecrow's fiddle music. While the words are a delight to hear (albeit it's a bit hard to get the tongue around on some lines), Rand's pictures make the story come alive. The two-page spreads range from the barn standing ghost-like in the full moonlight to the colorful interior of the barn, where the figures seem to be in perpetual motion. An engaging blend of words and pictures to set both the mind and eye dancing. Judith Gloyer, Milwaukee Public Library
Copyright 1987 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About this edition

• Publisher: William Collins Sons & Co
• Publication date: 1987
• ISBN 10: 0001955918
• ISBN 13: 9780001955912
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 32